Everyone at one time or another has a bad day or a bad week or a bad year. When your in one of these ruts it’s sometimes difficult to pull yourself out of it. Todays post is meant to inspire the readers and to lift their spirits a little. I hope it works for you!
“Never bend your head. Always hold it high. Look the world straight in the eye.” Helen Keller
“Keep your eyes on the stars, keep your feet on the ground.” Theodore Roosevelt
“I never remember feeling tired by work, though idleness exhausts me completely. Arthur Conan Doyle
“The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you got a put up with the rain.” Dolly Parton
There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” Albert Einstein
“Don’t give in! Make your own trail.” Katharine Hepburn
“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.” Margaret Thatcher
“One of the things I learned the hard way was it does not pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.” Lucille Ball
Even if you’re on the right track you’ll get run over if you just sit there. Will Rogers
“When written in Chinese, the word “crisis” is composed of two characters. One represents danger and the other represents opportunity.” John F Kennedy “
And finally one of my favorites:
Rules for Living
“Do not worry, eat three square meals a day, say your prayers, be courteous to your creditors, keep your digestion’s good, and steer clear of biliousness, exercise, go slow and go easy. Maybe there are other things that your special case requires to make you happy, but, my friend, these, I reckon, will give you a good life.” Abraham Lincoln
I find it a little strange that the minute I blog about the 1980’s my responses go through the roof. I lived through the 80’s and was never all that fascinated by the things that occurred then. People love the crudeness and rudeness of 80’s humor and don’t get me started on the limericks. Through the effing roof. In keeping with reader demands, todays little quiz will test your memories of the 80’s unless you were “stoned” most of the time. I’ll excuse all of you stoners out there just this once. As always, the answers are below.
Operation Able Archer was the codename of _______ that took place in 1983.
_______ was the teacher who died in the Challenger disaster.
What year did the Berlin Wall come tumbling down?
Margaret Thatcher is a member of what British political party?
Muammar Gadhafi was the dictator of what Middle Eastern country?
Mikhail Gorbachev initiated reforms meant to _______ the Soviet Union.
The passenger jet the Soviets shot down in 1983 was from what company?
How many points to did the Dow Jones Industrial Index lose on Black Monday?
What caused the Challenger disaster?
President Reagan ordered the _______ of Libya after a terrorist attack in West Berlin.
Answers
NATO wargames, Christa McAuliffe, 1989, Conservative, Libya, Save, Korean air lines/Korean Air, 508, O-ring failure, Aerial bombing.
Almost everyone loves quoting experts about everything and no different. Today’s post is exclusively and completely written by women with their opinions on Men, Women, and Marriage. It should be interesting.
ONWOMEN
“A woman is like a tea bag. You never know how strong she is until she gets into hot water.” Eleanor Roosevelt 1981
” I do not wish them [women] to have power over men; but over themselves.” Mary Wollstonecraft 1792
“In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.” Margaret Thatcher 1970
ONMEN
” Man for the sake of getting a living forget to live.” Margaret Fuller 1844
“We don’t believe in rheumatism and true love until after the first attack.” Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach 1905
“Fate of love is that it always seems too little or too much.” Amelia E. Barr 1904
ON LOVE &ROMANCE
“I do not consider divorce an evil by any means. It’s just as much a refuge for women married to brutal man as Canada was to the slaves of brutal masters.” Susan B. Anthony 1898
“A husband is what is left of the lover, after the nerve has been extracted.” Helen Rowland
” I married beneath me, all women do.” Nancy Astor 1981
Louisa May Alcott
I’d like to finish this post with a quote from Louisa May Alcott written on April 11, 1868.
“One of the trials of womankind is the fear of being an old maid. To escape this dreadful doom, young girls rushed into matrimony with a recklessness which astonishes the beholder; never pausing to remember that the loss of liberty, happiness, and self-respect is poorly repaid by the barren honor of being called Mrs. instead of Ms.”
Do I agree to all of the material I just posted, mostly! Many of these quotes were from a different time but the facts of marriage and men and women hasn’t changed all that much in any case. At the time some of these quotes were made they carried serious weight to the nation and had a lot to do with women eventually getting the vote.
For many years I’ve been a lover of fine wines but even more obsessed with fine whiskies. The king of whiskey for me is bourbon. If I would have had two sons one of them would have been named “Jack” and the other named “Daniel”. A few years ago, I was in my seventh month of chemotherapy and wasn’t allowed any hard liquor. I was unfortunately forced to drink a series of less than satisfying hard ciders which truly sucked. Finally, the chemo ended, and I was given permission by all of my doctors to have a “real” drink. I returned home and poured myself a large glass of Jack Daniels and came very close to multiple orgasms. I got thoroughly wasted by that one drink, but I knew immediately that I was still alive. Today’s post contains quotes from a number of people with their own opinions about whiskey and they’re definitely worth remembering.
