This Day In History
They weren't big people, you know.
She was a trace over 5 feet, and he topped out at about 5'8. So I expect there was some sense of shock, 47 years ago today, on that Saturday morning at St. Francis Hospital in Lynwood, CA when I arrived at a little less than 10 pounds, probably screaming my head off and wondering where the cafeteria was located.
I'm sure they figured out that one day I might weigh a little more. What they probably couldn't have imagined, though, was that on the other side of a whole lot of calendar pages, I would someday host 30 guest bloggers.
Frankly, I think the whole concept would have been just too much.
My thanks to all of you who participated, either writing or reading. It was, in a way, like a big birthday party where I got to play host and introduce everyone.
"Hey, Linea, I'd like you to meet Hugh. Troy! Come say hi to Meg. Larry, this is Jim. Ray, meet my brother Bill. Cindy, this is my mom."
"Birdie, is this for me? You shouldn't have. Oh, gosh. Avon cologne! You read my mind!"
"Clarence, are you supposed to be eating peanuts?"
"Lucas! NO MOONING!"
It was fun.
Some quick facts, just because I get that way sometimes:
There have been 30 posts, five of them by two writers, meaning:
25 real live people
1 dead guy
1 dog
They represent three countries (Us, Canada, and Sweden), including three provinces and eight different states.
The demographics also break down this way:
There were 15 males and 10 females, among them one teenager, five in their 20s, four in their 30s, seven in their 40s, four in their 50s, three in their 60s, and one in his 70s.
As far as occupations, there were:
Seven students
Five writer types
Four retirees
Two pastors
One radio news anchor
One lawyer
One Avon lady
One IT administrator
One school administrator
One dentist
One Hugh
At least nine are musicians of some sort.
At least four have attended seminary at some point in their lives.
At least two are gay.
At least nine have dogs.
At least five are offspring of preachers.
At least three have recently been diagnosed with medical conditions that require lifestyle changes.
At least two are HIV-positive.
At least three are veterans.
Fourteen are married.
Ten are single.
One is engaged.
Fifteen are parents.
Eight are grandparents.
One is a nudist, and darn proud of it.
And one is Meg: female, writer, 30-something (barely), Canadian (B.C.), heterosexual, single (where ARE you guys?), dogless, daughter of a preacher, and not a nudist (as far as I know). I asked her to go first, because I like her style. She gave me so much grief about this, later. It's hard to go first, whether as a guest blogger or off the high board. You always want a do-over.
So Meg gets one, appealing to my sense of symmetry and justice, and also because I will read anything she writes, any time, anywhere.
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"What have you learned, Dorothy?"
"I've learned that if I ever go searching for my heart's desire, not to look any further than my own backyard. Because if it's not there, I never really lost it to begin with." -- "The Wizard of Oz," MGM 1939*
*Stupidest movie quote ever.
30 Things I Learned During Guest Blogger Month At Chuck's
By Meg Fowler
I've always been one for list making. Not, mind you, list making in a
positive, organizational sense, but in a frivolous kind of way. I make
lists of everything from my favourite foods to reasons why I make
small, strange noises all day long. I love how the good lists help me
count my blessings, and the bad lists enable me to vent.
The very good list (that positive should be applied to the content of
the list, not the quality of the list, or list-author) that follows is
a special one, though, because it took me a whole month of reading to
make. I think we've all enjoyed the guest bloggers that have filled
this space for the last 30 (give or take a couple) days, but I'd also
bet that we're all pretty happy to be on the receiving end of Chuck's
wit and wisdom again soon.
But, without further ado, just to show I was paying attention:
(In no particular order)
30. Going first, or early on in the game, invariably means that everyone else after you makes you look clueless. Apparently it works in reverse with US presidents.
29. You need to let go.
28. The internet is not just responsible for quick porn downloads and dumb quizzes, it brings people together!
27. Everett Joseph Smith was a real boy.
26. Geography CAN make you the coolest kid in school.
25. Treasure is relative. Relatives should be treasured.
24. Knowing where you started can give you a better idea of where to go next.
23. Fathers are used to having their gifts rejected. Only one father will keep trying to give it, forever. Like my dad with Krispy Kremes.
22. The Declaration of Independence is eminently bloggable.
21. The sea is a powerful thing, and should be both feared and approached with joy. Much like two-year-olds.
20. Love 'em while you can.
19. Air children are the easiest to raise.
18. Troy loves Mackenzie.
17. Sometimes small towns can be like hugs -- all over you, but comforting.
16. Love is a balance of fighting reality and giving in to it.
15. Real jobs are overrated.
14. I need to floss my soul more often.
13. Pigs are great teachers.
12. Mormon chicks are hot?
11. Texans can surprise you.
10. Sober guys like Harry Potter.
9. I had no idea anyone could behave for 25 years.
8. The word 'curmudgeon' contains the word 'gem'.
7. Dogs know stuff we don't.
6. There's more to loving Holland than digging wooden shoes.
5. Love and effort trump experience and skill sometimes....and one builds the other, anyhow.
4. TV did not damage Chuck's childhood.
3. I like meeting almost 30 new people.
2. I never would have met them without Chuck, who I am always thankful to have met.
1. In the Bible it says the first shall be last and the last shall be first...amen.
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So, thanks to Meg, and thanks to all of you again. It's been a great party. We should do it again next summer. Maybe we can persuade Tom to bring his guitar. Maybe Larry can tell another sea story. Maybe Linea will have a piece of cake, Liz will teach us dirty words in Swedish, Julie will continue to tolerate me, Osray will play some of his old 78s, Birdie will give us all makeovers, Lucas will wave a fifty-dollar-bill and no one will stump him, Strider will bark, Gordon will say grace, Troy and Mackenzie will slip away when no one is watching, Clarence will trim my weeds, and my mom will regale us all with The Five Most Embarrassing Chuckie Stories, four of which involve poop.
And we'll have a sense of community, as I hope you've found here in the past month. I know I have. Here's to that, and birthdays, and to Discovery, scheduled for lift-off in a few hours. We should all lift off.
Finally, in honor of Meg and her amazing lists, and in honor of me and my birthday, and to make up for the Dorothy quote, I leave you with Chuck's 47th Birthday Top Ten Movie Quotes That He Says Around The House A Lot Even If He Gets Them A Little Wrong:
10. "Look, I'm no good at being noble, but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world." Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart), Casablanca
9. "This cake has a hole in it." Aunt Voula (Andrea Martin), My Big Fat Greek Wedding
8. "And in the morning, I'm making waffles!" Donkey (Eddie Murphy), Shrek
7. "Leave the gun. Take the cannolis." Pete Clemenza (Richard Castellano), The Godfather
6. "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin), The Princess Bride
5. "Somebody get me a &*%# wiener before I die!" Randle P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson), One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest
4. "I'm an excellent driver." Raymond (Dustin Hoffman), Rain Man
3. "Wherever there's a cop beatin' up a guy, I'll be there. I'll be there in the way guys yell when they're mad. I'll be there in the way kids laugh when they're hungry and they know supper's ready, and when people are eatin' the stuff they raise and livin' in the houses they built - I'll be there, too." Tom Joad (Henry Fonda), The Grapes of Wrath
2. "Take your stinkin' paws off me, you damn dirty ape!" (Charlton Heston), Planet of the Apes
and...drum roll...
1. "That'll do, pig. That'll do. Farmer Hoggett (James Cromwell), Babe
That'll do.
4:34:28 AM 
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