Caray, Caray!

Oh Carlos...what a fabulous job you did. Love the pics. Hard to decide who's cuter, Ximena or Bonne Belle.

No exciting news this week. We were supposed to go down to Charlotte last weekend but my husband got a summer cold, so we're aiming for this weekend.

Other than that, was at a meeting last night at church and an earnest young man was surprised to hear I'd been a reporter at one time...he didn't know they let women work in that field at THAT TIME!!?? Definitely will have to look into Botox; l'Oreal can only do so much.

Amidst much confusion, he explained that his bride worked at Batelle and there were very few women's bathrooms in the original building because the powers that be assumed there wouldn't be any women engineers or scientists. Just secretaries, and if they had to walk several flights of stairs to find a restroom, so be it.

Interesting.
 

Judy, please don't Botox yourself. You MUST retain the ability to raise an eyebrow in a manner both disbelieving and scathing at young men who say such things. I am no history buff myself, but I'm fairly certain ladies have been reporters since long before you were on the scene.

That reminded me that last year I was at the site of a building under construction, and one of the developers, a chauvinistic old-boys'-club type whom I can't stand, asked who engineered the shearwalls. I said I did, and he snickered and said, "I didn't think girls could do that." He was always saying stuff like that to me, so I was used to it, but my male coworker who overheard was shocked. I bet the old dude only let the architect put ladies' restrooms in the building because it's a code requirement.
 

Carlos, those are great pictures; thanks for posting. Happy Birthday to Bonne Belle.

I miss Ximena. How soon can we get Casada Con Dos Hermanos on the air?

Jeff: Holy cannoli, I hope you saw the ending of Tormenta. That bee-sting demise was BRILLIANT. Definitely an award-worthy makeup job. What a touching deathbed chat with her son, also.
 

Thanks for posting your great pictures, Carlos. I hope you, Bonne Belle, and the lovely Linda had a memorable celebration.

Greetings Judy. I admire your stamina on the two hour Hasta. Congratulations on your son graduating. I must echo Julia comments; Don't do Botox! If for no other reason than to raise an eyebrow or roll your eyes in disgust at the foolish things young people say ;)

Julia - While I didn't follow the show consistently I did watch the last week of Tormenta and the bee sting death was brilliant! They get an A for originality for villain death.
 

Carlos~~~Great photos. Happy birthday to Bonnie Belle. Even though I was not a Gancho devotee, I love you guys and have missed you. Judyb~~~I wish you had said something scathing to that fresh, young wippersnapper. This semester, I had a couple young guys who did a lot for my self esteem. I got flowers the last day of class. The best line ever was from my biggest fan, a 19 year-old who told me ''I don't care how old you are. I like you.'' I'm still debating in my mind if that was a compliment. I guess it was because he asked to have his photo taken with me and came back for one last hug on the last day of class. Getting older has it's rewards. People offer to carry your books and erase the blackboard for you. Julia~~~Those comments to you sound like sexual harrassent to me. I had to take a minicourse on it , and today, you must be very careful what you say to people.
 

Julia, I probably would've peered out from under my eyebrows and quietly asked him, "Do you really feel that threatened by women?"

It's a variation on the basic "Insecure people always say/do things like that." The great thing about that kind of line is that it connects his insults to feelings of inferiority, so that every time he insults you he will be, on some level, admitting he feels inferior.
 

Judy,

Tres cosas:
Una. Ximena's cute but she's no Bonnie Belle.

Dos. Fix Mr. Judy a hot toddy. He'll feel better... instantly.

Tres. Forget Botox... avoid earnest young men.

Julia,

I'm impressed. I don't even know what a shearwall is.

Susanlynn,

There's no age limits at club Gancho. Well, maybe a minimum age for the Scotch and Bourbon.

Karen,

Thanks. We celebrated with mint juleps and Milkbones.

Paula,

At which point I'd have probably wet my pants.

Carlos
 

Carlos,

Bonnie Belle is so lucky to have a wonderful family like you and Linda. She needs to thank her lucky stars that her path collided with yours....and I'm sure the reverse is true as well.

JudyB we should form a No Botox support group. When one of those little age "comments" comes our way, we'll just text or email each other for support. Then we'll all tell one another how great and young we look, presto...we'll feel better.
 

No one need ever tell me I look young. When I am old, I plan to look OLD. That way, I can get away with anything and properly scare kids who walk on my lawn. Maybe by then I will have a lawn.

Paula, I usually just either stare imperiously or roll my eyes. If the guy wasn't our client I'm sure I would have said something more cutting. Actually I was glad other people heard that time; it helped me justify my not wanting to work with those guys (this guy is the sidekick of another just like him), which I had been saying for a long time.
 

It's too bad Tormenta wasn't on in primetime. It was great. The sidekick villain died by lightning strike. Also: horses! ocean! Erick Elias! Other hotties! Biological warfare! A cursed black pearl!

Seriously, what more could you ask for in a telenovela?
 

Sandy,

It's so good to hear from you. Are things starting to dry out there? We've all been worried about you folks in Tenn. When the news finally aired footage from Nashville we were stunned. God bless you and all the folks there in Nashville.

Carlos
 

Thanks for opening things up Carlos. A great set of pictures. Looks like a great party for Bonnie Belle.

Julia, you beat me to it. I thought about putting something in last week's LLVG, but decided to wait. I was going to say something like.. Were you 'struck' by that 'honey' of an ending in Tormenta. Can you 'beelieve' it. :)
Besides the bees, doing Luisa in by the thunderbolt. That was the reason I wanted to see the end of it. I had looked at Wikipedia and saw that they were supposed to die by Bees and Thunderbolt, so I had to see the end to see how they happened. I really ended up wanting to see it as I really started to dislike them.. a lot. :) I saw another character was killed by a tiger. Sorry I missed that one.
It looked like Maura must have had a run in with bees before as she seemed to be more scared of them than I would have been.

