How Hellion Became a Pirate
Clearly titles aren’t my talent, but let’s face it, Goats on a Boat was taken, and there’s no topping that.
Perhaps you’ve been a bit curious how I got to be a pirate writer, despite my decided lack in title-cleverness; how I came to follow my bliss on the high seas, in pursuit of finished WIPs and Happily Ever Afters. I know it’s easy to imagine I sailed out of the womb, brandishing a cutlass and yelling, “I want to publish romance novels” but invariably with legends, the reality is much more sedate.
So on this very first blog on the new ship, while I’m still reminiscing about how far I and me crew have come, I thought I would share how I came to be the pirate writer I am today—only slightly dramatized.
It went something like this.
3rd Period, 1992, Ms. Yount’s English class
(Ms. Yount)
All right. Listen up, you rocks with hair, you’re in my class now, and you’ll be passing this class if it’s the last thing you do, because I’ll be damned if I have to have you next year. Oh, yes, I’m talking right at you, Roberts. You all will become enlightened and learn to quote Thoreau and Emerson and Twain if I have to pull your strings like little wooden puppets! Open your books to page 394 and start reading, “The Open Boat.” There will be no talking….
(Hellion)
I don’t like it.
(Ms. Yount)
You don’t like it?
(Hellion)
I don’t like it, and I don’t want to do it. It’s boring. Boring, boring, boring…except for maybe that Byron fellow. And don’t look at me that way.
(Ms. Yount)
We’re not doing him. He’s too unboring for you lot, you hormone thrumming twits. Okay, I bite, what do you want, dare I ask?
(Hellion)
I want to publish lots, I want to publish lots
I want to be like Nora and make the Times completely nuts.
Writing Love that conquers all, and wild sex outside the box.
I want to publish lots.
(Ms. Yount)
You want to write trash novels, do you? You don’t like real writers like Emily Dickinson? Or Jane Austen? If you’re going to write a novel, why don’t you write a good one? One with a plot, and a theme, and no sex? Something literary that will broaden your mind, change the world, enrich the intellect of your peers and bring about world peace. That’s the kind of book you should write—something that Oprah will read. Why don’t you write something like that, something worth reading?
(Hellion)
I don’t like it.
(Ms. Yount)
You don’t like it?
(Hellion)
I don’t like it and I don’t want it….
(Ms. Yount)
You don’t want it.
(Hellion)
And I won’t do it…I’m a pirate.
(Ms. Yount)
A pirate? Well, Miss Pirate, what do you want?
(Hellion)
I want to publish lots, I want to publish lots
I want to be like Nora and make the Times completely nuts.
Writing Love that conquers all, and wild sex outside the box.
I want to publish lots.
(Ms. Yount)
Now listen here! This isn’t a Kathleen Woodweiss Breeding Ground for Oversexed Housewives and Repressed Amish Farmers’ Daughters. This is an English class, and we will only be reading boring, real life-like stories with real unhappy endings…and there will be no sex, do you got that? I would have you thrown out of the classroom if you weren’t one of the few students in this section that shows signs of intelligence. (No, Roberts, you’re not one of the few; read the assignment.) So, missy, you’ll crack open that book and you’ll start liking Stephen Crane….
(Hellion)
I don’t like it.
(Ms. Yount)
And you won’t crack open your book, will you?
(Hellion)
I don’t want it….
(Ms. Yount)
And you’ll probably continue to read your romance novels during class, as if you think a 2-inch thick book can be hidden inside your schoolbook, with you sitting in the front row and all…you’re not going to read the assignment, are you?
(Hellion)
Well, deep down, you want to know the truth—it’s not me, I don’t like it….
(Ms. Yount)
Well, what do you want, as if it takes a freaking rocket scientist to figure it out at this point?
(Hellion)
I want to publish lots….
(Ms. Yount)
I know, I know…and make the Times completely nuts. I got it, I got it…though why you couldn’t do that with a book without sex in it, I don’t know. All right, fine, we’re all going to write… (grumbling)… Get out your notebooks. It’s not like you guys couldn’t use refinement with your writing skills anyway. 1st graders have better cursive skills than you do, Roberts. Get out your paper, now…okay, all together…one, two, three….
(Chorus of 3rd Period English class)
We want to publish lots, we want to publish lots
We want to be like Nora and make the Times completely nuts.
Writing Love that conquers all, and wild sex outside the box.
We want to publish lots.
(Hellion)
I like it…I like it!
(Ms. Yount)
I kinda like it too. This might pay for little Yount’s college education….
(Hellion)
I think that’s what Nora said.
(Ms. Yount)
Pen and paper, guys. I don’t want pencil marks all over hither and yon….
(Hellion)
I don’t like pens.
(Ms. Yount)
You don’t like pens?
(Hellion)
Well, no, actually…I like using a plume with a sharp nib.
(Ms. Yount)
A plume?
(Hellion)
With a sharp nib.
(Ms. Yount)
With a sharp nib, Hellion likes a sharp nib. Well, aren’t you bloody Charles Dickens?
(FADE OUT)
And that was basically it. This scenario repeated itself about a dozen times throughout with college as I vexed one professor after another. After all, they found I could write—and be analytical about it, but why did I want to rot my brain and throw away my talent on genre fiction?
WHY?
Because it makes me happy and it’s what I want. And that’s all the justification any pirate ever needs to make.
So, what makes you happy—and what do you want? And how do you plan to go about accomplishing it? What were your English classes like, and do you remember any of the stories you had to read? (I still don’t remember The Open Boat.)
You may ask: what does the bed-mussed Jeremy Northam have to do with this blog? Absolutely nothing, but when you’re a pirate writer following your bliss, you can post whatever pictures you like. Enjoy.
April 1st, 2008 at 5:48 am
If the waves become too strong for Jeremy’s tender innards, you can sail up the Thames and drop him off at Vauxhall. The Vixens will know just how to fix him up. Hellion and Crew, your new boat is lovely. The smell of fresh paint and rum is an intoxicating blend. Congratulations!
I’m happy just to wake up every day. I had no serious intention of writing until about 4 years ago, and then it took three of them to sharpen my plume properly. I was an English major, but never read anything really good that I can recall. And you’re right, it was all sad, depressing stuff. Tale of Two Cities. Ethan Frome. Mill on the Floss. A Separate Peace (which I liked).The high school curriculum was enough to make me want to stab myself in the eye with a fork. College was a little better. Poetry and Shakespeare, but a lot of boring lit criticism and “survey” courses.
