Saturday, July 26, 2008

SEARCH RESULTS

You may have noticed a number way down there ⇓at the bottom of my blog.  (OK, when I preview it, that arrow thingie worked.  Now I jut get a blank square.  Huh.)

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OK, I'll stop.

ANYway, besides telling me how many times my blog has been accessed, I also get statistics on HOW people have found me. StatTracker gives me the key words that have been used in searches on which my blog has appeared in the result list.  Those can be very interesting.  The top two searches that land people on my place are Charter Communication Sucks; and the simple search for an entimologist.

This blog entry  was quite popular for awhile searching for a particular guy.  And not the one you'd think by looking at it.   The searches were for Edward "Gil Chesterton from Frazier" Hibbert; who had been starring in the Drunken Chaperone on Broadway.  

And Edward "Gil Chesterton from Frazier" Hibbert, if you are one of the searchers and have found this blog, who in Brussells is looking for you?  That's like Ground Zero for the Edward Hibbert Fan Club.

BUT, the other night I was floored, chagrinned and stymied by a new finding.  My blog is a on the result list for a search that is phrased "public humiliation in St. Louis."

I mean, HEY!!!!!  OK, so it's not the TOP result, in fact, it's not even on the first page of the results.  It is the top one on the second page of the results, though.  Which, ouch.

Was it on a result list for Best Blog in St. Louis?

No.

Was it on a result list for Most Available Bachelorette in St. Louis?

No.

Was it on a result list for Funniest Woman in St. Louis?

No.

Was it on a result list for best Mom in St Louis?

No.

(Note:  but it will be on the result lists for all of those searches now!  Ha!  )

It was on a result list for Public Humiliation in St. Louis.  But, I guess that's what you get when you have a blog post entitled Public Humiliation.

Friday, July 25, 2008

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

THE RACE IS ON

What will I get first? A new car?





or a new iPhone?



True, there are more used cars available in St. Louis than there are iPhones. Apple's website indicates the shelves in the local stores are bare. An attempt to contact the AT&T store to check on current and future availability was unsuccessful. One couldn't even talk to a real person but was assured that if one left a message, the call would be returned or one could access the website. One didn't even hear the usual obligatory "your call is important to us." That must be due to the fact that the call was not, in fact, important to them as the call was not returned. I'm not real sure I understand the constant urging to access the website as the iPhones are not available via the internets.

Even some of St. Louis' beautiful people were unsuccessful after standing in line on Friday.



So, place your bets; car or iPhone...which do I get first?

Saturday, July 12, 2008

I'M BACK!

For those of you whose RSS Aggregators have been aggravated by my blog today, I apologize. I've been trying to finalize the posts about Meghan's wedding, and Blogspot and I have been having issues with each other.

Since April, I have been working on making the "perfect post" about my daughter's wedding. I finally realized that I was not going to be happy with anything I wrote, so decided to let the pictures tell their story.

The five posts that follow will do just that.

And I'm happy to say I've finally finished this before their third wedding reception will be held, this one in Pennsylvania in August. I'll post those pictures sometime in November at the rate I'm going.

A ROYAL WEDDING




Her Royal Highness, HRH Princess Meghan got married this past April.



To a boy



It was a wonderful weekend and she got a wonderful guy. I'll be honest, he got a wonderful girl as well.

The Grandparents were excited.



Relatives drove in from all over the country.




It was time to start rehearsing.

THE DAY AND NIGHT BEFORE

In a successful effort to keep the wedding budget within control we made the favors, flowers, boutineers and corsages ourselves. Meghan and I worked on the milk and white chocolate candies for the tables at the reception.




Jenni and Meghan made the pew decorations.




The day of Jenni's and Tim's rehearsal, we had to deal with tornadoes.  In fact, during the rehearsal itself, we had to go to the basement as tornadoes were touching down outside of town.  

The night before Meghan's and Ben's rehearsal, we had an earthquake in the Midwest. People told Don and me how glad they were that we didn't have any more daughters to marry off.