Judy, skip the botox. Speaking of bathrooms, hit a big quilt show some time. Hard pressed to find a bathroom for men as the men's bathrooms are taken over to be used for the women. Not too many men at quilt shows.

Julia, agree with you, Tormenta would have been good as an evening show. It had everything.
 

Also, watching earlier this afternoon. They have announced a start date for STuD. It will start June 1, a Tuesday.
Judy, hmm, you get 3 more 2 hour recaps of Dinero, the others get only 2 more of them. I guess you're penalized for starting later. :)
 

Carlos,

Thanks for asking about the flood. We in Middle Tennessee feel that we have been living in the Twilight Zone. This flood was EPIC proportions. Thousands are displaced, THOUSANDS! There is not a street or highway where you don’t see the telltale flood signs, a big pile of ruined stuff in the front yard.....EVERYWHERE. Most people did not have flood insurance, because they did not live in a flood zone. This is the Volunteer State, and there is a huge volunteer effort made up of Tennesseans, my son and his friends included, going around helping to clean up the mess. Several of the locations of his business are closed because we have water constrictions until the treatment plants open again. The one take away that everyone needs to know is: If you find yourself in flooding conditions, GET OUT FAST.....you only have a few minutes, so many people barely escaped with their lives. I could write all day, but there are so many other really bad things going on like a giant oil leak, plus, I know Tennessee will make it, I’ll just leave this link:

http://www.youtube.com/user/ExpressionsByMisti#p/
 

Carlos, Thanks for posting the LLVG moment and especially letting us share the celebrations with BonneBelle. She looks like one elated dog in her birthday glory. I bet everyday is great for her, just like Willa enjoys each moment and helps me stay in the moment.

New Mexico is still having some of its wonderful windy spring moments with sand in the teeth and all. I am hosting El Grupo, the Spanish conversation evenings, for our end of trimester convivio (potluck dinner on Thursday. I hope it is warm and calm for people to enjoy being out doors. El Grupo Musical will be Friday of Memorial Day weekend. Anyone wanting to come to these can write me at cherylnewmex@gmail.com and I will send directions.

Sandy, I am so glad you are safe and staying so upbeat nature sure has its own way of distributing water which we could certainly share over here in the southwest. Oops, they just announced baseball sized hail in Carlsbad but that's pretty far from here and hopefully doesn't come north. boyo that is concussion size.

Judy, I vote no botox for you too! I deliberately leave my hair silver and long to let people know I can do what I want and be deliriously happy with this part of my life.
 

Carlos: I'm loving your pictures. I miss Xime, it's been a while since I've seen Verónica Jaspeado on tv, she's been doing theater after Gancho. Right now she is working on the Vagina Monologues and they always bring the play to Veracruz, I'll be waiting for any news about it.

Julia: Did you know the producer of Tormenta is the same from Mi Pecado? His novelas can always be great or dizzying.

Sandy: The images in that video were chilling. I can't help but remember the flooding in Villahermosa, Tabasco from three years ago, I'm praying for you and the people in Nashville.

Jarocha
 

Hey, an instant no-Botox support group. How great. Cheryl, I'm also growing out my hair(after this family wedding in June). It's going to be a relief now to have to miss with that l'Oreal stuff every month.

Julia, love your story. Subtle eye rolls excellent. Mustn't alienate the clients. Even if they are a......es.

Sandy, so sorry to hear about the devastation. My cousin lives on a farm down there. Don't know how he's doing.

Jeff, it's only fair that I get an extra dose. The Dinero recappers had already done a week of doubles, I think, when I stepped in to help....so...this evens it out. In fact, poor Pata had done double Monday and double Wednesday I think.
 

Sandy,

Those pictures were heartbreaking. What an awful ordeal you folks lived through. After watching the link which you provided, I clicked on this followup which is warm and full of hope even though it further demonstrates the devastation you folks suffered. Please keep us updated on how things are going there.

Jeff,

I'm sorry that Tormenta wasn't one of the primetime shows. Between you and Julia and the glimpses of it each day before un Gancho came on, it certainly seemed exciting and fascinating.

Cheryl,

el Groupo sounds exciting. I hope the weather smiles on you. My best to Willa. Clearly, she and Bonnie Belle have a great deal in common.

Jarocha,

Ximena... Vagina Monologues... my imagination is running amok.

Carlos
 

Jeff, I love your puns. I can't believe I missed the character's death by tiger!

Hmm, maybe if the same producer is behind Mi Pecado, we can look forward to some good downfalls there. I can see a similarity in the style...LOTS happening all the time; not a lot of wasted episodes.
 

Carlos,

Thanks for the followup link.....I think my hub and I might take you up on your suggestion of, "Sit down, have a shot of Tequila, and relax a bit." That sounds awfully good right now!
 

Julia: Well, the writers of Mi Pecado had nothing to do with Tormenta but I agree that there's something in the style between both telenovelas that makes you recognize the producer. However, Mi Pecado is much more situated in real/possible situations than Tormenta.

I have great confidance in the team of writers, if only because I've always liked their novelas and they made two of my favorites ever.

Carlos: Ximena doing the Vagina Monologues would be hilarious. Unfortunately, I think it's just Veronica playing the part.

Jarocha
 

Jarocha: this is a brilliant idea for a show to add to our programming when we take over: Veronica Jaspeado does _______ as Ximena Sermeño. The possibilities are endless. I'd love to see her as Scarlett in Gone With the Wind, in The Vagina Monologues, narrating a documentary on wildebeests, as a Disney princess, whatever. It would be something different every episode.
 

Great pictures, Carlos!

Julia, my sister is an engineer, too, and she had lots of problems being disrespected by male co-workers and others in the industry for years due to her being a woman. However, now that she's the boss of most of them - no more problems.

I had a great time yesterday at the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival, where we saw Alison Krauss, who gave a fantastic concert. The singing and instruments were superb, and the weather was absolutely ideal, as we sat on lawn chairs under a blue sky, with temperature about 72 degrees.
 