I will keep writing, because I know I’m getting better. And I will keep reading—hopefully published pirates and vixens!
April 1st, 2008 at 5:52 am
You never need an excue to post a bed-mussed pic of Jeremy Northam! He’s so beautiful…*shakes head free from fog*
I remember a High School English class where on the very first day, before I’d turned in one written word, the teacher came over to me and said,”You’re very talented.” I must have given her an interesting stare because she said,”All the teachers talk about it.” So apparenlty my past English teachers got together with the present one to talk about ME. It was a huge compliment. That was also the day I realized teachers talk about students negatively behind their back too. I wanted to know who was talking badly about me, but the teacher wouldn’t break.lol.
Also,in school I remember reading Lord of the Flies and to this day my brothers and I quote it. “Sucks to your ass-mar(see:asthma) Piggy!” That makes me happy.
April 1st, 2008 at 5:54 am
That’s *excuse…ugh, I need my morning rum.
April 1st, 2008 at 7:53 am
Congrats on the new digs, ladies. Love the, um, decor (Jeremy! *swoon*).
I always got along well in English class - I can suffer through boring texts and write thoughtful analytic papers with the best of them. It was high school creative writing where I had big fights with the teacher. He took off a third of my poetry project grade because I refused to illustrate it. I’m a poet, not an artist. Though these days I’m not much of either.
April 1st, 2008 at 8:00 am
Does this woman have any idea you’re making her famous? LOL! I fell in love with writing in the 7th Grade thanks so Ms. Bernabee, and then learned how to write from Sr. Eleanor in Freshman and Senior English classes. I’d love to go back and thank her.
Whoohoo!!! The new ship does look awful purdy, doesn’t she?! This is so exciting. It even has that new pirate ship smell!
April 1st, 2008 at 8:25 am
Ms. Yount’s already famous. When I was in high school, she used to make me swear I’d dedicate my first book to her, though she’d never read the trashy thing. I saw her about a year ago; she was still asking if I was writing trashy books. She’s probably wondering what’s taking so long to write a morally deficient trashy novel.
Research, I say, research.
April 1st, 2008 at 8:32 am
Maggie, Kelly, Lindsey–my fellow English majors! Welcome to the new ship.
Maggie, if Tiff doesn’t run off with Jeremy before I get him settled, I’ll send him along to you…but I have a feeling he’ll be settled at Vauxhall before I can say, “Where’s my rum?”
Kelly, ugh, I remember Lord of the Flies. Essentially a public high school survivor reality show on a deserted island. Exactly what I needed to read in high school too. As if it weren’t already apparent that I was in the middle of a Survivor mentality.
Lindsey, I usually suffered along well in my English class as well. (I hardly would have majored in it later if I didn’t do well.) I just wasn’t a fan of The Open Boat. Okay, that’s because I flunked the quiz. Stupid Roberts. I was just such a disappointment because I refused to aim higher.
April 1st, 2008 at 8:51 am
Ah, Yount moments. High school revisited.
And we can’t make Yount famous. If she becomes famous it will be from her own doing *snorting* and marrying Robert Redford.
I actually came to appreciate Ms. Yount by the time I was a Junior. I hated her seventh through ninth grade. Who I couldn’t stand as an English teacher was Issacs and we’ve had that discuss. Talk about an environment condusive for no creativity what-so-ever. I wrote a short story about a girl dying in a car accident and her boyfriend seeing her as a ghost. Issacs said it was crap. Yount said it was brilliant. It was crap. But still. LOL
Favorite moment from Yount’s class. The white paper over the TV screen for the Romeo and Juliet sex scene. LOL
Rocks with hair.
“You stare at me with those blank eyes and I feel my IQ nosediving.”
Sometimes it was “Do I have a digital forehead?”
“Are you even listening? What did I just say?”
Me *innocent* “You asked if I was listening.”
“Stop reading books in my class!”
Me *innocently closing English book* “This is ENGLISH class, isn’t it? I didn’t wander into Rohr’s class again did I?”
“Are you chewing gum?”
Me *blinking and putting gum roof of mouth* “No. You must be imagining things.”
April 1st, 2008 at 8:52 am
Am I the only one around this ship that doesn’t have anything to do with any sort of English major? LOL
April 1st, 2008 at 8:55 am
I haven’t seen Yount in *counting back* WOW seven years! I know she’s retired. Did you tell me that?
And I’m sending her my first book with a copy of a paper that has an F on it for “lack of creativity”. If anything, I was never lacking creativity in English class. I was lacking motivation to write. I hated writing and I especially hate being told what to do.
April 1st, 2008 at 8:55 am
And this is a lovely new ship. I’ll miss our old one though. Tomorrow should be interesting with me trying to figure out how to post. LOL
April 1st, 2008 at 8:59 am
Mrs Seely, my third grade teacher was the first person to tell me I needed to write a book.I had a very vivid imagination in the third grade, I sometimes wonder where it went. My senior year I had Ms. Weisenberger in American Lit. I wrote an essay on the miracle of nature,and Ms. W commented that I had writing talent,and I still have that paper.
Miss Weisenberger issued a list of classics at the beginning of the school year and we were to read at least five of them.The two I enjoyed the most were Great Expectations by Dickens, and Of Human Bondage by Somerset Maugham. I loved both of them. I enjoy the angst in some of the great classics.When I wasn’t reading classics in HS, I read Kathleen Woodiwiss and Danielle Steele. It was then that I fell in love with romance.
*looking around at the new digs* I guess I can get used to this. *g*
April 1st, 2008 at 9:05 am
Sin, I have no education in English beyond what I had in HS, as if that isn’t apparent. LOL *sigh*
I keep promising myself I’ll take another English class, but I never do. I need it! Everytime I blog I make myself sick over the punctuation, and grammar usage.
April 1st, 2008 at 9:11 am
No English degree here. And I love that you think seven years is a long time NOT to see an old teacher. I haven’t seen mine in 18! LOL!
April 1st, 2008 at 9:18 am
Can’t stay and play. But wanted to say. CONGRATS! look at the perty ship!
