When you are in a meeting or class, or whatever you might be doing with other people while on a computer, sometimes you need a short break.  When we were kids we raised our hands, and the teacher would give us a hall pass. Now it is called a bio break. Since bathroom talk is considered embarrassing or impolite, it’s just a little classier way to be excused to go potty. According to Merriam-Webster, “Bio break is a shortening of biological break and one of many euphemisms in English for using the restroom – though bio break sounds much more clinical than other euphemisms like powder your nose, and see a man about a dog or horse, or my favorite… going to the oval office.

I hate when cashiers feel the need to check to see if my money is real. If I could counterfeit money, I would not be at the dollar store.

A 1943 landscape painted by Winston Churchill, which the wartime British prime minister gifted to U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, is expected to sell for as much as $3.5 million when it is sold at auction next month. Well, I started thinking…wondering who owns the painting right now. A descendant of Roosevelt? Nah. As it turns out, actor Brad Pitt bought the painting in 2011 from a high-end antiques dealer in New Orleans as a gift to Angelina Jolie. Since their divorce is still ongoing, I guess she thought this was the right time to sell. Looking back, the painting had been gifted to President Roosevelt’s son, who then sold the piece to a filmmaker in the 1960s. The painting ended up in New Orleans, where it was kept in a local family’s closet for over 50 years before the stepdaughter of the family inherited the work and contacted the antiques dealer. If only objects and animals could tell us their stories.

“Think all you speak but speak not all you think. Thoughts are your own; your words are so no more.” – Patrick Delany

March 9th is National Barbie Day. It commemorates the day Barbie made her debut in 1959 and celebrates her official birthday. Barbie’s full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts. I never realized that she had a full name. Ruth Handler (co-founder of Mattel) created the fashion doll after being inspired by her own children. (Read Dream Doll: The Ruth Handler Story by Jacqueline Shannon.) While toymakers had produced dolls for years, none of them had adult features until Barbie, so she was a first. Interestingly, Barbie’s marketing strategy relied on television advertising only. For example, Barbie was the sole sponsor of the Mickey Mouse Club, marketing directly to children. A remarkably interesting and new approach in 1955. In 1961, Mattel introduced Ken Carson as Barbie’s boyfriend. Barbie is often criticized for being an unattainable ideal of a woman. While her figure alone is unrealistic, over the years, Barbie evolved both in style and shape. In 2019, the Barbie brand honored pioneering women across several eras, as well. The modern Barbie offers positive role models in business, science, education, and more, and Barbie continues to change with the times. Estimates now place over a billion Barbie dolls have been sold worldwide in over 150 countries.

In 1998, the Toy Hall of Fame inducted Barbie into its respected and admired halls. The toy joined hundreds of other famous toys, that include the Duncan Yo-yo, Candy Land, Crayola Crayons, G.I Joe, Hot Wheels, LEGO, Magic 8 Ball, Silly Putty, Slinky, Twister, View-Master, Uno, Tonka Trucks, Super Soaker, sidewalk chalk, Rubik’s Cube, Mr. Potato Head, Radio Flyer wagon, and so, so much more…I hated to quit naming them. Oh, Play-Doh. And the little green army men. I remember the Christmas that Santa left my first Barbie. She was redheaded with a ponytail, curly bangs, a black & white zebra-striped one-piece bathing suit, high heels, and a wire stand. Wish I had her back. She went to live with a little girl that I babysat for in Bossier City. You may want to introduce Barbie, or any of these tried-and-true toys, to a new generation this year. We need to encourage our kids to play something other than electronics.

RECENT BIRTHDAYS:  Actor Gavin MacLeod is 90. McHale’s Navy, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Love Boat. Singer Sam the Sham is 84.  The Pharaohs. Wooly Bully. Lil Red Riding Hood. Actor-director-dancer Tommy Tune is 82. Actor Bernadette Peters is 73. Singer Cindy Wilson of the B-52′s is 64. Actor Rae Dawn Chong is 60. The Color Purple. Author Lemony Snicket (AKA Daniel Handler) is 51. Actor Robert Clary is 95.  Corporal Louis LeBeau in Hogan’s Heroes. Singer-actor Harry Belafonte is 94. Singer Mike D’Abo of Manfred Mann is 77. Build Me Up Buttercup. Singer Roger Daltrey of The Who is 77.

Actor Dirk Benedict is 76. The A Team. Actor-director Ron Howard is 67. Country singer Janis Gill of Sweethearts of the Rodeo is 67. Actor Catherine Bach is 66. The Dukes of Hazzard. Singer Justin Bieber is 27. Actor Laraine Newman is 69. Saturday Night Live. Singer Jay Osmond of The Osmond’s is 66. Singer John Cowsill of The Cowsills is 65. Singer Jon Bon Jovi is 59. Actor Rebel Wilson is 41. Pitch Perfect. Actor Bryce Dallas Howard is 40. The Help. Guitarist Mike “McDuck” Olson of Lake Street Dive is 38.

Oh, I really do miss Kansas, Toto…and Styx, Foreigner, Aerosmith, Boston, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin.

Virgin Records, the record label once home to acts including the Sex Pistols, Spice Girls, The Rolling Stones, and Phil Collins, relaunched last week with a mission to nurture a new generation of indie talent. The label has been rebranded as Virgin Music Label & Artist Services and is now a part of the Universal Music Group. Car maker, Hyundai is recalling 82,000 electric cars to replace their batteries after reports of fires. It is one of the most expensive recalls in history. Best Buy laid off 5,000 workers and plans to close more stores as more consumers buy electronics online. Sephora is adding more than 60 stores and 85% will not be in malls. Tiger Woods was driving a 2021 Hyundai Genesis GV80 SUV, when he rolled his car and lived to talk about it. The SUV base price ranges from $49,925 to $60,175.