Greetings Gancho folks...I was out of town last week without much access to internet and believe it or not, no cell phone coverage. Been a while since I have been anywhere in this country without cell phone coverage, but in a way it's nice to know these places still exist. You can tell I live in a pretty urban area as I'm sure others are more familiar with that phenomenon.

Got back last night so missed last week's fun. Still have yet to catch up and to view the finale. :)

Wanted to, but didn't have time to download a bunch to watch while I was away, just as well, I never make time for that stuff anyhow...

Wonderful photos of Bonne Bell, a very happy birthday to her!! Funny, but we found a little Chihuahua running along our street late last night coming back from the airport, so we scooped him up and had a house guest for the evening. He was of course scared to death in the begining, but grew to crave our affection within an hour. Luckily he was chipped and we were able to return him to his caretaker via our vet this morning. It was sure fun having him around. He was very well behaved and quite a smart one!! That's the news from here. When I get to watching more shows and reading past caps I'll report my delayed comments and you all can laugh at me. :)
 

Judy, ixnay on the otoxBay, OK? Plus what Julia said: you need fully operational eyebrows. Anyway, hasn't your young guy friend ever heard of Lois Lane?

Julia, FWIW, clowns like your developer client need remediation. Would you like my self-described Feminazi cousin's contact info? But to follow Carlos, what's a shearwall? Is it like a cubit?

Susanlynn, this guy was expressing genuine affection & respect. One thing that 19 y/o guys like is a facility for tact and discretion.

Sandy, I'm really hoping the worst is over for you and Nashville. I had no idea that your area was flood prone. I hope that this mess was a once in 500 years occurrence.

Carlos & Hombre & Cheryl, the weather here was lovely yesterday and today we're getting some much awaited rain.

Jeff, my sympathies on being at a quilt show. Emilia loves quilts but she's never dragged me to a show, thank heaven.

Carlos, thanks for the open thread and muchos felicidades a La Senorita Bonnie Belle.
 

Susanlynn, perdoname. What young guys LACK, not like...
 

Hi all, it's great to read your comments. I miss hanging with everyone daily. I miss Ximena and her tres cosas.

Happy Birthday to Bonne Bell!

Sandy, your link is very moving. Thank you for sharing it with us. The images are amazing and memorable.

I also wish Tormenta would have been on in the evening. I was completely gaga about Eric Elias after Zorro. Too bad I don't have all day to laze around watching telenovelas. I'm particularly fond of gruesome and creative telenovela deaths. How sad that I had to miss death by tigers, bees and nature.
 

Hombre, why weren’t YOU on the venue for the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival? No one at that festival could hold a candle to your singing...not even Alison Krauss.

This is an act in town that parodies the old country and bluegrass acts. They play at the Station Inn, an old, old bluegrass venue in Nashville. The Station Inn is a cement block building that is now surrounded by beautiful condo buildings and restaurants, They keep it like it is for local color. If you go to bluegrass festivals, you might get a kick out of Doyle and Debbie:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDp3YwBmNLc&NR=1

I need to learn how to do links!
 

A couple of weeks ago I finally was fed up enough with the CCs to file a complaint with the FCC after receiving no response to my complaint to the local station. A little over a week later I got a confirmation that they received my complaint. I figured that that was that. Today I received (by certified mail no less) a letter from the Sr. Vice President, Regional Director acknowledging receipt of the complaint via FCC. Are they starting to take this seriously? Nah... I didn't think so. I'll keep you updated. Meintras tanto, feel free to file your own complaints. I see no reason, financial or otherwise, that this can't be fixed.

Carlos
 

Did anyone watch A Corazón Abierto last night? Colombian adaptation of Gray's Anatomy. It looks VERY promising. Gray's has its McDreamy. I would dub CA's lead as McSteamy. His gaze could ignite grass fires!

They talk incredibly fast, probably to evoke the intensity of a high pressure hospital. Colombian Spanish is an acquired skill - I'm watching Mariachi on disk, and that's hard enough. But the speed-talking of CA is really beating my chops.
 

Hi again Carlos. Thanks for providing that link. I went there and laboriously filled out my complaint but they kept rejecting it saying I hadn't given a "valid email address". Don't know what's up with that.

In case anyone else has better luck, how about posting that link (if you have time) on the other lines as well. Gracias querido amigo.

Paula, I'm suffering channel envy. Don't get that one, but enjoy those grass fires, amiga!
 

Paula, I don't get that channel, either, unfortunately. It sounds like an exciting show. I was pretty proud of myself when I was finally able to understand the super-fast rantings of Marichuy in CCEA; I don't know how that would compare to this.

Does anyone know of some shows set in the Caribbean? I need some practice understanding those accents.

Mike and Carlos: shearwalls are one way that buildings can resist wind and seismic loads. In this case, since it was a concrete-framed building, they were concrete walls about 2 feet thick and chock full of rebar. Most houses have shearwalls consisting of plywood on wood stud framing, and the framing is bolted to the foundation and securely clipped to the roof.
 

Regarding A Corazon Abiero:
McSteamy photo
Six-minute trailer for the show
At the end of the trailer, the two people you see next to the baby in the incubator, I think those are the two main characters.
 

Julia, for Carribean accents, check Telemundo productions such as El Clon (8:00). They are filmed in Miami, and I think they use a lot of Cuban and Puerto Rican actors. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.
 

Wow. What a hot show. The McSteamy guy made an all too brief appearance on MEPS as an old contender for the heroine's affections. I loved his low husky voice. And the total package, of course. Experiencing even more channel envy after watching the trailer.

Dialogue speed actually seemed slow in comparison to Gancho. Except for the operation scenes where it was very rapid and further hampered by the surgical masks.

The Gancho heroine was a Colombiana and maybe explains her staccato, rapid-fire delivery.
 

