WEEKLY WINNERS

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Since about 4 years Waterloo city organizes a Halloween festival in the city parc. It is now 3 years that I am going there to take pictures and I notice that each year there are more people.
I had never seen so many.

Here are the little monsters and witches I saw















The black widow on the graveyard







putting on make up











the smallest pumpkin





















A little ghost

I AM A WITCH !

For the first time in my life I am invited to a Halloween party ! A classmate from my painting group together with her daughter will throw a party tonight. I have been to uncountable parties in my life and also costumed once, but this was always for Carneval. Halloween I really started to know in virtual world by visiting American blogs.

But now it also moves slowly slowly into other European countries and of course into Belgium too, it started around 2000. When I think that Halloween is originally an Irish celebration and was brought to America by Irish emigrants. From the defeat of Napoleon to the beginning of the famine, in a period of thirty years, at least 1,000,000 and possibly 1,500,000 emigrated. However, during the worst of the famine, emigration reached somewhere around 250,000 in one year alone.

They left their country due to evictions, starvation, and harsh living conditions. The Irish made up a quarter of the population in Boston, Massachusetts; New York City; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Baltimore, Maryland. In addition, Irish populations became prevalent in some American mining communities.

Of course they took the customs of their country with them and others took it over and it became the Halloween which is celebrated today in America.

I also like to take over customs of other countries when I like them. I always kept the once I was raised with in Germany, I took over the once of my Italian Mr. G and of course the once of the country I am living in.

And here I am when I tried my costume, a very simple one. The black velvet dress I had so I only bought the hat and sew a big red eyed spider on it.



orange socks with a black cat and of course the broom



a bracelet with skulls, a collar with a skull, a necklace with eyeballs and black and orange claws to stick on my fingernails.



and that's what I saw yesterday afternoon just across the street ! A warm welcome !

To those who celebrate Halloween

FUN MONDAY - Who is next ????

What would Fun Monday do without Mariposa ?? Once again she proposed herself as host for this monday. Thank you Mariposa !

If you want to participate in Fun Monday, please go to her blog and see what she wants us to write about.

SHOW & TELL

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When I have to buy something I note it down on little slips which then I misplace and don't find them anymore. So when I saw this little noteboard I bought it immediately.



It hangs on our fridge and now I know that I have to call the window cleaner (if I don't forget)



Mr. G had the same idea the same day (that's what 40 years of marriage are for) and bought this. A less little practical, but cute.



he also bought this door protector against drafts. We don't have any, but that doesn't matter it also looks cute. Arthur's bottom is also in the picture.



The teacher of our painting group was in Spain and brought me this cute little cat from Barcelona. She is the first teacher in my life who has brought me a gift. All the others put me rather out of the classdoor. (when I was a child of course)

THURSDAY THIRTEEN - This weeks happenings

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What happened this week in 13. points.


1. I had the honor to be visited by 3 Jehova witnesses, looking dull and grey

2. I didn't want their " Watchtower" magazine, I prefer magazines about royals

3. When I saw two small children I got angry and changed from a friendly housewife into a fury

4. I told them that it is a shame to take kids from door to door instead of letting them play in the sunshine. That this was certainly not what their Jehova wanted, smiled to the two kids and slammed the door !

5. Then I got a phone call from a guy who wanted to sell me 200 bottles of the best wine of the world. I told him that I am president of the AA (Anonymous Alcoholics)

6. We were watching a crime story at TV and in the middle of a murder when I saw a hand holding a sharp knife the electricity went off and we sat in the dark.

7. With lighters we looked for candles or a torch

8. Mr. G religiously lighted 10 little candles while I found a torch and went on the street

9. The whole street was dark and no lights to see. I knocked at my neighbours door because I thought she was alone. She had company ! Her 90 year old lover ... or now more a friend

10. We both were rather bored. What to do without TV ? We had exceeded age to think about founding a family

11. I answered emails on my baby computer which has a battery while Mr. G watched an action movie on a little DVD player also equipped with a battery

12. When we went to bed, the light went on

13. During the night Mr. G knocked over his bedside table, he had a nightmare. The cats weren't happy.

I HAVE GOT MAIL !

Please scroll down for Wordless Wednesday

*****

I had bought a new broom for outside and when I tried it out, I found a parcel sitting at the front door. Being a careful person and the fact that it came from a fortress I had it checked by Rosie.



Rosie had slept deeply, and was rather annoyed that I asked her to play "finding bombs" dog and check the parcel. Finally she sniffed at it, found nothing suspect and fell asleep again. Reassured I opened the parcel and showed the content to Rosie.



as always when cats are not sure what they have to do they wash ! She also didn't seem very interested.



When I told her we would now start with learning arabic until we knew speaking zulu, she panicked but I calmed her down by telling her I would read each evening some pages of "The cat who had 14 Tales" to her. She wondered a little bit about the 14 tails on a cat, maybe she also was a little jalous because she only has one.



and then she started to play with the little bats.

You know who send me this wonderful parcel full of surprises ? Dr.John and his dear wife Betty right out of their fortress ! Dr. John had organized



Each day his wife Betty pulled a name out of a bucket and I won !! That's a real miracle because I never won anything ! But you can check here !

and here is a detailed list of the parcel's content :

- The Cat Who had Fourteen Tales (not tails) (I will start this book tonight !)
- A full gram of Spanish Saffron (we love it)
- 3 Halloween finger puppets (just in time for my decoration
- 3 Halloween bats (confiscated by Rosie)
- A genuine Irish Collector’s Spoon (have used it already for my afternoon tea)
- And a 3 disk 51 language immersion disk set. (Deep sigh !)

THANK YOU, THANK YOU so much ! you suddenly seem so near and real !!

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

MY WORLD - Painting Exposition

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This week my world was our yearly painting exposition



We are waiting for the visitors



Our teacher (left) and administrator, (right) in a very good mood !









and they came !

Some of the around 100 paintings which were exposed


















An important personality from the Belgian TV



My cats and I



Mamie our oldest classmate 94 (!) and Ilona (66)