There is a café in Dubai that is staffed entirely by robots. That is taking social distancing quite seriously. You order from a touch screen, then a robot chef prepares the order and places it on a small service robot that delivers the order to the diner, normally within five minutes. The restaurant appears very “Jetson-like” in looks and décor, and their tables and chairs. At the University of Houston, there are small robots all over the place delivering food to students in different locations on campus. One evening, I saw five on a corner waiting for the traffic lights to change. Of course, I had to take pictures because we do not have robots in Brazoria County. Or do we? Have you ever seen the movie, The Stepford Wives? It starred Nicole Kidman, Matthew Broderick, Bette Midler, Christopher Walken, Faith Hill, and Glenn Close. The story concerns a young mother who suspects the submissive housewives in her new idyllic Connecticut neighborhood may be robots created by their husbands. No sweatpants or leisure wear for those glamorous mannequin-like robot wives. Nah, there are no robots in Brazoria County.

Hasbro is “reimagining Mr. Potato Head for the modern consumer.” The toy ‘formally known’ as Mr. Potato Head, launched almost 70 years ago, will now be gender-neutral to promote gender equality and inclusion. It will now be called simply, Potato Head. I wonder if Mrs. Potato Head was ever suspicious at all. The company said the toy will allow children “to imagine and create their own Potato Head family”.

Two of Lady Gaga’s French bulldogs were stolen last week after a gunman fired a semi-automatic handgun at her dog-walker, then made off with the dogs Koji, and Gustav. A third dog, Miss Asia, was recovered at the side of the bleeding dogwalker. Koji and Gustav were found two days later by a good Samaritan, tied to a pole, miles from where they were captured.  French bulldogs have a price tag from $2,000 – $10,000 because they are popular, in demand, and very difficult to breed. They require artificial insemination and are usually delivered by Caesarean section because of the large head and shoulders. Lady Gaga had offered $500,000 to anyone that could return her babies.

Did you know that during affectionate physical contact, such as a 20-second hug, we release oxytocin, a hormone that relaxes us and lowers anxiety. It is often called the “cuddle hormone.” When it is released during hugs, it can effectively lower blood pressure, reducing the stress hormone norepinephrine.

People Magazine has always been the only real “trash” I have in my life. I love reading about the celebrities even though as time goes on, I recognize fewer and fewer of them. I love the recipes, and the human-interest stories. There was a recent article about Katherine Heigl, her two adopted daughters, and biological son. It was a sweet and touching story along with a picture of all four of them in bed together, with a quote, “Memories are made by forcing your children to snuggle with you.” It made me think back a few years to giggles, hugs, sleepy kisses, snuggles, and so much love that happens at the end of the day when your children are little and climb into your bed. I was so lucky as a parent. Now they are very grown-up, busy writing the chapters of their own books, and I am now just a minor character, but it is still so much fun. My advice is to cuddle when you can, because it goes away so quickly, but then that’s where your memories come in. Make those memories TODAY. You will need them later.

Thank you to Hayman and Teena for the citrus. We squeeze the lemons and freeze the juice in ice trays for a little lemon to add to soups and smoothies. I used some in garbanzo bean soup last night. Thank you to my office staff to keeping it all together at the office while I help my mom move in Waco.

My sister mentioned she had just cooked chicken and dumplings… a new, totally delicious recipe. I asked her to send it on to me. In the past, I was quite happy using canned biscuits, but never again. The recipe is from The Country Cook. I had several quarts of chicken broth in the freezer, and a deboned chicken, so I used just the dumpling part of the recipe, which is below. I promise you, it’s so easy and so yummy.
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking powder
2 tbsp cold salted butter, cubed
1 cup milk (I used a little cream in place of some of the milk, but just a little – about 1/3 cup)
In bowl, combine flour & baking powder. Add cold cubed butter. Combine using pastry cutter, then your fingers. Pour in milk. Mix together. Dust work area with generous amount of flour. Place dough in the middle and dust with more flour. Roll the dough out to about ¼” thickness. Be sure to add flour as needed to keep it from sticking underneath or to your rolling pin. Using a knife or a pizza cutter, start cutting out your dumplings into squares. Dust dumplings with a bit more flour. The extra flour will help keep them from sticking but also thickens your broth when you add them to the pot. Begin adding dumplings one at a time so they don’t stick together. Stir frequently while adding them. Allow dumplings to cook for about 15-20 minutes. You should notice your broth starting to thicken some from the extra flour. www.TheCountryCook.net for the real recipe. Next time I think I am going to add fresh rosemary.

Note: This is a bad, bad, bad, idea. A young lady ran out of her usual hair spray so decided to use something else she had on hand to finish off her fresh hairdo and scalp. It is called Gorilla Spray Adhesive, made by Gorilla Glue. After 15 washes, a trip to the ER, a combination of tea tree oil and coconut oil, her hair still had not moved. A doctor was finally able to remove most of the substance during a four-hour surgery. That is an unfortunate situation because the label probably said not to use it near your eyes, skin or clothing but failed to mention hair, which the girl thought was misleading… Can you say Aqua Net? Common sense? Do not ever use spray adhesive on your hair or skin unless you are a Stepford Wife.

Thanks for reading this. We appreciate your business…a bunch.

Lisa