Yes, Judy, it seems that the CA medical scenes (those between Drs etc., not those btw Dr & patient) are spoken VERY fast, whereas the personal scenes in the bar, for example, are within the realm of human capability.

And you're right! I forgot about the McSteamy character in MEPS. Speaking of MEPS, remember near the start, when Fr/Ed met with Fernanda in his study? Remember how charged with passion that scene was, even though they stayed formal? There was that kind of passion emanating from McSteamy in last night's cap.
 

Oh, and Judy, regarding aging and all that. I'm blessed that I have not turned gray yet. My grandmother, whose coloring I have, never went gray, only a little peppered. But when my pepper starts showing up, I promise you, I won't cover it. Growing old ain't so bad, when you consider the alternative!
 

Genetics is everything Paula. I have a friend who at 75 has less gray in her hair than I had at 35. I only started covering up the gray at age 57 when the folks at the nursing home would ask if I was Alma's sister (mom was 90 and looked it) or her daughter. Likewise they thought my two youngest (born when I was 36 and 40) were my grandchildren.

But that was then. For other reasons, I was feeling old and ugly at the time. No longer. I'm 70 and I'm going to look it. (But shake and bake like someone much younger.)
 

Ooh la la. Thanks for the links Paula.

Judy...shake and bake, haha! You crack me up amiga.
 

Carlos, Tormenta would have been a great show for the recappers. I think they would have had a great time with it. It was quite over the top.. what I saw of it anyway.

Sandy, I always have trouble imagining any floods. When you see places, you can't imagine how the water could get that high. If we got a foot of rain here, we may be in trouble ourself. I know there is one place we drove through and high above us was a mark they had placed that showed how high the water was during a 1960's flood. Way above the vehicle.

Mike, no sympathies needed. Quilt shows aren't that bad. It is amazing some of the quilts they do, real works of art, simply beautiful. If she ever drags you to one of the International or National shows, you should go. Or perhaps a State show. Hey, I know just the place, as long as Carlos doesn't mind. Usually at the end of October or beginning of November, they have the International Quilt show in Houston, a BIG show. You could go one day to the quilt show and otherwise visit Carlos. LOL
I'm sure he could take you to a lot of good places in Houston.

And didn't McSteamy play the Fr/Ed character in the original MEPS, whatever that TN was?

Judy, luckily for me, now that I'm older, my hair is amazingly turning dishwater blond just like when I was young.. maybe a little dirtier than when young. ;)
I accepted being older when I let them start trimming my eyebrows when I got a haircut. Hey, I was having trouble seeing through the hedgerows. :)
 

This discussion about aging is interesting. I am reminded of a conversation with a 16 year-old student when I was a very green 26-year-old teacher. He asked how I was one day, and I replied, ''Getting older.'' He thought for a minute and then responded, ''Consider the alternative.'' I think of that kid on every birthday. My dad still had brown hair at 80 when he died. Hub ,on the other hand, had a white strand in his jet black hair when I met him ...he was only 16. His mother was completely whitehaired when I met her. I guess she was about 44 or younger. We were at one of Hub's baseball games , and someone told me that she was his mom. I thought that she was his grandmother. When our kids were young, some people thought that they were Hub's grandchildren. The other day at a restaurant, someone thought hub was my dad...It's the snow white hair [which is just like his mom's and her dad's.] My hair is still dark brown , but a few gray hair are sneaking in. My sister is 8 years older than I am and her hair is still red, but not as red as when she was young.
 

Darn, T-Wolves had the 2nd worst record in the NBA, but lost out in the draft lottery.. again. They'll be picking 4th. No John Wall or Evan Turner for us. :(
Lucky for them. :)
 

Susanlynn, my condolences to your hubster. Poor guy being taken for your dad! At least my husband is gray and half bald. God bless 'im.

Jeff, I'm hoping that Evan can go to the Chicago Bulls. That's where he wants to go and his mom lives in Chicago. And all his friends from high school naturally.

Sylvia--"shake and bake" is a step we do in aerobics, so it's not quite as outrageous as it sounds!
 

Susanlynn, I'm watching the last episode of Amor Real right now. Just finished the penultimate and sobbed during the adios that Manuel had with Manuelito when he (dad) thought it would be the last time he'd see his son. My goodness what a tearjerker!!

JudyB, I don't know if I'm relieved or disappointed that "shake and bake" is an aerobics move.
 

Well, there are lots of ways to get your heart rate up, querida Sylvia. Just sayin'. But it takes two to tango that way.
 

Judy, don't think Evan will be going to Chicago. Aren't they going to sign Lebron? :) Selection order is Washington, Philly, New Jersey, Minnesota. Barring a trade, one of those first 3 will get Evan. Hey, rookie of the year this year was last year's 4th pick. :)

Susanlynn, no problem with getting older. As your student said... We'll all just start shaking and baking.
 

Jeff,

How ironic that you mention the International Quilt Show. It is a very big deal. Por casualidad, a couple of years in a row it was on the same weekend as Vicente Fernandez' concert at the Toyota Center which is next to the H R Brown Convention Center where the quilt show was. We wanted to stay at the Hilton adjacent to both the night of the concert but because the quilters booked we had to stay at a hotel much further away which made it impossible to walk to the concert. As to Mike and Emilia or for that matter any of the Ganchodores coming, the Lovely Linda and I would be delighted to act as hosts and show them a great time. Too bad that Gilley's in Pasadena has long since closed but his son has taken over Henry's Hideout, a honkytonk on the road between Magnolia and Plantersville. I hear that they even have the old mechanical bull from the old place (think Urban Cowboy) which I modestly admit to having successfully ridden to a standstill many moons ago. My secretary Kathy would probably be willing to serve as a knowledgeable guide for the quilt show. She is a talented quilter.

Judy, Susanlynn,

You guys may have a few years and a few gray hairs but you both certainly write young. If I had a choice of sharing drinks with you guys or with Claudia from Dinero... well, that's a no-brainer. Now Coni fro Gancho... well, that's another matter.

