Grand Poohbah

Grand Poohbah


I often use the name Grand Poohbah when referring to my father in law. All of his conversations revolve around his position in various groups. Over the weekend there was some debate on where the term originated. I remembered it from Happy Days.

This is what I found:

Grand Poobah
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Grand Poobah is a term that originates from Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado. In this operetta, the haughty character Pooh-Bah holds numerous exalted offices, including Lord Chief Justice, Master of the Buckhounds, Lord High Auditor, Groom of the Back Stairs, and Lord High Everything Else. The name has come to be used as a mocking title for someone self-important or high-ranking and who exhibits an inflated self-regard.

[edit] In popular culture
The expression "The Grand Pooh-Bah" was first introduced on the television show The Flintstones. Fred Flintstone and his friend Barney Rubble were members of the Loyal Order of Water Buffaloes Lodge No. 26. A high ranking elected position within this organization is Grand Poobah or Grand Imperial Poobah.

The character Howard Cunningham on the TV series Happy Days was a Grand Poobah of Leopard Lodge No. 462 in Milwaukee.

The Grand Poo-Bah is also a character in the Kingdom of Loathing online role playing game.


Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Poobah"

Didn't your mother ever tell you not to play with knives?

We noticed that the notches of all our new serrated knives have been given a make over. "How can this be?", you ask. Well, it always goes back to the kids. Dev is responsible for loading and unloading the dishwasher. When questioned about the knives he said he had clinked them together once. David checked all the knives including the big one of the set to find them all the same. Apparently he has been playing music with them. While we are grateful he was not harmed because they are very sharp and he is as coordinated as I am, we were not happy. It never occurred to me he would do such a thing. Much like the time we were in a store three or four years ago and I saw him chewing something. I asked him what it was and he said a balloon. A BALLOON! First of all, we did not have a balloon with us. "Where did you get the balloon?", I asked. "I found it on the floor." They say I have a look, they call it the evil eye. Boy did it get evil that day. What would possess my child to pick up a deflated balloon off the floor and start chewing it? This was something that you think about with a small child not an adolescent. He knew not to put anything from the floor into his mouth. He knew that balloons do not belong in your mouth. Yet he did it anyway. It reminds me of the character Cheese from Fosters Home for Imaginary Friends. In the Mac Daddy episode Cheese approaches Bloo and Mac with tin foil on his teeth. Cheese proudly announces,"Look I have braces."Mac says,"You got those off the ground didn't you?"Cheese replies,"Garabage can." Mac and Bloo simultaneously groan with hands to heads. Whoever wrote that has kids.

Happy Feet inspired

Lately J has been putting on tap performances left and right. Tonights show ended with him accidentally kicking a kitchen chair. Yes, he really gets into it. This is new. I am inclined to believe that his sudden interest was inspired by the movie Happy Feet. Sadly my boy takes after me. When I was a kid Fame was popular. At the beginning of every show Debbie Allen would say,"You've got big dreams? You want fame? Well fame is going to cost. And right here is where you get it. With sweat."
I thought that was so cool. Also, there were cute guys dancing around in tights. What girl wouldn't be inspired by that? I used to put on dance productions for my mother, just like J. Eventually my enthusiasm waned. I'm guessing his will too after we see Shek 3.

Memorial Day

To all the military men and women, past and present, I want to say thank you. I am humbled by your bravery and grateful for your every sacrifice.

Liquid Chalk Mural

Today I bought liquid chalk. Jason made the observation that it looks like finger paint. I believe he is right. The only difference I can see is these come in a container with a sponge applicator that fills when you press it against a surface. We made a lovely mural in shades of yellow, red, and blue.

The Sweetest Thing

David came down a minute ago to show me what he found on our bed, two notes that said I love you forever Dad and I love you forever Mom in red crayon. Jason is known for leaving us notes. Maybe I should laminate these so when he becomes a teenager we can remind him he once thought we were pretty terrific.

big white goose seeks sexy pink flamingos....