The Grandpas chat about the state of world affairs at the rehearsal dinner.



Jenni and her Grandma



Ben's family is from the East Coast; Meghan's is from the Midwest. Their extended families hadn't gotten to know their chosen mates, so the couple showed a video of photographs taken since they met.



Being old married people now, Jenni and Tim sit back and enjoy.



The happy couple with her Dad.



Jenni and I.



The bridesmaids all in a row.



Everyone mills around before the rehearsal.



Nathan gives the couple some instructions.




Meghan describes the width of her dress as Ben covers his ears so he can't hear anything about it.



Meghan and her girls gather for a slumber party the night before the wedding.





And the hairdresser arrives early the next morning to start working on the updos.



During the process, Meghan's cousin Jesse arrives from Texas and surprises her. Meghan didn't think Jesse was going to be able to attend.





And then.....we head for the church.




GETTING THE BRIDE READY

Ashley feeds bagel bites to Meghan as she keeps her dress covered. Meghan was in her wedding two years ago.




Matron-Of-Honor Jenni helps Meghan with the necklace I had made for the wedding. Meghan was her maid of honor three years ago.




Megan fastens Meghan's shoes. Megan's wedding would be the following month and Meghan would be one of her bridesmaids.





Brooke applies Meghan's make-up. Meghan and Ben were in Brooke's wedding last summer on an island in the middle of Lake Saranac, New York.




It's all beginning to sound like Twenty-Seven Dresses, isn't it?

PICTURES BEFORE THE WEDDING

Is something going on I need to know about? (it was just the flower girl fussing about getting her picture taken)



Ben and his guys wait for the main event.






Meghan's grandparents are all set.



Annarae with her Grandma Carol......



...... and off on her own.



The bridesmaids get ready for their close-ups.....



....and wait their turn.



Don and I get our turn with Meghan.





It looks like my ex is trying to keep me out of my own family picture, doesn't it?



But I managed to get in.



And here's the bride.

THE WEDDING


There are no unofficial pictures of the wedding as all of the unofficial photographers were busy watching the ceremony.  All of the official wedding pictures were taken by the wonderful and talented Heather from Shutter Happy Studios.    Oh, look who's on the front of their website! (unless Heather has changed it)

The ceremony itself was wonderful.  Both Ben and Meghan got teary-eyed as soon as they saw each other.  Of course, Don and I quickly followed and the bridesmaids were passing tissues back and forth amongst themselves all during the ceremony.  Water-proof mascara was a must.  
Communion was part of the ceremony and the couple served it to their guests themselves.  

Nathan gave a wonderful homily and stressed how the two of them made God the center of their lives.   He then pronounced them man and wife and it was time for more pictures.



Saturday, July 05, 2008

MR. AND MRS. BEN AND MEGHAN

The couple relax for their post-wedding photos.



Carol and Mom



Meghan with a reluctant flower girl.




Meghan and Ben pose with their collective grandparents; the ones who were able to make it.



It was a bit of a chilly day and the chauffeur had a fire going in the limo's virtual fireplace.








Whenever I see a wedding cake, I now think of Franck Eggelhofer in Father of the Bride going on an on about the Cahck. Meghan and Ben had a lovely and delicious cahck.




When it was time for the couple's first dance, Meghan was no where to be seen.





She entered through the back door and approached Ben with some serious attitude.


They entertained --- and amazed --- us with a dance they had choreographed to Hello Goodbye's "In Your Arms".











Then Meghan danced with her Daddy.....,.





and Ben danced with his Mom.





Tim did a great job in a supporting role(s); he was the usher, unofficial photographer (unofficial because he 'appropriated' my camera and did a low-level growl whenever I approached it); he also served as disc jockey at the reception and chauffeur from the reception to hotel.





Meghan danced with her brother-in-law Tim


while Jenni danced with her new brother-in-law Ben.



Cut that out and smile prettily for the camera!


That's better.




Mr. and Mrs. Ben (Insert Last Name Here)



The rings.


The bubbles.


And they're gone.