Happy Flag Friday

Today's Friday post is meant to teach you some important stuff.
Flag stuff.

June 14th is Flag Day, which is one of those holidays I knew nothing about until I had a chat with my dear friend wikipedia.

Way back in 1777 the US adopted our flag by a congressional resolution.

I'd be lying if I told you that I have long felt some kind of profound connection to American flag. But recently I had the chance to visit the Smithsonian to see this on display there:

It's the flag.  As in The Flag.  The one our National Anthem is about.  The museum spent a lot of time restoring the cloth (people were suspended over it to clean the fabric by hand, a process that took 6 years) and detailing the process that Mary Young Pickersgill went through to sew and construct the flag that ended up being larger than her own house.

So when I say that I didn't feel a profound connection to the flag, it was the story of restoring the flag that hit me a bit that day we went to see it.  It was hearing about the people who were committed to saving and restoring something that they treasure so deeply that really struck me as profound.

For me, that kind of devotion is what sticks and turns something so old and fragile into something immortal and timelessly relevant.

image from here.

Fourth (ish) of July Friday

This one feels hard to write.  Not because the Fourth of July is particularly sentimental or some such, but because SO MANY ideas came to me when I was on my way to work and “Hot for Teacher” by Van Halen started playing on my iPod.

Do I take the most appropriate (and frankly, super obvious) approach of talking about our history and all of the fore-fathery stuff?

Do I say something politely patriotic?

OR

Do I talk about the things that I love most about what we have available to us here in the US?

In no particular order, and certainly not limited to these items below, this is what I love about the place I live.  And I recommend you absorb every single thing on the list.

Independence Day – The movie from the great year of 1996.  Take time to savor the scene right after Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum destroy the aliens when they strut across the Salt Flats in Nevada smoking cigars.

Born in the U.S.A. by Bruce Springsteen – Just try and tell me this isn’t one of the best albums ever.  Actually don’t.  You’re entitled to your wrong opinion.

Captain America – Let’s be clear.  I’m talking about the comic book hero.  The movie was great and all, but Cap looks best in print.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald – one of the loveliest books I ever read in my American Lit. class. 

Mark Twain and Walt Whitman – crazypants authors who shocked people at every opportunity.  Incidentally, July 4^th is also Tom Sawyer Fence Painting Day.

Van Halen – What is more American than a band that has dramatic break ups, reunions, and really really loud drum solos?

Image from here.

Happy Father's Day Friday

It’s been ages since I put up a Friday post, so I’m happy to say I’m back!

This is my dad.

He’s pretty great.  Just like mom.

This upcoming Sunday is Father’s Day (or Grandfather’s Day, or Uncle’s Day, or Brother or Brother-in-Law, Foster Dad, Adopted Dad, or Significant Other, or Cousin, or Great Uncle, etc.)

Recently, my dad has decided to take up blacksmithing.  To be clear, my dad works for a software company.  He’s a geek (in a super cool, 3D modeling, computer game playing, sci fi watching, home theater building kind of way). 

What I’m say is this blacksmithing thing came as a big surprise to me (although, mom didn’t seem surprised at all).

Part of this new hobby is that he spends a lot of time talking about different types of hammers and trying to decide where in their backyard he would like to put his forge.

Let’s spend our weekends thanking them for putting up with all the years of eye rolling and embarrassed, exasperated shouts of “Daaaaaaad!  You’re embarrassing meeeeeee!”

(Like when they ask your friends whether they think the 3 pound or the 1 pound hammer is better.)

This is my mom.  She’s pretty great.

This upcoming Sunday is Mother’s Day (or Grandmother’s Day, or Aunt’s Day, or Sister or Sister-in-Law, Foster mom, Adopted Mom, or Significant Other, or Cousin, or Great Aunt, etc. whatever makes sense for your family).

In our family, Mother’s Day actually lasts the entire weekend. Which is lovely, and a little funny.  Those of you who have been anywhere near me during my birthday month, now understand why my birthday lasts much longer than a day.

Over the last few years, she has decided that instead of gifts, she wants to give and receive experiences.  I love this idea and so as I was preparing for the upcoming Mother’s Day weekend, I was looking forward to hearing about what we would be doing.  Spa day?  A day at Powell’s?  A trip to the beach maybe?

Nope!

This year, we will be visiting the exotic, adventurous, and exclusive…

Mom’s Office.

My mom is a photo fanatic.  She has been working on a picture project for the last several years to collect, preserve, and share family photos. 

So Mother’s Weekend this year will be spent crowded around mom’s computer, sorting, editing, and otherwise fantastic-izing thousands of pictures.

Let’s wish them a happy day/weekend and thank them for putting up with the phase we went through when all we would do in pictures is stick out our tongues or give the thumbs up.

Happy Easter Friday

I know that Easter means a lot of different things to different people and families.  But today, I want to tell you about how it works for the Kross family.

I have had the same Easter basket since I was 6 months old.  My mom made it for me out of blue, pink, and white yarn.  That Easter basket has travelled with us from Illinois out to Oregon, moved between at least 4 houses, and is older than my brother.

So, every year, my mom pulls out the Easter baskets from her secret holiday stuff hiding place: my pastel macramé basket of joy, a stand in for my brother and his wife, and usually some additional basket for an orphan friend or two who joins my family for the holiday that year.  She fills them with that weird shredded green plasticky stuff, and anxiously waits for us to show that same excitment from 1989.  The best Easter baskets I ever had were filled with Reese's and Lego’s.  There are few greater gifts in the world and I'm grateful that this part of Easter hasn’t changed.

Now that my brother and I are grown, the big thing that has changed for my family is that Easter is a pretty casual holiday.  It no longer requires that I wear an ugly dress chosen by my grandmother but instead, I get to wear sweatpants while my dad makes "Easter Paella.”  A few years ago, Dad travelled to Spain on a business trip and of all the things that happened on that trip, Paella is the thing that stood out for him.

Happy Friday.  Happy Easter.  Happy Lego’s.  Happy Reese’s eggs.  And perhaps, if you’re lucky, happy Paella.

Image from here.

Happy (pre) Valentine's Day Friday

Hello Friday-ers!

Do you remember those silly/sad valentines that you would buy in a box to hand out to all of your classmates in grade school?  The ones you’d tape to boxes of chalky conversation hearts or pieces of off brand chocolates?  I remember having to give one to every kid in class, even the weird kid and the boy who threw rocks.  They got the ugliest valentines from the box though.

I don’t know about you all, but I spent one year trying to make my valentines by hand.  And when I say “by hand,” I mean glue-sticking ugly doilies to red and pink paper, then coloring them in.  Don’t ask me why I had doilies.  I’m sure they belonged to my mother.

Sadly, these were not a hit, nor were they worth the time I spent on them, so from that point on, my classmates got valentines that were mostly Disney or Batman themed.

Happy Valentine’s Day my Friday Friends, from the bottom of my secretly 8 year old heart.

Images from here and here.

Happy Popcorn Friday!

Yesterday was National Popcorn Day. 

I love popcorn. I love movies.  And movies and popcorn make my world go ‘round. 

When I was a kid I would camp out with my cousins in my grandparents’ rec room in front of the giant static-y big screen tv, and chow down on big buckets of popcorn split into 3 classic sections.  Grossly orange, salty cheese (gone first), caramel (gone second), plain (never finished, barely touched).

This usually involved bulky VHS tapes until we got interrupted by The Uncles so that they could watch the Bears play…or watch a tape of the Bears playing.  Or watch the news about the Bears playing.

In honor, please enjoy:

Image from here.

UPDATE: How was my New Year's Eve?

Apparently, New Year's Eve is the busiest time of year at the happiest place on earth.  A fact that we did not know when booking our trip.  The park was at capacity every day we were there (read: 85-90 thousand people).  Those of you who know my little idiosyncrasies know that I’m not for close contact with people I don’t know, so this was a bit overwhelming.

BUT

Disney has brought back Captain EO, which was one of the major highlights of my trip.

Overall, it's one of the best things I've ever done, worth every penny, minute, and bump in the crowd. I definitely plan on going again (at any time of year other than early January). 

Be happy and safe this year!

*image from here.

Happy Pre-New Year's Friday!

I AM GOING TO DISNEYLAND FOR NEW YEAR’S EVE!

A few of my friends and I have been talking about taking this trip in very vague dreamy terms for several years now.  But this is the first year that any of us took any of the others seriously enough to make a plan.  And so suddenly “wouldn’t it be cool to go to Disneyland for New Year’s?” turned into shopping for hotel/park pass deals online and assessing how much we all had in our savings accounts to make it work.

And so it is!

When I was younger, New Year’s was always one of those lame holidays that came with obligatory gatherings, but no one really cared about.  For many years, we just drank too much Martinelli’s sparkling cider and tried to look fancy.

As my friends and I grew up, we came up with our own traditions, including spending time out at the beach in Manzanita, having family dinners, drinking cheap champagne, and playing HOURS of bitter and spiteful Monopoly or trying not to freeze while watching amateur fireworks outside.

Be happy and safe as this year comes to a close and a new one begins.  I will see you again in 2012 my friends!

*image from here

Happy Virginia Friday

I read the Yes, Virginia letter every year.  More than any movie, song, or epic sweater, it makes me feel the merriest and least Scrooge-like.

I’ve always really loved the idea of Santa Claus.  In my family, he is still very real and very well-represented on Christmas Eve.  I’ll be honest, if I had my way, I would still believe in Santa.