Carlos
 

Okay querido Carlos, we'll cede the floor to Constanza...and Ximena for that matter. But after that, we've got first dibs!
 

Well, if I had my druthers, if Evan can't go to Chicago, I'd love him to be in Cleveland so I could watch him play.

However, the word here is that Lebron is going to New York...or else staying in Cleveland as player/coach. Chicago hasn't been mentioned at all.
 

Carlos, speaking of Claudia, she was also on Tormenta. Every once and awhile. She had dark hair there, not the bleached blond look on Dinero. She was Nicolas Bravo's lawyer. Claudia and Mabel, both had small parts on Tormenta. :)
We did the Houston show once, back in 2003 I think. A great quilt show, recommended for any quilters or anyone actually.
 

Judy, really, Lebron only to New York. National media has Chicago listed as having a good chance. They say, if he wants money, if it's about money, he goes to New York. If it is about winning, he either stays put or goes somewhere else. Rumors are talking about Lebron and Calipari as a package deal. They say he likes Calipari.
 

Judy, I saw a t-shirt that I'm going to send you in about 15 years or so. It says: WHEW! I made it to old age! You might not need it even then, what with all the shakin' and bakin'! You go, girl... (My problem is, once I get it shaking, I can't get it to stop! Get out your Richter Scales, y'all.)

I'm probably very gray (haven't seen the real me for years) but Mike is still mostly blond and I don't want to look like Barbara Bush next to him. So, Lady Clairol it is! Ah vanity...

Carlos, the quilt show sounds wonderful. I used to go to one in Williamsburg every year since it was held in a hotel across the street from where I worked. The artistry is amazing. My dad's sisters made many quilts but they were mainly for warmth and not for display. I have made a few, mostly baby quilts and enjoy it a lot. They will never win any awards, though.

Judy, I hope you can get some North Carolina strawberries this weekend. None better. Mike and I have eaten a large bucketful since Saturday, frozen another bucketful for later, and are wishing the drive to get more wasn't quite so far. I guess that's what makes them so special.
 

Hi Emilia. Heck, just keep coloring, shaking and baking and whatever! It's all good. Actually I'll probably be hauling some organic strawberries with us, plus bananas, just because I don't want to eat up all the kids' fruit when we're there. Seems like my daughter is always having to go to the grocery store and I hate to add to her burden. However, should we stop at a roadside market, I'll certainly stock up. The strawberries here, even shipped in, are wonderfully sweet right now, as well as the blackberies. Strangely, when it comes to blueberries, I prefer the frozen ones.

So Mike is still mostly blond, eh? Sounds like he's going to take after his long-lived mama.
 

Strawberries? Did someone say strawberries? I am blessed to live in a major strawberry-growing region. I am doubly blessed to know a grower who grows for flavor, not shelf life. EVERYONE comments about the flavor of these babies. My two favorite ways to eat them (other than one after another after another):

1. Do you like chocolate-covered strawberries, but you never bother to make them? Take the shortcut. Take a nice wide McDonald's straw. Poke it up through the strawberry, starting at the point and going up through the cap. That will remove the cap and the pithy core. It will leave a hole through the berry. A hole that is exactly the diameter of a chocolate chip. Look at the berry. Look at your bag of chocolate chips. You figure it out.

1. Strawberries in Chocolate Fudge Sauce. Chop up a few strawberries, maybe a half cup or so, 1/2" chunks. Sprinkle dry brownie mix over them. Mix, wait a few minutes, and mix again. The sugar in the brownie mix draws the syrup out of the strawberries, and that changes the dry powder into a strawberry-flavored fudge sauce. EAT!!! It's better to eat it right away; if you wait too long it loses its character. So go on, eat it all. Fruit is good for you, right???

P.S. Manuel's goodbye scene in Amor Real sure was a tear jerker, wasn't it? I knew how it would end, but it still had me brutzing!
 

Glad to hear California's having a good strawberry year, Paula! We'll be getting them here in a month or so. WHAT "eat local" movement? But I swear, these Carolina berries are superb this year.

Re my old age, I really don't want to end up like mother. My dad got up one morning, had a cigarette and a cup of coffee and died. Emilia's dad died cutting the grass.

What I do want is a couple of years to be what Emilia calls a "ROMEO" aka Retired Old Men Eating Out. You see 'em in the morning at Waffle Houses and IHOPs and Hardees. Yep, a good cheap, greasy breakfast to start a hard day of sitting on a bench in front of the courthouse staring at passersby.

Carlos, if we get down your way, I do want to try Goodson's.

Julia, thanks for the explanation about shearwalls. A two foot thick one w/ abundant rebar - how tall a building was that to support and were there known wind or seismic "threats" involved? Just curious - I like that kind of stuff.
 

When my time comes,
I want to go peacefully.
In my sleep.
Like my grandfather did.
Not screaming in terror like the passengers in his car!
 

Wow~~~Just dropped in to find so many good comments. Carlos and Judyb~~~So , Judyb and I fall somewhere between Claudia and Coni. Should we be offended or flattered, Judyb? It's kind of like Shadi's remark, ''I don't care how old you are. I like you.'' However, if you're buying the drinks, Carlos, I'll have a whiskey sour on the rocks. Mike~~~''ROMEO''~~~Excellent. I'll start calling my Big Mike that since he has a standing date for breakfast at the local grill every Tuesday with two retired gym teachers/coaches. I always ask him if they solved any world problems when he gets back home. With me, two daughters, a 2-year-old granddaughter whom we watchevery day ,and another on the way in August, Hub is swimming in a pool of estrogen...pobrecito !!! Sylvia and Paula~~~I love Amor Real. Hub taped it for me to watch over and over and over, and........... Paula~~~''BRUTZ''```loved it~~~If you ain't Dutch,you ain't much!!!
 

mmm..I'd better check our neighbor's farm . He has delicious sr=trawberries that usually arrive between now [my younger daughter's birthday] and June. We've had lots of rain and cool weather lately, so I'm guessing that the berries aren't ready yet. As for blueberries, I prefer the Jersey ones. I;ve discovered a new apple...jonagolds. They are tart/sweet like the Jonathons I loved as a kid, but they are enormous and very big. One is lunch for me. I can't wait for the freas local produce. My dad grew the sweetest sweet corn. I think it was called Silver Queen.
 