The big white goose greeted us today at the dock. He usually stays by the entrance, but today he decided to welcome us back for the season personally. At the lagoons there are many animals lurking such as geese and their newly hatched goslings, groundhogs, bunnies, birds that heckle you, ducks, fish, snapping turtles, Herons, and the one and only big white goose. We think maybe he was lured to our dock by the sexy pink flamingos put up by our neighbors. Who can guess the thought process of a goose in such matters. The most unusual sighting, aside from the friendly goose, was the white heron. I have never seen a white one. What's next...white snapping turtles?

We took a ride on the boat, the first for me this season. It was beautiful out. The sun glistened on the water as the light was dispersed into it's many shades in the mist. I felt the mist wash over me and contentment absorb into my pores.

My Mother's Day

Started the day with breakfast with my family and my mom. Then hung out at home for awhile. I actually fell asleep for a couple of hours. After I finally woke up, we went to see Spiderman 3. I had heard mixed reviews, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I liked it. It was a little slow at the beginning, but had lots of action and humor to balance it out in the end. What I didn't expect was how intense some of the scenes were. They were very dark and scary. There was a couple in front of us with a little girl maybe 3 years old who cried almost the entire movie. I don't blame her or them for that matter. Who knew. After the movie, we headed out to wish my mother-in-law a happy mother's day. It was a good day.

Happy Mother's Day

This is not my story. A friend of mine sent this to me. I hope you like it as much as I do.


Why my lips stayed chapped on Mother's Day.............
So, we had this great 10 year old cat named Jack who just recently died. Jack was a great cat and the kids would carry him around and sit on him and nothing ever bothered him. He used to hang out and nap all day long on this mat in our bathroom.

Well we have 3 kids and at the time of this story they were 4 years old, 3 years old and 1 year old. The middle one is Eli. Eli really loves chapstick. LOVES it. He kept asking to use my chapstick and then losing it. So finally one day I showed him where in the bathroom I keep my chapstick and how he could use it whenever he wanted to but he needed to put it right back in the drawer when he was done.

Last year on Mother's Day, we were having the typical rush around and trying to get ready for Church with everyone crying and carrying on. My two boys are fighting over the toy in the cereal box. I am trying to nurse my little one at the same time I am putting on my make-up. Everything is
a mess and everyone has long forgotten that this is a wonderful day to honor me and the amazing job that is motherhood.

We finally have the older one and the baby loaded in the car and I am looking for Eli. I have searched everywhere and I finally round the corner to go into the bathroom. And there was Eli. He was applying
my chapstick very carefully to Jack's . . . rear end. Eli looked right into my eyes and said "chapped." Now if you have a cat, you know that he is right--their little butts do look pretty chapped. And, frankly, Jack didn't seem to mind.

And the only question to really ask at that point was whether it was the FIRST time Eli had done that to the cat's behind or the hundredth.

And THAT is my favorite Mother's Day moment ever because it reminds us that no matter how hard we try to civilize these glorious little creatures, there will always be that day when you realize they've been using your chapstick on the cat's butt.

Happy Mother's Day!

How stupid are you?

I sprained my ankle yesterday going down to the basement. I have a bad habit of hopping down stairs instead of walking carefully. I have been trying to stay off of it. I sprained the same foot 7 years ago except it was much worse. Well, it might not have been so bad had I not gone to my kickboxing class the night I hurt it. I remember going to the doctor and he literally asked me,"How stupid are you?". Well...apparently as dumb as a door knob. Mom's don't get down time. We are so used to doing everything regardless of how we are feeling that we generally don't take time for ourselves unless it is absolutely necessary. I couldn't walk after the kick boxing class and so I had to go to the doctor; who told me to stay off of it. Not a realistic order.

