When one of my brother-in-laws was a toddler he got into my husband's chemistry set. He was 12 at the time and chemistry sets are much different than today's sets. Anyway, the kid ate a bottle of cobalt chloride which turned his tongue blue and around Xmas time the same kid started breathing oddly. His mom took him to the doctor and he pulled out a handful of plastic holly berries from his nose.
So many people passed away that were well known and admired. I read the list of 201 people but I'm sure there are others unaccounted for. I know I shall miss Tony Bennett, David Crosby and Tina Turner (and more) for their wonderful music. Happy New Year to everyone at Neatorama! May this new year be our best one yet.
I have had personal experience with their shenanigans. When my kids were young they went to a little daycare run by a little old lady and her volunteer helpers. The place had a dozen rocking chairs and women were always rocking the kids and it was such a calm, welcoming place. The old lady painted Mickey and Donald on the outside walls of her place and Disney sued her for 500,000 dollars for copyright infringement. End of that daycare. I have boycotted all things Disney since and that was late 1970's when it happened.
FUN FACT: They were originally called Meanderthals because they used to meander all around the place but somebody changed it to Neanderthals just because.
Gingerbread has never been a friend of mine. For decades I have tried to make gingerbread houses with very poor results. I now leave those houses to the experts and to the store bought kits that are easy to assemble. Oh, Target, where were you when I was a kid?
Nothing like having to pull a piece of tinsel hanging out of a cat's bum to really get in the holiday mood. Every year, the same thing. I had no idea tinsel was so tasty.
Just for a bit of clarification, my MIL grew up in extreme poverty in West Virginia so her idea of elegance and class tended towards glitter and rhinestones and red flocked bathroom wallpaper which my mother said belonged in a whorehouse's restroom. Years ago my MIL bought a tinsel type of Xmas tree. It was white and it came with a plastic wheel you placed in front of the tree which was sectioned into 4 different transparent colors of cellophane that slowly spun in a circle with a light bulb that shone through the wheel so the tree was constantly changing color every 15 seconds or so. She placed it in front of the big living room picture window for all to see. At least it wasn't a plastic leg with a fringed lampshade. Tacky, tacky, tacky.
If I received some of those cards with dead animals or people trying to kill animals then I believe they would make me cry. They certainly don't make me think of happy thoughts for the holiday. Which makes me wonder WHAT THE HECK WERE THEY THINKING??
When I lived in Louisiana it was pretty common to see a batch of wild pigs/boars by the side of the road or highways. They ate the roadkill. But I never saw any dead pigs. Those animals are quite smart, IMO. And dangerous. And destructive to people's gardens.
Happy New Year to everyone at Neatorama! May this new year be our best one yet.