“A gulp of hot whiskey at bedtime – it’s not very scientific, but it helps.” Alexander Fleming (the discoverer of penicillin)
“I’m on a whiskey diet. I’ve lost three days already.” Tommy Cooper
“Scotchy, scotch, scotch. Here it goes down. Down into my belly.” A quote from the movie Anchorman
“You actually go down to Kentucky, Louisville, and they’ve got bourbons that make Old Grandad and Jack Daniels look like Schweppes bitterly lemon . . . there’s one called Rebel Yell and that’s dynamite shit.” Keith Richards
“You cannot drink gin and tonic in the middle of the night. You must have whiskey to give you energy.” Margaret Thatcher
“My God, so much I like to drink Scotch that sometimes I think my name is Igor Stra-whiskey.” Igor Stravinsky
“My family was a bunch of drunks. When I was six, I came up missing, they put my picture on bottles of Scotch.” Rodney Dangerfield
“When life hands you lemons, make Whiskey Sours.” WC Fields
“I like my whiskey old and my women young.” Errol Flynn
“There is no bad whiskey. There are only some whiskeys that aren’t as good as others.” Raymond Chandler
I thought it was only right and necessary to congratulate the Jack Daniels company for their release of a new and excellent single malt, Jack Daniels American Whiskey. They’ve always had the best quality products and I’m looking forward to sipping some of this one. With that thought in mind, here are a few more interesting tidbits on whiskey to educate all of you silly wine and beer drinkers.
*****
Let’s start with a quote from Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw.
“I’d rather be someone’s shot of whiskey than everyone’s cup of tea.”
*****
Here are a few facts about the company.
Approximately 2500 barrels are produced each day.
Jack Daniels is the only distiller in the world that makes barrels for its own products.
Tennessee’s Moore County, where the Jack Daniel’s distillery is located, has been a dry county since Prohibition, so you have to go to the next county to buy a bottle.
On the first Friday of every month, pay day, all employees at Jack Daniels, get a free bottle of Jack Daniels. It’s a guarantee that no one takes that day off.
*****
According to Margaret Thatcher’s private diet notes, in 1979, the soon-to-be Prime Minister only allowed herself to imbibe whiskey (and soda) “on days when meat was eaten. Otherwise, no alcohol.” Meat days were Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays.
*****
Errol Flynn
“I like my whiskey old and my women young.”
*****
Legend has it that the original Jack Daniels became so frustrated with his safe that he kicked it and shattered his left big toe. He got gangrene and the toe was surgically removed, followed by his foot, then his leg. He died six years later from complications from the original infection.
It’s obvious he didn’t make proper use of “the water of life”.
*****
Whiskey, like a beautiful woman, demands appreciation!
I’ve been giving serious thought to topics normally considered women’s issues. In actuality all women’s issues are really men’s issues too. If the women’s issues are addressed, approved, and implemented, we men are affected as well. I’m really not writing about women’s issues per se but more about the woman’s movement in particular.
Most people in this country think the women’s movement started in the U.S. in the sixties with bra-burning (my personal favorite), free love (another favorite), and the birth of feminism (not so much). The truth of the matter is that that the women’s movement started many decades ago in countries around the world and is still alive and well. Places like Afghanistan, needless to say, are lagging behind by a few centuries. During those centuries women were pushed into the background, dominated by men, and we’re required to be barefoot and pregnant as often as possible. Arranged marriages were common in many cultures making a woman’s choice of just about anything impossible. Women kept inching their way forward, one step at a time, three steps forward and then two steps back. They will never stop regardless of the price they have to pay.
In the United States women’s suffrage came to a head in Utah where men hoped by giving women the right to vote they could dispose of the Mormon tradition of polygamy. As soon as polygamy was voted out the male-dominated Congress of the United States turned around and disenfranchised those same women. It wasn’t until the end of the nineteenth century that Idaho, Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming again enfranchised women after diligent efforts by the suffragette movements at state level.
So here we are in the 21st century and probably within twenty years of seeing the first woman president of the United States. I hope I’m alive to see it. I’ve been impressed with a few women over the years who I would have voted for in an instant if given the chance. Margaret Thatcher for one (unfortunately wrong country), Jean Kirkpatrick, former UN Ambassador, and Condoleezza Rice as well. But never Hilary Clinton, OMG NEVER! We’ve now had our first black president and I’m certain no woman I know could do as bad a job as he and Biden have done and are doing.
I have a great deal of admiration for the women who came before. They paved the way for our modern women with their blood, sweat, and tears. At the same time I thumb my nose to Gloria Steinem and her ilk who turned the woman’s rights movement into radical feminism and used that organization for their own liberal political agenda. I began blogging seriously 11 years ago and during that time I’ve read and communicated with a host of women of all ages. I’ve been impressed with what I’ve read and also with the written conversations I’ve had with many of you. Women will continue to make even greater strides in the coming decades and all of you young ladies out there should remember your history and continue the good fight.
The battle of the sexes has existed for as long as anyone can remember. If your a Christian it’s taught that women were made from a man’s rib and then couldn’t resist the temptations of the devil. Eve, the first woman, got the first man, Adam, thrown out of Paradise because of a lack of self-control. It’s a sad story but as in all ancient stories there is always a grain of truth. I’m not a big believer in religion or religious writings from hundreds or thousand years ago and prefer to make my own judgments based on what I know.
Let me qualify myself a little. My mother was a women. My sister was a woman. My grandmothers were women and many of my aunts and cousins were female. My many girl friends, lovers, and acquaintances were females. Why I was so enlightened that many of my pets were also female. I’ve had women work for me, with me, and on occasion I worked for them. I feel I have the right to voice an opinion or two about the war between the sexes because after being married for nineteen years I consider myself imminently qualified. It wasn’t the marriage that helped qualify me but the divorce. I learned a lot.
You probably think that I’m now going to rant about all of my bad experiences with the women in my life. I admit there have been a few but nothing I would care to bore you with. I’d rather fall back on the words of women and how they perceive themselves. Here we go.
The hardest years in life are those between ten and seventy. Helen Hayes (at 73)
There is no more creative force in the world than the menopausal woman with zest. Margaret Mead
One is not born a woman, one becomes one. Simone DeBeauvoir
A male gynecologist is like an auto mechanic who never owned a car. Carrie Snow
I am a marvelous housekeeper. Every time I leave a man I keep his house. Zsa Zsa Gabor
A man’s got to do what a man’s got to do. A woman must do what he can’t. Rhonda Hansome
Whatever women must do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily, this is not difficult. Charlotte Whitton
Whoever thought up the word "Mammogram"? Every time I hear it, I think I’m supposed to put my breast in an envelope and send it to someone. Jan King
You see a lot of smart guys with dumb women, but you hardly ever see a smart woman with a dumb guy. Erica Jong
Laugh and the world laughs with you. Cry and you cry with your girlfriends. Laurie Kuslansky
Behind every successful man is a surprised woman. Maryon Pearson
In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man – if you want anything done, ask a woman. Margaret Thatcher
I never married because there was no need. I have three pets at home who answer the same purpose as a husband. I have a dog that growls every morning, a parrot that swears all afternoon, and a cat that comes home late every night. Marie Corelli
Nobody can make you feel inferior without your permission. Eleanor Roosevelt
I have everything I had twenty years ago, only it’s all a little bit lower. Gypsy Rose Lee
The only reason I would take up jogging is so that I could hear heavy breathing again. Erma Bombeck
A woman’s rule of thumb: if it has tires or testicles, you’re going to have trouble with it. Unknown
Many of these quotations are from women who are famous and even iconic. Read them, digest them, and make up your own mind. Nothing stated here surprised me in the least. Now let’s hear from a few men about themselves.
God gave men both a penis and a brain, but unfortunately not enough blood supply to run both at the same time. Robin Williams
God made woman beautiful and foolish; beautiful, that man might love her; and foolish, that she might love him. Author Unknown
Man is the only animal that blushes – or needs to. Mark Twain
A dog is not considered a good dog because he is a good barker. A man is not considered a good man because he is a good talker. Chuang Tzu
When a young man complains that a young lady has no heart, it’s pretty certain that she has his. George Dennison
How can a woman be expected to be happy with a man who insists on treating her as if she were a perfectly normal human being. Oscar Wilde
When a man is in love he endures more than at other times; he submits to everything. Friedrich Nietzsche
Nature knows no indecencies; man invents them. Mark Twain
Any man who reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into lazy habits of thinking. Albert Einstein
Women need a reason to have sex. Men just need a place. Billy Crystal
Wise men are not always silent, but they know when to be. Proverb
Every woman needs one man in her life who is strong and responsible. Given this security, she can proceed to do what she really wants to do – fall in love with men who are weak and irresponsible. Richard J. Needham
Men play the game; women know the score. Roger Woddis
I like men who have a future and women who have a past. Oscar Wilde
There are two perfectly good men, one dead, and the other unborn. Chinese Proverb
Man will occasionally stumble over the truth, but most times he will pick himself up and carry on. Winston Churchill
Men forget but never forgive. Women forgive but never forget. Unknown
Men are what their mothers made them. Ralph Waldo Emerson
This battle continues as it always has and always will with the same old complaints and wise cracks by both sides. It’s Mother Nature at her very best. It’s called the “mating ritual” by some experts but it all comes down to one thing. Yes, that’s right, you know exactly what I’m talking about, S..E..X! If your surprised by that statement then you must live in an isolated convent or monastery far from the civilized world. Either that or you’re a total idiot with a lack of common sense and no chance of getting laid.
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