April 1st, 2008 at 9:18 am
Love the new digs. I actually loved my high school English teachers, especially my 11th grade one. I liked the books, too but I was always the lone kid in class who liked what we were reading. Except for Of Human Bondage–I hated that book. Loved my college classes too because the professors were so laidback and cool. My writing professor when I wrote my short story about a drunken girl who finds love with the cop who arrests her. He said that I had more to offer than that, but everyone else in my class loved it because of the humor. There’s snobbery wherever you go with romance writing. I think they’re jealous that we can write HEAs and good sex. LOL
April 1st, 2008 at 9:20 am
Yo ho! Lovely new ship, from aft to stern.
Canterbury Tales. Loved it!
Must’ve been the rum but I was constantly called down for giggling in class. Passing notes and all that. Had an English teacher who was obsessed with Carole King.
April 1st, 2008 at 9:23 am
I have no English degree either. My degree was in Business Law. Go figure. But I did graduate with honors in English in high school. My teacher Mrs. Ince was great. I remember we were reading a book called Green Days By The River. My word… that book was hot. So many kissing scenes and almost sex. No wonder I have a healthy appreciation for smut now.
I was a loner by choice back then, so I started writing to keep me entertained. Surprisingly, my friends liked the craziness that was coming out of my head and onto paper because they kept begging me to write more stories. But after awhile I discovered boys and the writing fell to the side. I still have my notebook that I wrote the stories in, and going back and reading them I’m impressed that I had such wit at 16.
April 1st, 2008 at 9:29 am
Don’t get me wrong. I love Ms. Yount; I still love Ms. Yount. (And I love Ms. Isaacs too, but I didn’t have the problems Sin did.) I loved Ms. Proctor, my 4th grade teacher who got me writing. It’s not that Ms. Yount and I couldn’t get along–*I* who loathe conflict wouldn’t have actually said, “It’s boring” (though I would have rolled my eyes a dozen or two times.)
But we never did see eye to eye on the whole trashy books thing.
Drove Dr. Lass completely insane too. (Though to be honest, he was pretty close to the edge when I arrive, if you know what I mean.)
April 1st, 2008 at 9:33 am
*ROTFLMAO* I can’t get over the “Looking at your blank faces I can feel my IQ nosediving” remark. That’s so Yount.
She’s also the one who said, “I’m sure you guys are aspiring to go to college. When you do, and you choose your majors…choose wisely. Don’t be a teacher. Do you know what they give you as a bonus when you’re a teacher?” *classroom shakes head* “This.” *holds up a Downy ball* “THIS is to symbolize your years of service! I have a dispenser in my machine that lets the softner out, but oh, no, this is so much more useful. This makes all my years teaching you guys worthwhile.”
April 1st, 2008 at 9:35 am
This woman sounds like Teacher of the Year! Sr. Eleanor actually put one of my classmates in a headlock once. Tiny thing and I’m almost positive she made her clothes out of curtains. And she hated when we threw the word “like” into our speech. She would pretending you were no longer speaking as soon as you said it.
We were scared shitless of her Freshman year but happy to find she was really pretty cool when we were seniors.
April 1st, 2008 at 9:38 am
OMG. We have a Kathy signed in for comments. I think my heart stopped for a minute.
*waving* Kathy! Welcome to the ship! What a great day to happen by!
April 1st, 2008 at 9:41 am
She showed us a pencil holder she got for her years of service of teaching rocks with hair.
Nic- I received honors in English too. Don’t know how I pulled that off. Same with history. But I minored in history in college, accidently.
A downy ball? *rolling on the floor* Bless her heart.
April 1st, 2008 at 9:41 am
Let me guess? Ms. Yount’s first name is Kathy? LOL!
April 1st, 2008 at 9:44 am
OMG, I think I remember the pencil holder.
Favorite story, hands down. Some big whig came to school and was interviewing Yount during the day; and Yount was giving the run down, trying to impress this guy, whatever…and about 2/3rds through her spiel the guy interrupts and says, “I’m sorry. I wasn’t listening.” I thought her head was going to spin off just in the re-telling of that story. As horrible little teenagers as we were, we wouldn’t have tried that. Mainly because she would have given a pop quiz…but still…
April 1st, 2008 at 9:46 am
Yeah, but I think it’s Kathie rather than Kathy.
April 1st, 2008 at 9:49 am
Ter- Yes. Yount’s first name is Kathy. Though I’ve never called her that. Even if I send her a book, I’ll still call her Ms. Yount. LOL
LOL. I loved when the big whigs came to school and sat in the back of the class. Yount forgot one was in the classroom one time and someone asked a stupid obvious question (on purpose of course) and she smacked her forehead, “Duh! Do I have a digital forehead?” (She used this for everything. Every day.)
I nearly died. I had to lay my head down on the desk and bite my lower lip to keep from snorting in laughter. I was always in the troublemaker class. I don’t know if that was a compliment to my troublemaking skills or if that was an obvious dis to my intelligence. LOL
April 1st, 2008 at 9:49 am
Is it? I couldn’t tell you since I’ve never used her first name. LOL
April 1st, 2008 at 9:51 am
*waves at Kathy* Hello, Kathy! Welcome aboard! (Pirates, you should go check out Kathy’s website. She has a lot of wonderful articles under her Hidden History link–she loves pirates too.)
April 1st, 2008 at 9:52 am
Thanks for the welcome. You guys rock! Not the ship, that is. I mean that in a jovial way.
Blimey, I forgot to bestow me thanks for posting Jeremy’s enticing picture. Got the ol’ bones dancing a jig this morning.
Capn’s, I have a question. Did you all have Ms. Yount? (snicker)
April 1st, 2008 at 9:58 am
Hey Kathy! *waving from the rigging*
Lovely site. Your name looks so pretty there at the top. I see you went to Nationals last year. Are you planning to be in San Fran?
April 1st, 2008 at 10:00 am
‘Fraid so. You’d think I’d have sense and change the names to protect the guilty (namely me), but I’d try to do something cute like rhyme her name, or say “It sounds like Yount” or refer to her as Ms. Digital Forehead…so why bother? Ms. Yount was an excellent teacher, even if she wasn’t necessarily a diplomatic one.
She was always threatening to cut off my legs because I’d sit with one leg crossed over the other and swing the top leg. The better the scene in the book, the faster it swung; and J would sit behind me and laugh because my swinging leg would rock the entire row behind me.
April 1st, 2008 at 10:07 am
Hold on, I just hit me head while laughing me arse off!!! Your Articles of Piracy are quite the thing.
Thanks, mateys all. I’ve been to yer ship a time or two before. Last night, I saw ye were drumming up a new brig and thought to take a peak through me looking glass at yer new rigging. So glad I did.