Mmmmm...berries.

Okay, I have a confession: underneath the cosmetic trickery, my hair is at least 1/3 white. And I'm only 33. One of my grandfathers had completely white hair by his early 30s but he never went bald.

I think the quilt show sounds like a fun trip. The quilts are one of my favorite parts of the state fair. I also want to go to the Latin Music Festival in Texas sometime. I need more vacation days.

Mike, this was a 5-story building, and it's in Seattle, which is definitely seismically active but the shaking is not likely to be quite as strong as some places like California. The shearwalls are just around the elevator banks and stairwells in the center of the building. This is a fairly typical arrangement and is called a "shear core."
 

Paula~~~You brutz, but do you ever gretz ????
 

Well gang, the complaint to the FCC has borne fruit. This afternoon Kathy summoned me from a patient's room (I was done and we were just chatting) for a phone call from someone at Ch 45 (our Univision station here in Houston). I had a very nice conversation with a very nice man about the state of the CCs. He thought that they had been fine. I told him about our woes, about Caray Caray, and even of our recent problems with the programming changes (he said that he had no control over that). He is very sympathetic and is going to have someone monitor the shows (paying attention to CCs) and asked if it would be OK if someone from the network calls me as well. So at least some real response and apparent concern. I'll keep you informed as this progresses. Now watch the CCs be just perfect for the next few days.

Susanlynn, yes, it was Silver Queen. Remember our corn talks last year, my ill-fated corn crop, and the corn pudding recipe which evoked the wrath of anon?

Carlos
 

Carlos, my captions on Mi Pecado have been fine the last two Tuesdays. That was a recent improvement, though. They used to be horrible. Maybe your complaints did inspire them to fix things! Are you still getting bad captions on the stuff you're watching?
 

Julia, last night the captions for Dinero were quite good much of the time but there was a stretch where they were useless. Of course they're going to be fine tonight. I haven't watched the last half of last night's CS yet.

Carlos
 

I don't remember the corn pudding recipe which evoked the wrath of anon. What was that about?
 

Susanlynn. My roots are showing. The OTHER kind. I don't have much to brutz about nowadays, gracias a Diós. But grex? Moi? Por supuesto que sí! Boy howdy, I get intolerably grexy when I need a nap. The good news is, that's a problem that's easy to fix.

Hmm. Four languages in the last paragraph. Must be some kind of record.

Corn. Mmmm! I'll take it any way I can get it. Lately I've been thinking about corn fritters. That's the innards of raw corn kernals, without the skins, mixed with egg and a little sugar and salt, then cooked on a griddle (or large fry pan) just like you would cook pancakes. One of the most precious gifts of summer.
 

Here we go, talking about food again. I'm also dying to know how in the heck a corn pudding recipe could cause someone's wrath to ire. (OK, not proper english but you get the point.) Come on Carlos, spill the beans.

Paula's fritters sound delish. Sure hope nobody is offended, heh.

Kibbutz, gretz, grex...gosh I'm learning so many new words today!

Carlos, unbelievable about your letter to Uni. I wonder how long the good CCs will last?

Susanlynn, this was the first time I was able to see the entire series of Amor Real. Previously I had only seen the edited DVD version. It truly is one of the all time greats.

Hey, I noticed that Duelo de Pasiones started this week. Remember what a stupid TN that was and how fun it was to rip it to shreds? I loved recapping that show. Good times...
 

Ask, nay, beg mi esposa for her buttermilk cornmeal pancakes recipe. Nothing finer on a fall or winter morning served w/ sorghum molasses.
 

Julia and Sylvia,

Susanlynn started it.

Last year on the FELS? MEPS? site, Susanlynn mentioned her dad's Silver Queen sweet corn and I mentioned my attempt at growing sweet corn. As I recall she then mentioned a corn dish that her mom often made which reminded me of a corn casserole that Darla (my receptionist) makes from a recipe from her mom-in-law in Kentucky. It is wonderful so I posted it. It was generally well received by most, with the exception of anon who castigated me and then metastasized with an endless stream of recipes of her own, "You want recipes, well here's recipes." Actually, most of them looked quite tasty. Meintras tanto, Susanlynn, who started it all with her happy talk of corn... went merrily on her way.

Paula,

Corn fritters... one of my favorite treats. Luby's Cafeteria, which is across the street from the hospital, once made the best ever... now... not. They served them with honey on the side but the honey was superfluous. They were sweet (not too sweet), crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, chock full of sweet kernels of corn. I mourned their passing. I made phone calls. I wrote letters... all to no avail. Sigh.

Carlos
 

Mike,

Buttermilk cornmeal pancakes? Have mercy! We must have that recipe, though my own personal preference for anointment is ribbon cane syrup.

Goodson's is on the short list of possibilities for lunch tomorrow.

Carlos
 

Mmmmm...fried dough.

Carlos, you really have a way with words. "Metastasized" is a perfect way to describe such a reaction. Just imagine, someone is kind enough to post a recipe and the reaction is castigation? People are absolute nuts sometimes.
 

Okay, Emilia, I'm begging you. Please post your recipe. I've actually been craving some kind of corn cakes for the last week or so but I haven't made any yet. I'd love to try a new and highly recommended formulation!

Carlos, that is just bizarre. It's hard to see how sharing a recipe could spark such a rage. The more corn dishes the merrier, you know? And it's not like you're forcing anon to eat your version.
 

