Thursday, June 16, 2011

Friday Fragments, Episode #150!


WOOHOO! It's the 150th anniversary of Friday Fragments! Isn't that incredible!? That means that at least 750 fragments have been released from my cluttered mind. Yikes--Who knows what might have occurred, had I not been able to do so. Countless lives have likely been saved, of course. Let's keep this thing going!

***Is there anyone in this world who doesn't like peaches? How about grilled peaches?  Mr.4444 and I enjoyed them for the first time, yesterday, when I made Summer Grilled Peach and Bratwurst Kebabs, the recipe for which I've posted on Mrs.4444 Cooks. (They were delicious!)

***Last week, I read about a sweet little tradition that Vodka Mom's and her fellow teachers have for the last day of school. (Go ahead and read it--It's heartwarming.) I shared that at our middle school all of the teachers stand outside and wave goodbye to the school buses as they drive away. The bus drivers beep their horns, and lots of  kids wave back and yell good-bye.  For every kid that gives us "the finger," teachers do a shot at the bar later. (JK, maybe.)

We also blast Alice Cooper's "School's Out'" song over the P.A. (which can also be heard all over the neighborhood surrounding the school).  This year, we also considered "Take This Job and Shove It" (given the political mess this year) but came to our senses pretty quickly, of course.

***I finally got my camera back from the shop after 28 days, and I can't fully express my joy in this, as I felt incomplete without it. I liken it to taking a laptop or pen away from a writer -- I survived (obviously), but it just made me feel out-of-sorts to not be able to take photos. I look forward to being back in the photo-taking groove.

***California, here I come! I'm so excited about my trip with Kyle!  Stay tuned for pics and commentary from the road!

***Having watched a really great Momversation video called Should Siblings See Each Other Naked, I got to thinking about attitudes about nudity.  I've always admired the fact that Mr.4444 never got the "You should be ashamed to show your naked self" memo. That man can walk around in his birthday suit with nary a thought (except when the kids are around, at which point he shows appropriate modesty, of course). I have seen many, many photos of that man's bare butt (group and individual "moon" shots from the old days). What is up with that?!

***Linky Tools has upgraded its site and is now offering some cool new features. One of them is a "Like" button, which I'll be excited to use for Saturday Sampling posts.  Another feature will prevent those linking up to FF from linking if they have not included a backlink to this blog in their post. (How cool is that? No more drive-by linkers for me!)   I especially like Linky Tools because Brent (the owner) is a nice, Christian guy who is dedicated to good customer service and is very responsive. Thanks, Brent!  Check out Linky Tools for more details (and let me know if you have any issues in the transition time).

P.S. I had the Linky List set to "scramble," so everyone would get a fair shot at being read, but I found it annoying--It's too hard to figure out which ones I've read, so I switched it to be in order of when they were linked. To be more likely to get visitors, remember that I publish on Thursday nights at 9pm central.

***I've had the pleasure of being listed in The BZ House That Love Built's list of themed posts for Friday Fragments and Saturday Sampling. Cheryl's list of Theme Day Options is extensive, and I highly recommend you bookmarking it for those times you are stuck for an idea of what to write about. Thanks, Cheryl!



Got Fragments? Use this for your linking pleasure...

21 comments:

  1. I'll have to check out all the new features on Linky Tools.

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  2. It is really great that you are on top of things with linky tools.
    How strange that you mention nudity - one of my fragments is about that.
    Oh would you or your mom object if I used the picture of her with the money in the air in a post about money? I would credit your blog of course as the picture source. I really like the picture.

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  3. I am a big fan of grilled fruit in general. Delicious!

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  4. Grilled peaches sound delicious! I'll have to try that. I posted about a delicious peach cobbler ice cream I had this past week.
    I love that song "School's out for summer"! I hope you enjoy your well deserved break.

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  5. Grilled peaches are amazing!! So glad we finally have BBQ weather. :)

    Good luck, travel safe. Vacays are too much fun!

    With my kids all being so close in age, I don't think nudity between them is such a big deal yet. They still all bathe together, and yes, Mommy and Daddy tend to walk around the house in our underwear. For me, it's more teaching my children {my daughter, especially} that we need to be comfortable with our bodies. The body, any body, is beautiful. Something I was never taught as a child, and am having trouble learning as an adult. BUT - Off to watch that video now. :)

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  6. So sorry I posted twice. The linky thing wouldn't let me upload a pic but lo it did. I'm not sure how to delete such a mistake.

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  7. I just bought some new flat peaches to try yesterday! They're supposed to be really good but I don't know yet ;)

    My husband will also happily strut around the house sans clothes. In general it seems like Europeans are a lot more open about nudity than Americans are!

    Have fun in California =D

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  8. I love peaches, I'll have to try that recipe.

    Road trips are so much fun. I've never traveled to California from any place other than Washington, so it will be fun to see your pictures and hear about it.

    My husband LOL'd about your end of the school year traditions. (his parents are school teachers.) He said his mother is so old school(she's in her 70's) she would have stopped the bus (with the finger offender) and make sure that kid has Summer school for the next 6 years. he he

    I think a lot of us documentarians(is that a word?) can relate to the time you've had without your camera. It's so wonderful that you have it just in time for California.

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  9. Pretty peaches, with its soft texture.

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  10. Thanks for the link to the theme post ideas. I could not go 28 days without a camera--I would just have to buy a new one!

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  11. You know, we apparently don't have any last day traditions... well, except for that off campus staff meeting :)

    I'll have to watch that Momversation video... there is NO privacy in my house, especially for me. My kids are always running around naked in front of each other... so far, no one is uncomfortable, but The Girl has been coming up with some doozies that I mention in my post today.

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  12. Love the end of school tradition fun idea...especially the shot for all the fingers! Hope you and Kyle have a wild adventure...can't wait to hear all about it and pictures!! Safe travels!

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  13. Thanks as always, and Happy Friday! (Although, now that it's summer, most days are "like Fridays," wouldn't you agree?)

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  14. Oops. I am up there twice. Not sure how that happened.

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  15. Oops 2. Forgot our old end of school year tradition. We used to confiscate water guns that junior high kids loved to bring on the last day of school. Once all of the kids had left, the faculty had our own water wars. Lots of fun.

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  16. I've had grilled peaches and really liked them. Hubby, however, is a very basic food guy, so if I want grilled peaches again, looks like I'm coming to your house!

    Have a great time in California!

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  17. Thanks for the info about Linky Tools. I may try them next week for my Top Ten Thursday!

    Enjoy your road trip with Kyle! Sounds like fun!

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  18. I'm not a teacher, but I can imagine your glee at the end of the year. I think YOU should give yourself the FF award this week for the paragraph about the finger. Very funny.

    Enjoy the trip!

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  19. LOVE that you play "School's Out" after the kids leave. That's perfect! Have a fabulous time in CA, and congrats on #150!

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  20. My sister-in-law is a teacher in Florida and they play Alice too!!
    Have such a great time on your trip!!
    I know what you mean about the camera; my husband thinks I'm cuckoo but my brother died at 26 and there where just not enough pictures...so I take a lot now...

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  21. Hi :->

    Thanks for getting the word out about our list!

    About your husband and his nudity.... I honestly think that it's a 'guy' thing. My husband is the same way, and so are a couple of our sons. I have insisted that the boys be at least a bit/tish more modest when I am in a room!!!

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