To be sure, I’ve mapped out a trip to San Fran. Is your chart set for those waters?
April 1st, 2008 at 10:11 am
Terri is. She’s got the most gold of the lot of us. (The rest of us are rum-swillers to the core.) So she’ll be representin’ us.
Thank you! Even Gilligan’s Island had a theme song…we could afford no less. Okay, so perhaps the crew’s idea to post pictures of hunky guys with their shirts off would have been more…appealing?, but I thought the song was slightly more piratey.
April 1st, 2008 at 10:18 am
By the by, thanks for striking up a friendly flag and visiting my website, especially for your nice comments. I do love pirates and just started a pirate novel that has been festering in me head for over a year.
With the threat of a flogging in store, I’ve terrible news. I’m a die-hard Captain Jack Sparrow fan. (namely lovely Johnny himself) I often call Captain Jack up to visit the writingplayground.com where I usually carouse on the daily blog. Be there enough room for another Captain Jack Sparrow devotee?
April 1st, 2008 at 10:22 am
Oh, the Captain’s not much on sharing but we’ll do our best to keep her from beating you senseless if Jack looks a bit too hard.
Yes, I’ll be pulling into port in San Fran. I’m so excited I just can’t stand it. It’s not often I get to travel to such distant shores. I’ve never even been to the West Coast!
April 1st, 2008 at 10:26 am
*LOL* Jack always loves a new devotee, the scalawag. You’re more than welcome to come by and wave the “I’m a Jack fan” flag and drink rum with the rest of us. And I’ll start lurking around the Playground and waving my “I’m a Jack fan” flag as well.
You have a gorgeous website…and better yet, you have useful stuff on it! And I would love a pirate novel…so definitely let it fester away! You’ll have to come blog about it here when you get it published.
April 1st, 2008 at 10:49 am
*frowns at her own comment* I wonder if I need to clarify that “useful stuff on it” bit by pointing at our website, which doesn’t have any articles, useful links, or informative historical tidbits authored by our very own crew. Yet, obviously, yet. It’s a new ship, obviously….
April 1st, 2008 at 10:53 am
Who has time for useful stuff?! We’re pirates. We’re not useful.
And I stopped in at the playground. Just what I need. ANOTHER blog. LOL!
April 1st, 2008 at 10:58 am
I appreciate you noticing all the extras. That was one thing I really wanted to focus on when I had my website built, helping other writers. You might say research is my rum. Can’t get enough of it, to my chagrin.
Never fear! With a freshly swabbed deck, you’re sure to add embellishments soon. The additions you already have are great. I’m still giggling like a besotted school girl over your Pirate Articles. *hic*
Oh! Sadly, Captain Jack doesn’t come out to play at the playground unless there be rum. Usually, that means a party over at the playground. We just had one recently to celebrate a few friends and their fabulous accomplishments on Friday. So check out last Friday’s blog and you’ll catch Jack trying to sneak away with some rum and wenches.
I’ve never sailed into San Fran afore either. Twill be a new experience. Pray our sea legs will keep us steady if the earth shakes.
April 1st, 2008 at 11:14 am
Your new site is gorgeous! And not just because of Jeremy! And Hellion, I loved your scene. I want to stay and play, but the darelings are rioting… must quell the masses. I’ll come back later.
April 1st, 2008 at 11:16 am
Nay, it’s not your sea legs you have to worry about. My friend went last year and she says they have nothing but SIGNS all over the place, warning you you might get cancer. As if you didn’t have enough to worry about.
But the water’s always pretty; and the food’s always good. I think everyone will be fine. Besides you’re at the north end. Everyone knows if an earthquake comes, it’s the south end that’ll fall off, right? *LOL*
April 1st, 2008 at 11:17 am
Okay, show of hands on ship who recognize the scene I demonstrated above is a parody of Ray Stevens’ The Pirate Song? *looking around* Anyone, anyone at all?
April 1st, 2008 at 11:17 am
Thank you, Tessa! (I saw you totally rocked yesterday at the Banditas!!!) When you get the Darelings corraled, do hurry back…we’ll be waiting with rum.
April 1st, 2008 at 11:18 am
I’m simply staying in denial. It’s pretty much where I live. I pretended we didn’t have tornadoes in the middle of the country when I lived there, and never saw one in seven years. Here I pretend we don’t have hurricanes and have been lucky so far. *knocks on as many wood surfaces as can reach*
So, there will be no earthquakes, mudslides, floods or wild fires in or around San Fran in August. I’m sure of it.
April 1st, 2008 at 11:20 am
That was a parody? I had no idea. LOL!
Tessa - rum always helps. Haven’t you seen our emergency supply? IN CASE OF RIOT, BREAK GLASS!
That would be the glass that holds the bottles of rum, of course. LOL!
April 1st, 2008 at 11:25 am
Just in case you’re not kidding, I have inserted the You Tube video of the real Pirate Song, which my parody is based upon.
Unfortunately it’s funnier than mine.
And obviously done by a guy who’s completely jealous about Jack Sparrow’s popularity. But I’ll forgive him; not everyone can be Jack.
April 1st, 2008 at 11:30 am
Actually, this one’s better. *LOL*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdMdZ-6NFzA
He does a better job.
April 1st, 2008 at 11:32 am
I like it. I like it. Very soothing on the eyes (or should I say Ayes)!
English class, huh? It was okay. I loved Jane Eyre and a couple of Shakespeare plays we studied. Otherwise, I don’t really remember much. I can only really bring to mind one English teacher and I know she wasn’t the only one I had. She was a little off. She looked like Jaclyn Smith from Charlie’s Angels and sat at her desk all day and scratched her head (as in it itched. The theory was she used too much hairspray.)
April 1st, 2008 at 11:37 am
I suspect having Charlie’s Angels hair requires a lot of hairspray…
April 1st, 2008 at 11:40 am
I’ve never heard that song but that’s hysterical.
Welcome aboard, Irish. We worked long and hard to spit polish her for today. And I’m not kidding either. Anyone needs a DNA sample from a pirate, feel free to swab the deck.
I forgot about the nutso English teacher I had Jr year. She had crazy, dirty-blond hair that looked like she never brushed it. I think my Freshman year she married one of the social studies teachers so when I had her she was pregnant. We had an unplanned fire drill and she was so worried about the baby, she ran out of the building leaving all her students to fend for themselves. LOL! I don’t think she lasted long after that.