So, even if Christmas or Santa Claus aren’t part of your life, I encourage you to read this.  It’s really about the Spirit of the season.  

Be jolly and joyful.  Enjoy whatever lovely break you may have from work and have a beautiful, healthy, happy, and safe end of the year, however you celebrate it.

image from here.

Happy Wally World Friday!

Over the last several years, my mom has started a new tradition.  Out with the old fashioned end of year mass mail letter to family detailing our every moment in a cheerful tone!  Out with pictures included in cards for odd holidays like Arbor Day!  Out with personal cards to every member of the family and everyone else loosely connected to us!

My mother, being ever so family focused and making an attempt to share the joy she finds each day with everyone she now spends days creating a photo book showing what we have been up to as a family for the past year.  Each year now, starting around mid-November, every moment or photo comes with an exclamation of, "this will be great for the book!"

The year my brother got married, the book was enormous in order to include all of the vital moments.  When I brought my dog, Stevie, home, the book was full of more pictures of a sleeping dachshund than I ever thought possible.

This year it will have some big travel moments and pretty excellent birthday celebrations, but the best part will be the cover.

I'm not much for staged family photos using a timer where everyone is wearing an ugly sweater, but that's what we've got this year.  Plus something a little extra special. 

Think Wally World, 1989, “save the neck for me, Clark!,” Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and non-nutritive cereal varnishes.

Happy family holiday card season my Friday Friends!

*image from here

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving in my family has always been full of “adventure.”

There was the year of the Turducken, which was exactly the disaster it seems like it would be.  My dad and aunts stayed up all night trying to get the thing to cook all the way through.  It is still questionable whether or not they succeeded.  That was the Turducken’s one and only invitation to the Kross family table. 

Years before that, my dad (somehow) was responsible for the mashed potatoes.  (My dad has, on EVERY attempt, made Kraft Macaroni and Cheese incorrectly.)  However, Grandma Magno felt that he needed to participate that year.  She set him up with her ancient Kitchenaid mixer, a pile of hand-peeled potatoes, and several sticks of butter and told him to get going while she went to dig who knows what out of the basement refrigerator.  Probably one of these.

When she returned to the kitchen, she caught my dad scraping mashed potatoes off of her kitchen cabinets and back into the bowl to continue mixing.  Frankly, they were pretty delicious that year. 

Come to think of it, maybe it’s really just my dad that makes Thanksgiving such an adventure.

Images from here and here.

OH. MY. GOODNESS.  Hello 11/11/11! 

I’ll reveal a little-known secret about your Favorite Friday Blogger.  I am REALLY REALLY GOOD at The Google.  This is why my Friday posts are so amazing.

Normally, I find exactly what I’m looking for on my first search attempt.

However, the planning I did for this Friday’s topic was the most insane exception I’ve ever experienced.

A few samples of the glorious sites I discovered with the simple Google search “11/11/11” in ascending order of awesomeness.

Yes, it’s a real movie.  If anyone sees it, please report back.

Metaphysics

Trust us, it’s special

We are being guarded

APOCALYPSE

After you check all of these out, the snark in me wants to point out the location of the news sites on this list (#’s 3 and 5...specifically Fox News.  Hint: it's #5)

*image from here

Happy Halloween Friday!

Halloween is just 4 short days away!

I love having Jack-o-Lanterns on my front porch, orange and purple lights around my fence, and way to many skull and crossbones around the house.  Thankfully, my roommates are avid supporters of all of these things and usually help me put it all up on October 1^st.

The one part of Halloween that is AWFUL is the pumpkin brains.  I have “problems” with touching, smelling, or really going anywhere near the mushy stuff (well, mushy stuff in general).  Because we love roasted pumpkin seeds in our house, this usually means that one of my roommates ends up sifting through all the brains to pick out those delicious little seeds of yumminess while I hide in a different room pretending that I’m totally fine with the mush piled up all over my dining room table.

  

I also always start out with lofty goals of lovely creative pumpkins to put on the porch, like this one. However, what I end up with usually is a bit closer to one of those “oh how cute, a child must live in that house” kind of pumpkins.

  

 

 
 

 Happy Halloween Friday everyone!  Enjoy it and save me some of these:

*images from here and here and here and here.

Happy (pre) Talk Like a Pirate Friday!

Monday is one of my very favorite holidays.  Talk like a pirate day!  http://www.talklikeapirate.com/piratehome.html

In order to support you so that you can fully enjoy this glorious holiday, I have provided a few valuable language resources:

http://www.talklikeapirate.com/translator.html

http://talklikeapirate.com/translatorold.html

I recommend the following pirate movies due to their absolute perfect-i-tude.

*Images from here, here, and here