So I tried to learn from my mistake, but while we were waiting for Devin to finish tennis practice I got bored. I played tennis off the backboard at first and then with J on the big court. I did not run after the ball though. I just let it bounce if I couldn't reach it with a few feet. Still it probably wasn't a good idea.

Yes, I know..."How stupid are you?"

Super Pacman rocks

Super Pacman is my favorite video game of all time. Most people have never heard of it. At the arcade I used to flip the game; Yes, I was that good. Six months ago I was thrilled to discover it was re-released with Pacman as a plug-in game. I own two of them just in case one breaks.

Back in the day, I had patterns memorized and knew just which keys opened which gates. I have the patterns down again, but I'm still stuggling with the gates. Frustrating. That's okay. I would rather be frustrated playing a game I love than never play it again.

Now...if only I could find a Mr. Do! plug-in. Then my life would be complete. For Halle Barry all is right in her world if once a year she can fit into the jeans she wore at 15. Me....I just want to play my video game. I got rid of those jeans last year.

Ohio - vacation central

David and I were watching tv earlier when a vacation commercial came on. We see a lot of commercials to go places like Florida, the Carolinas, PA, NY, Michigan, West Virginia, etc...David brought up a good question, "Do other states show commercials to entice people to come to Ohio?". Ohio has much to offer. We have the top rated roller coasters/amusement parks, Rock'n'Roll hall of fame, Football hall of fame,The Indians, The Browns, Ohio State, the lake, parks, Hannah Theater....Okay, I'm not cultured enough to keep this list going....The one thing we do not have is the billion dollar industry of gambling. Now I'm not talking about bingo or the lottery; No, the good old fashioned casino kind. The majority of Ohioians leave the state to gamble and yet everytime a casino is put on the ballot it's voted down, but that is a whole other blog.

Anyway, the question remains,"Do people deliberately set out to come here on vacation for reasons other than visiting family?"

****I put up videos from Youtube on my blog today. Please let me know what you think.

Texting

I was reminded of just how old and out of the loop I truly am recently when my friend was talking about how he has been texting back and forth with a girl he likes and another told me who she had texted last, then asked who I texted. I do not text, I type on the computer.

I guess I understand why it is popular. You can't call someone while they are in class or in a meeting and immediately convey your message, but you can text them. It does seem more efficient than voicemail or even e-mail when it comes to urgency.

But urgency does not seem to be the issue. No, I think it is instant gratification in the simpliest form. That is what society demands these days.

Monkey Sickness

I am beginning to think I should not be allowed to shop at Target. The monkeys were restless today. They chattered and danced until I could no longer ignore them. Yes, I bought more monkey things. I resisted the urge to buy the monkey doorway beads, decorative lights, cups, bowls, plates, mats, lightswitch covers, shower curtains, toothbrush holders, soap dishes, and once again, the monkey cookie jar. I settled for the monkey nightlight that I convinced myself we need for the hallway, a hand towel (you can never have enough hand towels), beach towel (no one will steal my beach towel now. HA!), and a monkey head bank for my desk.

Monkey sickness. Don't worry; It isn't contagious, but it is a little disturbing.

The boys have concluded there is something wrong with me. Jason reviewed the hand towel. I guess it looks better than it dries. Devin says he doesn't need a light to find his way to the bathroom at night. Then Jason chimed in again, "What's next mom...monkey cups, monkey chairs, monkey lamps...Next thing you know we will turn into monkeys. Oh..wait...I think I am already a monkey." He then began scratching his head and making monkey sounds.

And with that, we have come full circle.



Have a good day everyone.

socially inept

I was talking to a good friend the other day. She had read my blog and saw how many I had written. Her first response was, "You have too much time on your hands." I tried to rationalize by saying that this was my destressor, a hobby. And that is true. But, could my time be better spent? If you were to ask my husband, the answer would be a resounding yes.

I started blogging to keep my family and friends up to date with my life. My socially inept personality loves the internet. This forum allows me to communicate without using the phone or actually seeing anyone in person on a regular basis.

Anyway, my husband is right. I should be pulling all the books off my enormous bookshelf and organizing it. Or in the basement putting back the containers. Or vacuuming the baseboards throughout the house. Sigh....there are plenty of things to do. None of which are as fun as writing for you.

Nurses are angels

May 6th - May 12th is National Nurses' Week

Years ago, the school nurse (a RN) in middle school recognized that I had the signs and symptoms of Graves Disease or Hyperthyroidism. It is because of her I am alive today.

Thank you Mrs. Munoz. You are an angel.

Wax on...wax off

We took my car up to the dealership this morning to have the car rubbed out. When we bought the car we also purchased this plan that included car washes and extras through the dealership. The first time David took it up there for the car wash it came out with an inordinate amount of tiny scratches. We didn't notice right away, but as soon as we did he called them. After about a month of being given the runaround, he called Nate (the guy who sold us the car). Like that, we were in. Nate is a nice kid around my sister Laura's age. He reminds me of my friend Eric in the way he looks and talks. Nate is a really nice guy. He met us at the door with a handshake and a smile; not in the typical salemen kind of way, more like a friend. He is one of the best salesmen we have ever come across. He made sure our car was seen first thing. When we turned in our keys they found that we had been deleted from the computer completely. This frustrated the girl at the desk who appeared to take her job very seriously and didn't understand how others didn't share her work ethic. She reinputted our info and checked to make sure the part we were waiting on for the window had come in. It was so they are putting that in today as well.

On the way home we saw one police car pulling someone over...then another....and another.....I think the total was four within a mile of the contruction zone. Turns out there was one officer stratigically placed on the bridge over the freeway with radar letting the other officers know who was speeding. I thought the officer who used the radar had to be the one to pull you over and give the ticket. Clearly I was mistaken. They are a smart bunch. Most of the tickets come at the end of the month as they try to make their quotas. Looks like the city will have their money early this year. I wonder if that means people will be able to speed all they want come May 31st. Probably not.

We are hoping to be able to go out on the boat, but it looks like rain. So here I am just killing time.

History of the blog as requested by my mom

According to www.rebeccablood.com retreived today in my google search:

In 1998 there were just a handful of sites of the type that are now identified as weblogs (so named by Jorn Barger in December 1997). Jesse James Garrett, editor of Infosift, began compiling a list of "other sites like his" as he found them in his travels around the web. In November of that year, he sent that list to Cameron Barrett. Cameron published the list on Camworld, and others maintaining similar sites began sending their URLs to him for inclusion on the list. Jesse's 'page of only weblogs' lists the 23 known to be in existence at the beginning of 1999.

Suddenly a community sprang up. It was easy to read all of the weblogs on Cameron's list, and most interested people did. Peter Merholz announced in early 1999 that he was going to pronounce it 'wee-blog' and inevitably this was shortened to 'blog' with the weblog editor referred to as a 'blogger.'

See you next Sunday Mom. I love you. :)

Final exam

The day started with my final exam at 8am. Grades to be posted at 5pm. That left a whole day to obsess with neurotic intensity of a 1000 suns.

I spent the day just hanging out. I tried not to think about. I really did. I fooled around on the computer, exercised, washed clothes, put away dishes, watched tv, played tennis....Devin's tennis match was the best distraction of all. He played singles this match. He won 4 out of 8. This was only his second time as a single and he has improved considerably. He played hard and enjoyed every minute of it.

By the time it was over it was time to go back up to the school. I waited for David to come home first because he wanted to go eat afterward. Turns out we had something to celebrate. I did very well on my final and in my class. Three semesters down. One to go.



*****Mom, I will try to call you tomorrow or Saturday.:)

My Tuesday

Clinicals over with good review, tennis with lighting, new episode of Gilmore Girls with a few girly tears, study for final with Sex and The City.