But that poor child was going to look like a cross between Barney Rubble (the SS teacher) and Sammy Hagar. The poor thing.
April 1st, 2008 at 11:45 am
I think next time I’ll just parody New Kids on the Block…or 98 Degrees. I should have known better.
*laughing about leaving the kids during an unplanned fire drill* Okay, technically, NOT funny, but at the same time, I honestly can’t blame her.
April 1st, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Loved the U Tub video. Sorry I didn’t pick up on it. It’s been a while since I’ve heard the song. Funny though and makes it more interesting to reread your blog.
During one of the earthquakes I experienced while living in Japan, a neighbor was taking a shower and ran outside to safety, naked. Sometimes run. Maybe its the rum! Hopefully, we won’t have to run in San Fran because I don’t think there’s anywhere safe to go. ;-D
Thanks for visiting the playground, Terrio!
April 1st, 2008 at 12:11 pm
Ah, that was supposed to be sometimes ‘we’ run. LOL.
April 1st, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Hey, speaking of that, anyone hear that NKOTB might do a reunion thing? Ah, it’s like I’m 16 again. LOL!
I must have lost my Ray Stevens collection….
You’re welcome, Kathy.
April 1st, 2008 at 1:13 pm
I love the new ship, pirates, and it looks as if the party’s still going strong. Once I recover from all the disrespect shown English teachers, I’ll be back to comment.
April 1st, 2008 at 1:16 pm
Hellion started it!
*points finger at the Captain to deflect blame*
April 1st, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Eek! I forgot to shout out to Ely & Geisha! (We got all panicky that Kathy might be our Ms. Yount…and well, you know how it is when you’re found out!)
Ely, I think you’re absolutely right. They are jealous. Plus, it’s a lot easier to be pessimistic and point out all the things that are wrong with life than to celebrate the good things. I think romance novels celebrate the best parts of life, even while dealing with all the bad parts. (I know I’ve read plenty of authors who didn’t shy away from dealing with the bad stuff life had to offer.)
Geisha, you have the fortitude of a rock. I don’t think I could have all those near kisses…sexual tension, and not have any payout for it. Sometimes you have to hit it out of the park instead of just tipping the ball to get on base….
April 1st, 2008 at 1:25 pm
Janga, in case you’re not recalling the Ray Stevens classic, I mean it in all good fun. Ms. Yount was a riot; and we did respect her, honestly. She was a single mom with a young son; and didn’t ask for anything. She taught at a rural school, where athletics always got more money than academics (she was teaching some of her stuff out of books that were in use when my brother was in high school–25 years before).
And we undoubtedly looked like rocks with hair. Don’t all 16 year olds?
Besides the fact she didn’t *kill* me when I embarrassed her in front of the entire room of Boone County big whigs just goes to prove what a forgiving and big-hearted and much maligned English teacher. (I didn’t mean to.)
April 1st, 2008 at 1:25 pm
*scuffing foot on the wood deck* Gee, Janga, I meant no disrespect. I think English teachers have to be the hardest of all the teachers. I’ve got nothing but mad respect for y’all.
*winking* You’re going to shoot me for my grammar, aren’t you?
April 1st, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Nah, Sin, if Yount didn’t shoot us for our atrocious grammar, Janga won’t.
I don’t know. I think anyone who works with students from middle school to 12th all have the hardest jobs, regardless of topic. Gives me hives thinking about it.
April 1st, 2008 at 1:30 pm
Sin, we should probably stop up at the antiquue store when Yount is there. And start having a conversation:
“Jeet yet?”
“Naw, diju?”
“Yeawntu?”
“Sure. Wh’ryewannago?”
April 1st, 2008 at 1:31 pm
Sorry I’m late boarding the ship today. Yikes.
I love the song, Cap’n! That’s hysterical!
Ms. Yount sounds like a hoot! I love teachers like that. I remember as a fledgling teacher someone telling me to make the kids think I was crazy. Crazy teachers get remembered. LOL!
Why have I never met this incredible hottie before? Maybe I’m the only gal unacquainted. *batting my eyelashes at Jeremy*
I loved English in HS, had amazing teachers(especially Mrs. Hostetler), and was an English major in college. Eventually I became an English teacher and started my masters in literature.
As far as writing, I think Mrs. Sossong in middle school spurred me on. I wrote a story about what it would be like to be a pencil. (Oh, what a sad life they lead, ya know? All that sharpening of their heads and being choked. Not pleasant.) She said I had a lot of promise. Now, looking back, that story sounds crazy. Maybe she was just telling me I had promise because she wanted to stay on my good side, in case I went loco.
April 1st, 2008 at 1:36 pm
Marnee - you’ve never been introduced to Jeremy?! What a travesty! Oh, he’s so dreamy. I even loved when he played Dean Martin and that’s saying something. And Englishman playing a legend from my hometown. What nerve.
It does sound like the teacher may have been a little scared of you trying to liberate all the pencils, using them to stab her and claiming they were talking to you. LOL!
April 1st, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Seriously! What was I not introduced? He’s ridiculously yum, that’s for sure.
I fear you may be right about the teacher, looking back. Though, that does give you a peak into the loony inner workings of my mind.
April 1st, 2008 at 2:05 pm
Marnee - I believe he currently has a role in The Tudors. Also was in Possession which was not a great movie but I liked it. He played opposite Uma Thurman in An Ideal Husband (which I thought was an odd pair) and Mr. Knightly in Emma.
April 1st, 2008 at 2:08 pm
Ah! Ok, then. I do know him. I loved him as Mr. Knightley in Emma.
April 1st, 2008 at 2:30 pm
I knew I was missing out by not having cable. I ALWAYS have to hear about the Tudors. I’m just gonna have to order the season.
April 1st, 2008 at 2:54 pm
When you get it, Sin, I’m coming to your house with cheese dip…
April 1st, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Sadly, I have Showtime and I’ve never seen it. There aren’t enough hours in the day.
April 1st, 2008 at 3:17 pm
I have six HBO’s and no showtime. Damn it. I’ll add it to my Netflix someday. Heck, I just added the first season of Robin Hood. Yeah, I’ll be getting my fill of Richard twice a week.
Huzzah! LOL!
April 1st, 2008 at 3:37 pm
I’ve been eyeing The Tudors series myself. Like Marnee said though, not enough time in the day. We’re on the 4th Harry Potter movie and I’m loving those. I’m glad I’m watching them all in a row. It’s fun to watch the progression. Except I just found out that the last book is going to be made into 2 movies released a year apart. That really stinks! The DH goes in for knee surgery tomorrow so I’m thinking with him home we’re going to finish off the Harry Potters and move on. He has Rome (although that has to be watched after the kiddies go to bed!). I think I’d prefer The Tudors.
You know, I think it would be cool to have Janga as an English teacher. She would be like one of those radical teachers introducing her students to romance and maybe get brought up on charges by the school board by some wacko parents and all her students would show up at her hearing cheering her on. Excuse me… I’m drifting into ABC Afterschool Special mode. We had a religion teacher like that when I was in school, though. Got into the whole sex education discussion and got canned. Not real smart considering he was a male teacher at an all girls Catholic school.
April 1st, 2008 at 3:47 pm
Hellion- I know for a fact my sister has it. If I can convince her to burn it for me, we’re having a cheese dip date.
April 1st, 2008 at 3:49 pm
Irish, did he really? Now that’s an interesting story! The male teacher teaching sex ed (or having the discussion, period)–and getting canned. Dude.
I heard the HP movies (of the last book) was being released 6 months apart: November & May. You wouldn’t have that far to wait, I don’t think; and if movie theaters were smart about it, they’d show the 1st half the movie the weekend or two BEFORE the 2nd half just to cash in on the last bits…
April 1st, 2008 at 4:10 pm
Yeah, he wasn’t a bad guy. You could tell he was a reformer… trying to connect with the kids on their level and get them involved and interested in religion. He organized a couple of field trips to soups kitchens and homeless shelters. His intentions were good, he just didn’t realize the power of the Almighty Sr. Irene! You didn’t go around debating abortion and birth control under her watch!
April 1st, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Hey, YO HOs!!!! Brilliant new ship! I’ll be carousing in your cabin again! Actually, I’m a bit miffed, I tell you, miffed. I was ready to do my Queen Lizzie impersonation and launch this fine vessel onto the Seven Seas. And what do I find? 75 comments before me!!! I’ll have to take off the nice powder blue gloves which match my powder blue hat so nicely. But the pearls are staying - this is a pirate ship, if I put them down, I know they’ll end up in the booty hold!
Hellion, you crack me up! I didn’t think Ray Stevens. I thought Gilbert and Sullivan. You are the very model of a modern romance novelist! And Mrs. Yount sounds like a hoot! By the way, I too spent most of my high school years hiding a romance novel (and this was in the day of the doorstoppers like Shanna) behind a very flimsy textbook. The teachers just gave up on me eventually - but they thought it was such a sinful waste of time too!
April 1st, 2008 at 4:28 pm
*spews MD at her computer screen* This was a Catholic school, right? I mean, isn’t that on the teaching contract somewhere? Aren’t some things a GIVEN?
Okay, take for instance my town, population 283, which featured two Protestant churches (I think the Catholic church was in the town over) and basically if you didn’t belong to one church, you belonged to the OTHER. Seriously, I remember knowing ONE atheist in my class–and ironically, he died before we graduated. (Okay, maybe that was an Alanis Morissette sort of ironic, but there you go.)
We were in our general science class, learning about the Theory of Evolution. Of course, none of us had read it, but we were all set to argue about it. Our teacher, Rohrs, was trying to distill it to us–since it was obvious we hadn’t read it. At one point during the lecture, one of my classmates goes, “Do you think this theory is true?” And Rohrs says, “Yes.” “So you think the Bible is wrong?” And Rohrs says, “Yes.”
OMG.
So chaos until the bell rings; we prance home and tell our parents our teacher is teaching us about evolution and he said the Bible was crap–and this guy got reamed. (He did not get fired. I do think he started drinking more…and by the time, Sin got to his class, well, you can imagine…)
April 1st, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Anna, darling, I’m torn between my desire to scream like a groupie and go, “ANNA!!!” and leap up and down and hug you like mad and my desire to go “ANNA! About bloody time you got here, the rum’s almost gone!” *hands her some rum…and wine* I’m not sure what you’d like, actually…
Okay, I’m cracking up at being called, “YO HO”s–that’s a T-shirt if I saw one. “I’m a Yo Ho on the Romance Writer’s Revenge”–my co-workers would die.
And you caught me. I tried to do the Gilbert & Sullivan musical, but I don’t know it well enough. But I do know the “I want to sing and dance, I want to sing and dance, I want to be a pirate like the Pirates of Penzance….” song–I took it for granted this was a known ditty. Like the one about the squirrel. Apparently it’s not.
April 1st, 2008 at 4:44 pm
Hmm, what’s the one about the squirrel? Enquiring minds want to know? Is it…NAUGHTY????!!!!
Hic! Thanks for the rum, MH! And the wine… And is that a mojito over in the corner or just a margarita who’s very pleased to see me? Hmm, all of a sudden, I’m not noticing that my cabin needs a good dust. Perhaps we should go back to the Mary Poppins pastiche! Ah, the memories… Sorry, get maudlin and nostalgic when I drink and this toddy really packs a punch!
Hey, notice you’ve got my fantabulous critique partner Annie West on the ship in May! I’d better warn her to keep her cutlass handy!
April 1st, 2008 at 4:53 pm
It’s not…naughty…but it IS a riot. And definitely worth the watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NsdF_sk7fQ
Although the Bertha Betterthanyou character is a bit naughty. *LOL*
April 1st, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Yes, Annie sent me her book about Erik–and it was SO good! I loved it–so I begged her to come blog with us. She graciously agreed to humor me. She’s blogging when her newest book hits the stands in the US.
I’m amazed at how deeply her characters are drawn, but she is able to tell their story in such a compact way…Awesome. You’ll definitely have to come by when she blogs!!
I don’t think I’m going to top the Mary Poppins blog; and I’ve run out of musicals, I think. (Wait! You know, I don’t think I’ve done South Pacific guys! Not here, at any rate…or The King and I! HEY, I might have something new to present to you guys!) Eventually I’ll have to do an M-G-M That’s Entertainment sort of blog just so Mary Poppins makes the list again.
April 1st, 2008 at 5:09 pm
She’s a master of getting the maximum emotional punch with the minimal space, isn’t she? It’s a skill I’ve never developed - I need land, lotsa land… Both sheikh books are amazing. I was in lurve!
Hey, just checked out the squirrel song. It’s hilarious! Where has it been all my life?
April 1st, 2008 at 5:25 pm
LOL about the teacher at your Catholic school, Irish!
And Anna! Ahoy and welcome aboard!
April 1st, 2008 at 5:29 pm
That’s it exactly…or to misquote the Genie from Aladdin: PHENOMENAL emotional power in an itty, bitty living space.
April 1st, 2008 at 5:50 pm
Knockers to knickers, it’s ANNA!!! Whoohoo!! We have a celebrity on the ship. Yes, Captain, you’re a celebrity but Anna is a RITA nominated celebrity. You see how that’s the same…but different.
How are the waters in the Southern Seas, my dear? Do you need a refill? Did you bring Matthew? *looks behind Anna for that hunky, adorable, sex-on-a-stick Matthew*
April 1st, 2008 at 5:57 pm
Hey, Terri, Matthew is locked in my broom cupboard and that’s where he’s staying - um, unless I have need of a BROOM. Snork! Yeah, right. Matthew or housework?
“Knockers to knickers”? Can I steal that? Hey, and thanks for pimping the RITA connection.
Marnee Jo, ahoy back! Fine vessel you have here, my hearty!
And yeah, a pirate wench could die of thirst here in between refills. Send that cabin boy over here and tell him to stop cowering behind the mizzen mast! No, not that cabin boy! THAT cabin boy, the one whose photo features at the start of this post…
April 1st, 2008 at 6:10 pm
I’ll trade you Jeremy for Matthew. Please?
Come on! That’s a great deal!
April 1st, 2008 at 6:14 pm
Oh, and you’re on a pirate ship. You don’t have to ask to steal things. LOL! You just do it!
April 1st, 2008 at 6:19 pm
Oh, I’m laughing my Bandit booty off at that post, MsHellion. That was hilarious! Coming in woefully late, but you were a born writer and I admire you for never letting the critics steer you off-course.
I think my teachers would have been horrified at how much of my historical and general knowledge came from romance novels.
Congrats on a great blog!
April 1st, 2008 at 6:25 pm
Hellion, do you really think I don’t know Ray Stevens? I not only know “The Pirate Song,” I also know “The Streak,” “It’s Me Again, Margaret,” “Ahab the Arab,” “Gitarzan,” and the inimitable “Mississippi Squirrel Revival.” I even know “Love Will Beat Your Brains Out.” I am the proud owner of The Ray Stevens Boxed Set. I think it’s required to prove that you bleed Southern. Humph!
Seriously, I loved your parody. You know that I am a huge fan of your wit. Did you ever do Brigadoon? Now, that would be a great parody for a romance writer’s board!
Marnee, I wish that someone had told me to tell my students I was crazy. They told me not to smile til after Christmas. I really loved teaching high school English. Frankly, I found it more fun and more rewarding that university teaching, and I definitely think I made a greater difference in the lives of those students. And, Irish, I did get called in for a conference with my principal, not exactly for teaching sex ed but for taking a bunch of my drama club kids to see a movie that they couldn’t get in to see unless accompanied by an adult.
April 1st, 2008 at 6:59 pm
Fun post! The book I remember having to read (Twice–Once in high school and once in college) and hating was The Great Gatsby. Bleh. I tried to read Walden once and about poked my eyes out with boredom.
April 1st, 2008 at 7:03 pm
Ahoy! First time reader, first time commenter.
Love the post, Hellion! Younts sounds like she was a real treat. I had a teacher for homeroom in twelfth grade, Mrs. Amos. She was a tiny little black lady who was about 70 and had a face carved from a granite block. She never smiled. I’m not sure she had teeth.
Whenever someone sneezed, she barked, “God bless!” Invariably, we all jumped out of our skin and waited for the beatings to start. I never knew a blessing could be so terrifying!
I do, however, have fond memories of English class. English class is where I figured out I have a real talent for making stuff up. Remember how they always wanted you to find the symbolism in things? Man, could I b.s. some symbolism! I pulled some stuff out of my arse that even the teachers hadn’t heard before. It was an awesome feeling!
English, so empowering. And we used to get to diagram sentences!! That was extra fun for a word nerd like me. Um…I do have a degree in electrical engineering. *ducks*
April 1st, 2008 at 7:05 pm
Oh, Trish, The Great Gatsby was the Holy Grail of completely b.s. symbolism! The eyeglasses on the sign! I’ll never forget them. Oh, my. *wipes eyes* I got a little misty remembering TGG!
April 1st, 2008 at 7:10 pm
Yo-ho! Hellion and crew! A fine day for a sail, it is. :> Just swinging over from the Bandit Lair to check out the new ship. QUITE fine, I do say!
And our own Anna Bandit’s here as well. (Remind me to check out that broom cupboard when I come to OZ…woohoo!)
I’ve been LMAO about the English teachers. Ms. Yount sounds like a charm, actually. I had one named Mary Godwin. We called her Bloody Mary. She used a red sharpie (bleeding through every bleedin’ page, as you can well guess) There was no paper unscathed even for the smarty-pantses. To quote Arnold in Kindergarten Cop…”It was Hawwwible!”
Learned a lot from the old bat tho. I missed one question on her final. I thought it was a trick, since most of the others HAD been. “Where is the wife of Bath from?” Uh….Glouster? DUH!!!
Snork.
Anyway, happy sailing, Hellion, Terrio and merry pirates! Here’s a song fer yer “maiden” (yeah, right!) voyage:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdJg6Duzzf4
April 1st, 2008 at 7:10 pm
Hey, it’s a Bandita invasion. All hands to the decks on the Good Ship Revenge! Oh, they just want a mojito? Rightio then!
Caren, I loved the Great Gatsby when I did it at uni. The book I hated with a passion was Sister Carrie (yes, I did three units of American lit - obviously I was preparing even then to send stuff to NY!). Mind you, I think TGG would be better as a romance - you know, with Daisy as a proper gutsy heroine and Gatsby getting the girl at the end!
Terri, your offer is so tempting to do a swap. And you ask so very, verrrrrry nicely. And you come over to the Bandits and keep us all entertained.
So all I can say is…
NUP!!!!
April 1st, 2008 at 7:12 pm
Oooh, and there’s Mdme DW popping over from the Lair as well. *waving madly* Hi Christine!!! Hope the scurvy and lurgy has sailed off away from your door! Snork!
April 1st, 2008 at 7:15 pm
Hey, Jeanne, thanks for that! I always get a giggle from G&S. Much better than the B&S you get in lit class!