Carlos, the corn fritters are plenty easy to make yourself, as long as you get a Corn Slitter.
 

Paula, I've never heard of a corn slitter. Looks kinda like a zester.

Mike and I stay at a very old hotel in Berea, KY whenever possible. Their dining room serves old fashioned food - spoon bread, all kinds of wonderful things. For breakfast we always get the cornmeal pancakes but then crave them when we get home. I noodled around with several recipes and ended up with this:

2 cups buttermilk
2 Tbsp oil
2 eggs
1 cup self-rising cornmeal (we use white, yellow should be fine.)
1/3 cup self-rising flour
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. baking soda

Mix buttermilk, egg and oil until well blended.
Stir together dry ingreds. and add to milk mixture, stirring gently until just blended.

Cook in lightly greased hot skillet.

These tend to stick so they work best in a non-stick skillet. Turn them with a wide, thin spatula if you have one. They are good even if they end up looking ugly. They freeze well so make lots.
 

Anon, if you're lurking, try before you cry!
 

Paula, I seem to recall the chow hall at Goodfellow had good fritters for breakfast most days. More or less round, about the size of a tennis ball. Served w/ pancake syrup or warm cherry pie filling.

That was forty years ago when I still metabolized.
 

Yeah, Emilia, outside of eastern PA, you're not likely to find the slitter anywhere. One side has four points sticking out of it. That slits the kernals. The other side has a concave edge. After you've slit the kernals open, you use the other side to scrape the cob. That way, it forces out the "guts" of the kernal but leaves the skin of each kernal on the cob. I've seen people make corn fritters without the tool (or the $10 tool which is much more efficient). Heck, I've even seen people tat without a tatting shuttle. But I'd never want to try it.
 

Different critter, Goodbuddy. The ones from SaNangelo were deep fried, more like hushpuppies. The PA Dutch have a habit of calling things fritters even when they're not deep fried but rather pan fried, with no more fat in the pan than a spritz of Pam. Apple fritters, corn fritters, potato fritters are all "dry" fried. But corn fritters are the only ones I'd go out of my way for.
 

Paula, you sure can make a person hungry!!
 

Bump...thud. That was the sound of Carlos throwing me under the bus...pie cart...lumber truck. Mom....HE did it. Yes...you brought back some memories, Carlos. THE WRATH OF ANON. We did open a whole , big can of worms ....or corn...verdad ? This is why Carlos and I would never have been allowed to sit together in study halls or assemblies. I also seem to recall a similar reaction from anon [or some other anonymous anon] when we had a discussion about Nancy Drew. YIKES. Wasn't it about the same time we had a visit from the infamous Cin B. ?????? p.s. I started posting this last night, and then our power went out.....a sign ??????? Anyhoo, at the risk of provoking another conniption fit, my mother made the most delicious corn fritters and potato fritters [with corn and potatoes fresh from the fields]. As Paula said, the PA Dutch panfry their fritters. Thet also dry the corn on screens to use in the winter.
 

What? You discussed both corn AND Nancy Drew? No wonder some people took umbrage. That's what you get for bringing up such incendiary topics.

Oh yes, I remember Cin B, that's when I first learned about internet trolls.
 

Carlos, a heartfelt, belated happy birthday to the beautiful Bonne Belle. What a sweetheart. All of the pictures were great.

Years ago, my brother rescued a 3 legged pitbull who had been left to die after an accident. His name was Tugs. He was the sweetest, most wonderful dog I have ever met. He is gone now, but he had a happy home for the remainder of his life. I think of him often and he will always have a special place in my heart.

So many interesting posts...

I miss all of you as well as Gancho and the fun and camraderie we shared.

Sandy, my heart goes out to you and all the folks in TN. I continue to keep all of you in my thoughts and prayers.

I don't believe in Botox or elective plastic surgery to try and maintain a "youthful" appearance. I can't think of a more effective deterrant than obvious "surgeries gone wrong" of some of the actors (several on our beloved telenovas). That said, I think doing things to make us feel better about ourselves are fine. As I aged, my hair texture turned wiry and unruly and the color to a hard, cold, extremely unattractive steel gray. I chose to dye it for me, not for anyone else.

Susanlynn I liked your student's advice to''Consider the alternative.''

Your recipes have me drooling...

Gender and age bias unfortunately do still rear their ugly heads. My tactic is either to simply stare or ignore it and continue to do or say what I was doing.

Sylvia, Susanlynn and everyone else who watched Amor Real. I was only able to see small bits and pieces but I thought that the one who embodied the essence of true love was Adolfo. I couldn't believe he died...Ack.

Diana
 

Hey, some people just like their recaps straight, while others..... like them..... Ganchoized!
 

Diana, do you remember the conversation the other day about some characters using the word "noble" to describe other characters, and we discussed whether that meant the same in Spanish as it does in English? In the case of Adolfo Solis I think the use of "noble" is completely appropriate. When I first watched the show on edited DVD I didn't really get how wonderful his character is, but in the full show...wow. I've never seen Mauricio Islas in anything else but he was amazing in Amor Real. I'm so glad you brought this up.
 

About Adolfosolis [as Manuel always referred to him], he kind of lost me when he would not leave the hacienda even when Matilde told him that she was in love with her husband...also, the attempted rape...not noble. He was selfsacrificing in taking care of his poor, sick wife and dying to save Manuel. At the end, I think that he realized that Matilde was madly in love with Manuel and that Manuel was a good man in love with Matilde. I think he preferred to die rather than live wthout Manuel. Love hurts...love scars. Aldofo was a tragic figure. Poor Matilde...adored by 2 incredible hombres....but I think she made the right choice.
 

Whoops...Was that a Freudian slip....''rather die than live without Manuel''???? I think that would have been a different novela...more along the lines of Useless in Sortilegio.
 

Ha, I was gonna say!! Anway, none of those characters was perfect, that's for sure, but Adolfosolis really won me over this time around. The fact that he was able to be civil to Augusta after all she had done to him, that was pretty noble. Yes, he was a tragic figure.
 

