HAPPY BLOGOVERSARY TO ME

Gentle Readers . . . and Maxwell,

On this day in 2009, I wrote my first blog post. During these eight years, my blog has had 980,451 page views. Most of the viewers are in the U.S., but those of you in the U.K. and Canada have hung in there with me, too. (I ignore views from Russia because Willy Dunne Wooters assures me that those are spambot.)

My blog has changed a lot over the years. I'm not the bitter person who signed her early posts with the pseudonym Dumped First Wife. I'm also not the giddy, post-divorce woman who used the name Lola. Now I'm just me, Janie Junebug.

My dog situation has changed, too. I moved to Florida in 2009 with four dogs. One of the four returned to Illinois very quickly because she seemed to be allergic to Florida. The other three have passed away. I'm grateful that Franklin and Penelope are here to take care of me, and very grateful that they write their own blog posts.

Sometimes I love blogging. I certainly enjoy the many people I meet. In the early days, blogging was my therapy. I still enjoy blogging, but I can't say I have the fervent desire to write the almost-daily posts that I once had.

I haven't even scolded you much about grammar lately. I've covered a lot of grammatical ground. People who write "should of" instead of "should have" are going to continue to do so in spite of my protests.

I've made my share of mistakes, too, and I don't mean typos only. I've been rude to some visitors to my blog and hurt some feelings with comments I made.

One problem that can't be erased is that I associated the name of a great blogger with the topic of see-through yoga pants. My most popular post ever is Rick Watson & The Sheer Yoga Pants, viewed by 30,346 seekers. I never intended to link Rick, a real sweetheart who blogs at Life 101, for all eternity with those unattractive yoga pants. It simply happened that the first part of the post was about Rick and the second part was about sheer yoga pants. 

I've also doomed myself to seeing these search terms turn up in my stats on a regular basis: big ass in yoga pants, big butts in yoga pants, sheer yoga pants, big ass women, and so on and so forth.

In honor of the popularity of sheer yoga pants, however, I'll say farewell to 2017 with this view:

Happy New Year! See you in 2018.


Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug

FRANKLIN FRIDAY: I'M GONNA SING FOR YOU

Hi! Hi, Every Buddy! Hi! Hi! Hi! It's me! It's me me me me mememememememememememememe, Franklin the Bordernese! Kissmas is coming so don't catch a cold that makes you sneeze!

I wanna sing for you today. I heard a song called White Kissmas. I made up my own words to it, so I'll type the words, and you have to imagine the tune. My part is in blue. Penlapee wants to help so her part is in parentheses in pink.

Here we go!

I'm dreaming of a kissy Kissmas
like every Kissmas I've known with Mom (we love our Mom).

When the palace glistens 
and Mommy listens
if we tell her a package thief
is on our road (our road, our road, our royal roooooooooo

I'm dream (roooo Penlapee, that's long enough ooad) ing of a kissy Kissmas
each time I see Mom's credit card (she buys doggy toys with the plastic card).
May your moms be merry and bright
and may all your Kissmases be like mine (and miiiiiiiiiine).

I hope your Kissmas includes a meal of delicious kibble and a toy. Be sure to do some butt sniffin', too.

Now I have to work on pretending I'm asleep. I have to get good at it so I can catch Santa Paws in the act on Kissmas Eve.

Okay. I love you. Bye-bye.

Byyyyyyyyye!

Merry Kissmas from all of us!

BATTLE OF THE BANDS: AN UNUSUAL RESULT

Gentle Readers . . . and Maxwell,

I've been thinking that my December Battle of the Bands was kind of a bust. The Trapp Family Singers declined to appear in Canada and the U.K. Some of you said this wasn't your kind of music but voted anyway. A few declined to vote, and that's okay.

Anyway, here are the final results. We can say that nobody wins or that everybody wins (I don't want to be one of those crazy organizations that gives a trophy to everyone so that no one's precious self-esteem is damaged).

Trapp Family Singers          7

Edith Piaf                              7

Annie Lennox                        7

That's our final battle of the year, folks.

Look who's agreed to sing us out.


Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug

BATTLE OF THE BANDS: IL EST NE LE DIVIN ENFANT

Gentle Readers . . . and Maxwell,

It's December 15th, so it's time for this month's Battle of the Bands, hosted by Stephen McCarthy at STMcC Presents 'Battle of the Bands'. I urge you to visit his blog to see the complete list of participants in the battle and to check out their battles.

Here's the deal: I usually present two renditions of the same song, but because Christmas is coming up and I feel generous, this month I'm giving you three choices. In your comment, you vote for the one you prefer, and if possible, tell us the reason for your choice. You have until midnight on December 20th to vote. On December 21st, I'll tell you who the winner is.

Our song for Christmas is Il est Ne, Le Divin Enfant (He Is Born, The Divine Child), a traditional French carol I've loved since I sang it with a church choir more years ago than I care of remember.

Here's the English translation, as taken from Wikipedia (our choir sang the chorus in French and the verses in English––our choices don't sing all the verses, and neither did we):

Chorus: He is born, the Heav'nly Child,
Oboes play; set bagpipes sounding
He is born, the Heav'nly Child.
Let all sing His nativity.

'Tis four thousand years and more,
Prophets have foretold His coming,
'Tis four thousand years and more,
Have we waited this happy hour. Chorus

Ah, how lovely, Ah, how fair,
What perfection is His graces,
Ah, how lovely, Ah, how fair.
Child divine, so gentle there. Chorus

In a stable lodged is He,
Straw is all He has for cradle.
In a stable lodged is He,
Oh how great humility! Chorus

Jesus Lord, O King with power,
Though a little babe You come here,
Jesus Lord, O King with power,
Rule o'er us from this glad hour. Chorus


Now, here are the possibilities. I've selected three that have very different sounds.