April 1st, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Yo’ Caren! Sistah! Did we have the same teacher? I had one who would do that. Then she’d pull a lace edged hankie out of her slip-strap and wipe her own nose. Even if it didn’t need it. I could NOT cope. All I could think about was that hankie, where it had been, where it was going back to…ugh. Symbolism? Urk!
And Trish, I have to say, Walden WAS boring. Not nearly as boring as Intruder in the Dust by Faulkner. URG. And to think Oprah passed up REAL books by FUN authors like US in favor of dried up, boring old Fu’kner.
April 1st, 2008 at 7:25 pm
It’s Banditas, Banditas everywhere!!! LOL! Welcome to our humble ship, ladies. We do appreciate you stopping by.
Trish - I never read that one but tried to watch the movie once. It was boring too. LOL!
Caren - I had a history teacher that was also one of the football coaches and a former Marine. That man could clap loud enough to wake the dead and loved to do it just as we were all fading off into dream land. I’m sure I came close to a heart attack on many occassions.
Jeanne - I sure hope she had a different hankie for every day of the week. LOL! Eeeeewwwww! And Oprah wouldn’t know a happy book if it jumped up and bit her in the you know what!
Anna - I was *this* close. Oh look, I think someone spilled something. Anyone have a broom?!
April 1st, 2008 at 7:26 pm
Hello all. Good to see ya again.. I’ve been busy, busy with all my ongoing projects. I have my blog of course and now I have all these new business opportunities to help fuel my income. Which anyone can find out about if they come to my website.. Anywho, it’s good to stop by and feel welcome by friends. I love this topic. Because,horror of horrors, I excelled in English class. I loved Shakespeare and knew everything the author was trying to say.
I had begun reading romance in high school but, it had not hit me quite yet that I wanted to write romance for a living. I only knew that I felt my life was boring back then, and when I went into Advanced Composition class that if I had to write about my life in a journal like we were supposed to, then everyone would be snoring in their seats by the time they read it.
I was not the party type, the “Hey, I’ll go get drunk with my friends and moon someone” type.
I still don’t drink, I am a dry one.. Well, back to my speech..
I asked my teacher one day after the lastest yawn entry, These were my exact words, “Mr.? (I don’t remember his name right now) My life is so boring, is there any way I can just make stuff up?”
He looked at me and smiled and said, “That would be fine.”
For my very first entry, I wrote a very short story romance and the teacher loved it so much that he choose me to go to a writer’s conference.
Even then I was thick. I had no idea that romance would be the way I would live my life. When teachers begged me to go to college, I told them that I just don’t know what to do with my life.
I kept changing my mind all the time.
And, now, I could have kicked myself for not seeing the signs and going with the opportunities that had presented themselves.
What can I say? I am a Leo and we are stubborn to our own dismay sometimes.
Well, thanks for listening to my rambles again.
You chicks inspire me. You could have me writing all day.
Luv bunches. Bye for now.
April 1st, 2008 at 7:48 pm
OMG, hilarious! I popped over from the Bandita Lair on Anna Campbell’s rec and this post just made my day. Too, too funny!
April 1st, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Hey Angela. Sounds like you found your calling. Good for you and thanks for coming to the party.
JoMama! We can never have too many Banditas on the decks. Thanks for dropping by and make sure you stop by the bar to get whatever you like. That’s the great thing about having our own pirate ship, no last call. LOL!
April 1st, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Y’all got some GOOOD rum. Open bar on a pirate ship. Imagine that. Snork. *Waving madly at Anna and Jo* It’s a Bandita Invation, indeed. *singing..”With Cat-like Tread upon our prey we STEAL!”*
Grins
April 1st, 2008 at 8:15 pm
Jeanne - I’m so glad you volunteered first for Karaoke! Anybody want to make a request?
How about “Holding Out For a Hero”?! That’s the perfect song for this ship. LOL!
April 1st, 2008 at 8:29 pm
Oh, not me, wench. I save my singing for the echo-y goodness of the shower.
Besides, I think that even with the word prompt I wouldn’t be able to make it sound convincing. The theme to the Doodlebops or the Little Einsteins and I’d be jamming…
April 1st, 2008 at 8:31 pm
Oh, and welcome to all the sweet Banditas. Feel free to cozy up to our crewmembers. But, watch out, some of them tend to nibble… (biting has such negative connotations).
April 1st, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Marn - I just read your comment then checked my email and found something about how to win a meet & greet with the Doodlebops. LOL! Have I mentioned how happy I am I DON’T have to do that?! LMAO!
April 1st, 2008 at 9:39 pm
Oh good lord, I am not reading all these comments at ten thirty…lol… I missed the party!
Hellion. Jeremy is more a period land dweller, if I say so myself…
April 1st, 2008 at 11:52 pm
Yo, ho, ho, my dears! Nice digs you got here. I knew this day was coming and what do I do? I miss the whole ruddy day!! Banditas. Vagabonds. Vixens. I hope there’s room on the upper decks - you’re gonna need it!
I had great English teachers. Mrs. W. who kept a thermos in her desk drawer. What? She liked to have her cuppa within reach!
Mrs. Eble was the best. She was our literary magazine editor and allowed us to publish wretched poetry filled with, well, wretched teenage angst. She was a lover of Olivier and Milton and kept cameos of both on her desk.
Oh, and Jeremy Northam is coming home with me. He said so. Now mind the sheets. One tug and it’s all over!
April 2nd, 2008 at 7:46 am
Tiff - It did get a little crazy around here. LOL! Luckily, reading the comments is not mandatory. We’re just happy you stopped by.
Santa - Was there any doubt what was in that thermos? LOL! Hands off Jeremy. What we put on the boat, stays on the boat!
April 2nd, 2008 at 8:36 am
Holy Captain Morgan, The Banditas of Brilliance did a lovely re-enactment of the pirates of penzance song…*LOL* Is there any rum left? Mojitos, anything? Ladies, thank you all for coming by and playing with us! I, we all, greatly appreciate it!!
Janga, I love Brigadoon; and I’ve seen it enough to probably pull it off. (I do love me some Gene Kelly.) Let me see what I can do.
Tiff-Santa, you guys are going to have to duke it out who gets Jeremy. Of course, while you’re doing that, Terri will seduce him and lock him back in her hammock…
Terri, thanks for running things…and giving me a swift kick in the butt about the DOUBLE-FINALING Anna! Anna is just so down-to-earth, I forget she’s a celebrity…