Ganchoized, I like that, Jeff. We managed to Ganchoize most every conversation. Maybe there will be another light fun show at a time we can all watch, and we'll aggravate all the anons out there with our irreverence. and recipes!
 

Emilia~~~You are a rebel. Come and sit here with Carlos and me.
 

Susanlynn,

I had almost forgotten some of those encounters. It was my Summer of Love with Anon(s). She (he? they?) didn't care for corn, recipes, teenage detectives, or my Dr. tales. Alas,not everyone appreciates the class cutups. So it was in high school and so it is at Caray Caray.
 

Hey guys. No problem. ANONYMOUS does not like comic telenovelas. She prefers the heavy drama and she want ONLY discussion on the show itself. (and preferably lots of condemnation of the characters she doesn't like).

So our freewheeling whatever-comes-up-and-lights-our-fire discussions are safe. C'mon over to Dinero and hang out with us (in addition to our precious Gancho get-togethers, of course. Nobody's getting killed, raped, abused or "flamed" over there.

It WAS funny how ANON went after Carlos. Probably because he always made funny remarks and evidently she is allergic to humor.
 

Carlos, how could anyone not like your Dr. Tales? I demand that you write a whole book of Dr. Tales. And if you want to throw any meandering discussions of food, Nancy Drew, or anything else into that book, that's fine with me.
 

Where are you, Anon? We're running a ferreting mission here. Come up on our scope, dirtbag!

Ditto a ti, CindyB.

y tu tambien, Anon1 the Misogynist.
 

Julia~~I'd definitely read any book that Carlos wrote, but I would prefer that he wrote a telenovela. Now, let's open the discussion up to possible suitable titles. [p.s. I think that either Telefuturo or Telemundo is rerunning Esmeralda in the afternnons. TBLMOE plays a doctor in that one.] Carlos's novela could star all our favorite actors and actresses. I'm putting in a request for TBLMOE, Big Ed Yanez, Marcelo Cordova, Ana Martin, and Adela Noriego. Now we need the setting. How about a period novela ? Place ??? Time ???
 

Well, it also needs my faves Jorge de Silva and Erick Elías, and of course Laisha Wilkins for Carlos, and Veronica Jaspeado.

Set in the deep south during Prohibition?
 

Deep south, I like it. Who will play the wacky old lady who is always juiced up on bathtub gin?
 

Ana Martin, what was I thinking? She would be excellent. Maybe she should also play her tee-totaling twin sister. (or brother?)
 

Yes, I think that Ana should play a dual role. As her brother, I suggest that she wear an eye patch , walk with a limp, and have a slight lisp. Ana could pull this off nicely.
 

Ganchoize - I love it!

Amor Real - Adolfo was a marvelous character exactly because of those falls. Like all of us, who knew the man he wanted to be. In his youth he only attained moments of greatness. As the years passed he came closer and closer to his ideal, but he still fell in his weaker moments, particularly the attempted rape. By the end he had become that ideal and was able to die a noble hero's death, the culmination of the man he wanted to become.

The one that bothered me was Augusta. She caused Matilde ALMOST as much suffering as Mariana did. Mariana got marched away with the prisoners, and Augusta got a happily ever after, still obsessed with "what will the neighbors say?"

I found an article about Uni's upcoming season. It lists, for 2010/2011:
Novelas: Soy tu dueña, Mar de amor, Zacatillo, Llena de amor.
Weekly Primetime: Cuna de lobos, Los exitosos Pérez
Reality: a dance show and a Survivor type show

Telefutura novelas: India (Brazil/India culture clash), Doña Bella, Rosario Tijeras, Regreso a la guaca
 

Well, I'm sold. Those novelas and weekly series all sound good. It's probably a good thing I don't get TeleFutura and Galavision, because I would want to watch those shows, too. Now if they would just put the novelas on in an orderly fashion and stop shuffling stuff around...
 

Paula~~I agree. Sometimes these minor villains [especially family members of the leads] avoid the anvils and pie carts at the end. I was not happy that nasty Antonia got sweet, loyal Sixto as a concilation prize at the end of Amor Real and the conniving, jealous Perla got studly Marcos at the end of Alborada. Also, Hippolita's ugly stepfather never got the anvil but was taken back by his longsuffering, weakwilled wife. boo
 

I assume it's all because of the strong forgiveness theme that runs through all these novelas. Even bad folks get forgiven and live happily every after.

Although I'm sure none of us have ever done anything as dastardly as these characters, don't we all want to be forgiven for the mistakes we HAVE made, and the people we HAVE hurt (even if unwittingly)/ I know I sure do.

I hated Antonia but I also felt very sorry for her. She was a bitch, but she also suffered enormously. Hopefully she'll be a better person married to Sixto. Ojala.
 

Good point, Judyb. Your ideas show what a truly good person you are.... [but I still feel frustrated that nasty Perla got hot Marcos. I can forgive her, but I don't want her rewarded with a kind, sweet, protective hunk of a man!!! It's easier for me to forgive Antonia and award her good old reliable Sixto.] HA
 

Love that "casting one small pebble". Let's face it, Marcos is YOURS. No one else deserves him. Let's have him taken off the market immediately.

Sure am anxious for STD (doesn't than sound like a venereal disease?) to start. Everytime I see those ripped abdominals and Colunga's fab smile, I'm ready for June 1.
 

Some people are calling it STuD instead, and with TBLMOE, that seems accurate. Although, considering the promiscuity on most TNs, STD is probably equally accurate.
 

Studs with STDs...that sounds like a good description of many of the randy telenovela fellows.

When my brother was a young teen, I overheard a conversation he was having with our grandmother. He'd been working out a lot, training for wrestling, and he was telling Grandma that he was such a stud now (a word she knew only in the horse breeding sense) and he was so buff (which to her meant naked). It was HIGH COMEDY.