Choice #1 is The Trapp Family Singers:






Choice #2 is Edith Piaf:





Choice #3 is Annie Lennox:





I look forward to seeing your choices and reading your comments.

Happy listening!


Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug

BATTLE OF THE BANDS COMING UP!

Gentle Readers . . . and Maxwell,

My Battle of the Bands post is delayed as I continue to chase the elusive job. I must complete certain "tasks" to possibly, maybe, land the job.

I hope to have my battle up later today . . . certainly no later than tomorrow . . . or the day after.

I appreciate your understanding and all the support you've given me as I've job hunted and applied.

See ya soon!


Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug

PENELOPE SPEAKS: DOES THIS JACKET MAKE MY BUTT LOOK BIG?

Hello. It is I, Penelope.

Sometimes it is cold here in Florida. Franklin wears a big, furry winter coat all the time. I have short hair, so Mom Mom got a jacket for me to wear on cold days.

At first, I did not like the jacket. I had never worn such a thing. So I hid behind a chair and had big scaredy eyes.

Then I started to think the jacket was soft. It felt warm, kind of like wearing a blanket. Franklin said, Come out, Penlapee. You look good in your jacket.

I went outside. Mom Mom took photos of me because I look so beautiful. The bright red jacket looks nice with my black-and-white fur. The jacket has a snowflake on it, too, although I do not know what snow is.

But wait a minute! I don't like the way that Franklin is looking at my butt! Does this jacket make my butt look big?

Franklin said, I was NOT looking at her butt.

Look at Franklin sit so perfectly as if he's a little angel.

But then Franklin said, I'm sorry I looked at your butt, Penlapee. It doesn't look big. Let me give you a kiss because you are my sister and Kissmas is coming.

That took my by surprise. It was quite nice of Franklin.

I like this photo of me in the jacket. I look long and lean.

Is my butt still back there? Yes, it always follows me, but Mom Mom has assured me that I have a pretty bottom.

It is chilly and rainy today. I like my jacket a lot. Thank you, Mom Mom.

That is all. Goodbye.

MY 2018 AFFORDABLE CARE ACT INSURANCE

Gentle Readers . . . and Maxwell,

In my post on Monday, I invited you to guess how much I'll have to pay for my 2018 health insurance that I have because of the Affordable Care Act. Most of you said you had no idea how much it would cost, but I saw a couple of guesses for around $500 a month. I'm happy to say that it's not nearly that expensive.

For 2017, I've had a gold plan that cost a little more than $400 a month. It had a low deductible, which I thought was a great idea, but it didn't help me much. I didn't reach my maximum out-of-pocket expenses until the end of November. I've gotten to fill a few prescriptions for free, but that's it––unless I manage to break a bone or get sick before the end of December, which I don't intend to do.

I decided to try a different tactic for 2018. I chose a bronze plan that has a higher deductible, but the co-payments for doctor visits are less than I've paid this year. The prescription plan is also good. I have one non-generic prescription that will cost some serious money, but that payment will be offset by the monthly premiums for the plan because my payment will be

$0.00

Yes, you read that correctly. Zero. Zip. Nada.

Keep in mind that this health insurance if for me and me alone. I don't have a spouse or dependent children. It doesn't include eye care or dental insurance. I have to pay $35 to see my primary care physician, make a co-pay for prescriptions, and pay for any other treatments I receive, although all plans include certain basic service that are free––including mammograms.

Of course, I'm on a fixed income, too, and I have to live with the constant fear that the Republican congress, led by the president, will take away my benefits.

I still hope to get the job. I'll let you know when I hear about it.


Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug

THE NEWS FROM MY MICROCOSM

Gentle Readers . . . and Maxwell,

I have an update on the package-stealing thieves who were in our neighborhood on Thursday (click HERE to see my post about the incident). After a while, the police moved the thieves' truck closer to my house so I got a better look at the contents. The two pieces of furniture in the back provided camouflage for the children's bicycles that were also in the truck, along with large black garbage bags that probably held the stolen packages. The police took a number of photographs of the truck and its contents. They weren't fooling around.

Yesterday I went to see my newest neighbor, a very nice young lady, to alert her to what had happened because I knew she was at work when the police were here. I told her I had seen an officer go to her door. It turns out she is missing a package. She's going to call the city to find out if they're holding it.

I put up my Christmas tree and set out a few decorations. The items I like to put on the mantle and the tree skirt are wedged in the attic. I can't get them out and Favorite Young Man has gone away for a while. I can live without the stuff in the attic and take delight in what I do have.

Last weekend was beautiful and sunny. Penelope has never learned to walk well on a lead, so I took Franklin for a shorter walk than usual and returned to prepare Penelope for a walk of her own. She has to wear a harness because she slips out of her collar. We went out the door and  Penelope showed me that I had put the harness on wrong when she walked right out of it on the front steps. But did she take off and run? No, not my Penelope. Instead she turned to go back in the house, where I put on the harness correctly.

Who's a good Penelope?

I haven't heard anything about the job (I had trouble submitting the forms for the background check, but the company received them on Friday), so I signed up for a new year of Affordable Care Act insurance in case I don't have that beautiful benefits package. This year I had a gold plan with a low deductible. I found that the low deductible didn't do me much good because it was only at the end of November that I reached my maximum out-of-pocket expenses. For 2018, I have a bronze plan with a higher deductible but lower co-pays. And guess what my monthly premium is! Go ahead! Guess in your comment.

I think I'm done Christmas shopping. It's time to wrap and mail!

That's all the news that is news from my microcosm. See you soon.


Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug