meet me NEXT monday...for the meme....

Due to the Memorial Day holiday, Java, the hostess of the regular MeetMeOnMonday meme, is spending the day with her family and there is no meme for us to do today.

I was going to try and find something else but, I have to admit that I'm tired and I hope to get to bed before midnight tonight. 

 Yeah, I know...good luck, right? (^-^)

I hope that you all

(especially those of you celebrating the Memorial Day weekend)

are having a good one. 

I hope that you are with your family and friends and celebrating what is important....life.

Please be safe.

And please....don't forget to give thanks

to those who gave the utmost of sacrifice

so we could have the freedom to live our lives the way we want.

*all images borrowed from GoogleImages....

Memorial Day

Meet Me on Monday.....with Debbie

It's that day of the week, my friends....Java, over at NeverGrowingOld, has posted her

questions for the weekly meme she sponsors. 

 

Questions:

1. What is your favorite bagel flavor?

OOh....I do love me a good bagel, but a cinnamon-raisin one is probably my 'bagel of choice'.
And....if you throw on some peanut butter and maybe a little honey?

Oh yeah. That'll do just fine.

2. If you had an extra $100 right now, what would you spend it on?

As the incredibly wet and grossly humid 'rainy season' is soon upon us,

I'm in dire need of a new hairstyle....so

i would take that $100 and treat myself to

a cut...maybe a perm....possibly a whole new style.

3. What is the last thing that you felt guilt about doing?

There were three very small cookies left over from the ones I had made the other night for 

youngest son's undokai (sports day/ field day) yesterday. 

They were peanut butter-chocolate chip cookie bars.

They kicked some major cookie butt.

Tonight...

when i came home....

it was late...it was raining...I dropped my bag outside in the water...

and I realized that most of the mini-tomatoes i had bought were well on their way to going bad and really inedible.....so.....I did what any deserving mom would do...

I ate the cookies.

Before dinner.

Without anyone else noticing.

Oh.....my.

I just realized that I don't feel guilty at all about this.

Next question!! 

4. Soft serve ice cream or hand dipped?

Hand dipped.

Hands down.

Yum.

5. Are you allergic to anything?

I've never had any kind of allergy testing done....and

other than the usual pollen sniffles and sneezes I get on occasion....

I can honestly say that

really....

there is only one true thing I do believe I'm allergic to....

What about you?

**************

Have a great week everyone.

I'm A Gettin

A banana with Jesus on it in honor of May 21st rapture.

Saturday Snapshot: Mother & Child Reunion

Weekend Reading

I am ashamed to admit that I just read this novel. Yes, I am like a year behind the times. I know all the craze surrounding this book has already died off, but they are releasing a movie of it this summer, so I thought hey, might as well offer up a review for anyone who didn't read this book last year! For those of you who don't know, there was a lot of controversy surrounding this book... it ranged from praise (it is a New York Times bestseller) to hatred (some people feel it is racist.) I thought I'd offer up my honest opinion in case anyone in the Sassy Banana world wants to know! So here goes:

Yes, this novel has faults. The biggest one being that the black maids speak in a very heavy dialect. Personally, I think this was written well and feel that author Kathryn Stockett allowed us to "hear" their voices. Some people feel it is too cliche and contrived. However, the white women in this book speak perfect grammatically correct English with not so much as a hint of Southern slang. I felt this at times to be a bit distracting and a bit unbelievable. That being said, the plot and characters and emotion behind this novel far outweigh any of the negatives.

This book takes place during the Civil Rights movement in Jackson, Mississippi. The story is told through the eyes of two African American maids--Aibileen and Minny, as well as the white "heroine" of the story--Miss Skeeter, a young college grad who is grasping to find her place in the world. Through the eyes of these three women, you are witness to the daily lives of Southern maids and their dealings with their white women employers. Skeeter bravely decides to write a book written as a series of narrative accounts of black maids and what it is like for them to work for these white women. The story progresses as Skeeter begins to build relationships with Aibileen and Minny as they tell her their stories, and as she simultaneously loses the friendships with the white women that were once her best friends.

There are brilliant moments of truth throughout this novel--my favorite scenes involve Celia, a young married woman desperate to fit in with the high society clique but simply cannot shake her poverty roots. Another moment that really made me think is when Skeeter tells her fiancee about the book she is writing. His response is: "I don't understand why you would do this. Why do you even... care about this, Skeeter?" That line really put the whole novel into perspective for me. It wasn't that the majority of the white characters were racist (although some definitely were), it was simply that they didn't care to change anything. The apathy of them all is what was the most disgusting.

Guess I have said enough. This book is a very quick read (I finished in one weekend) and whether you agree or disagree with the author's authority and knowledge to write such a book, I promise that it is a guaranteed page turner. Check out more about the upcoming film here.

Wordless Wednesday - Curiosity

My dog looking out of the car window. Photo taken May 17 on my way to work.

Fair Trade

Go Bananas for Fair Trade

GOOD
When it comes to protecting the environment, there's a reason why fair trade bananas are the best http://su.pr/1Gj9E3 with @benandjerrys

[Photo source: here]