This week we got some sad news when Mother was informed that a person with whom she has been very close friends for decades passed away. The person in question is Dr. Madeline Watson of Chiropractic and art fame.
I really wanted to write something totally appropriate for this occasion but find that I couldn’t do it this week for reasons that have a bit of irony attached to them. You see, my back decided to have a fit about a week ago and today it is quite hideous, to say the least. Every bit of my energy is being focused on not screaming in pain as I turn in my deadline work for this paper.
I feel that I would not do justice to a piece dedicated to “Mad” at this time so I will not be filling this space with my fond memories of her, this time. I will be carrying this out in the future though, I promise.
I will say just one thing and that is that Mad was a dedicated friend to my mother for about fifty years. When my father died she stayed at the house with Mother until Jill (sister) and I landed at about 4:30 “ish” in the morning. That is something which will always remain in my mind. There is a lot more to say and a lot more will be said in the future, but I just cannot muster the necessary brain cells to carry out such an endeavor at this particular time.
I am not going to leave this space blank as I will provide you with another game that we played recently on my YouTube channel, which I never mention here. (Yes, that was sarcasm—I’m in pain but I’m not dead, ladies and gents.)
This will be special in a way because the person we celebrated has been a guest columnist here on several occasions. It’s about time you got to know more about the charming chick named Judith M. Villeneuve of Maine and that time has arrived. As usual, excuse some of the bizarre sentence structure, etc. Also, she goes by “Babel Fish” as a user name on YouTube; her birthday was August 23, 1958. (I do vacillate between calling her “Babel” and “Judith M.” etc.) Let us begin.
One: Of these choices, which of these would be most affected by the use of a Babel Fish: A) Vision B) Hearing or C) Bowel Function?
Two: Babel’s parents made their escape from this landlocked country, which is located in Central Europe. Think goulash.
Three: According to some alternative researchers including Max Igan, the natives of Hungary and this lost civilization quite possibly share the same root language of Magyar. The aboriginal tribes in Australia are also linked into this jazz, as are many other indigenous peoples. Many have concluded that this lost civilization was world-wide and was not necessarily in just one specific geographical area.
Four: This person took on the role of Dr. Noah Drake on General Hospital back in the 80s. Musically speaking, he is famous for coveting his friend’s significant other. He and Babel share a birthday but he was born in 1949.
Five: Even though it’s associated with “kicking Sicily,” it did not give the “boot” to Judith M. when she lived there for several years, “back in the day.”
Six: Hungary is bordered by six countries, name one of them.
Seven: In what craft, which is also an art form, would one spy things like: RS, WS, Sts, CO, K and YO, to name a FEW, whilst following the instructions?
Eight: This actress was not permitted to display a certain portion of her body when she costarred in a sixties hit show alongside Larry Hagman. Her birthday is August 23, 1934.
Nine: Which one of Judy’s favorite musicians and philosophers once warned others to avoid ingesting the snow of a yellowish hue?
Ten: “Jump up look around find yourself some fun, no sense sitting there hating everyone. No man’s an island and his castle isn’t home....” are lyrics said by this classic rock group that puts one in the mind of Jed Clampett’s kin and the way Sarah Palin might describe a person who is the opposite of short.
Eleven: This is a form of sewing and a popular form of counted-thread embroidery in which X-shaped “things” in a tiled, raster-like pattern are used to form a picture. Sometimes IT is done on designs printed on the fabric.
Twelve: As much as Babel probably doesn’t like to think of this, I’m going to ask anyway: A baby that was born on the 23rd of August, 1958 was probably conceived around the thirteenth of this month, 1957.
Thirteen: What do these have in common? Think Babel’s deep roots: The noiseless match, Rubik’s cube and the krypton electric bulb.
Fourteen: Judy’s parents were to Hungary what Woody Guthrie was to the US of A. Why?
Fifteen: Of these choices, what is the literacy rate of Hungary? 1) 89% 2) 99% or 3) 95%.
Sixteen: In 2007, Hungarians joined together in order to break a Guinness World Record. For what did they win, of these choices? 1) Standing on one foot simultaneously 2) Simultaneous Kissing or 3) Performing Somersaults at the same time.
Seventeen: If you were in Hungary and introduced yourself to a native, what would be different about the way he/she greeted you than if the same scenario unfolded here in the United States, of these choices? A) No handshake; it’s considered to be bad luck B) Hungarians say their last names first or C) Hungarians don’t directly introduce themselves but use a middle man.
Eighteen: On August 23, 2011, the leader of this country was brutally overthrown. “We came, we saw, he died,” is a direct quote from Hillary Clinton about the whole sordid affair.
Nineteen: SBD (Same But Different, for newbies) question: A spun thread used for knitting, weaving, or sewing or a long or rambling story, especially one that is implausible. Either way, Judy needs this and used to actually work in a store that specialized in it!
Twenty: This city is located where the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio rivers meet and greet and is where our dear birthday gal was born.
I think that covers it for the week. I’m going to change the ice that is wedged in my back brace at this time. By the by, I hope everyone gets the last question and if they don’t, I will be appalled, as Mother would say.
THE END. (Interstate Crosscheck, “War is a Racket,” by General Smedley Butler, “Contrary Notions,” by Michael Parenti)
Answers: One, B) Hearing, more information: This is associated with the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, which-To Answers page 8
Answers - from page 3
Judy enjoys. The Babel Fish is a small bright yellow fish, which can be placed in someone’s ear in order for them to be able to hear any language translated into their first language. Ford Prefect puts one in Arthur Dent’s ear at the beginning of the story so that he can hear the Vogon speech.
Two, Hungary.
Three, Atlantis.
Four, Rick Springfield.
Five, Italy.
Six, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and Austria.
Seven, Knitting/Knit.
Eight, Barbara Eden, (I Dream of Jeanie - belly button couldn’t be shown.)
Nine, Frank Zappa (Watch out where those huskies go and don’t you eat that yellow snow).
Ten, Jethro Tull. Eleven, Cross Stitch/Cross stitching.
welve, November. Thirteen, All invented by Hungarians.
Fourteen, Folk Singers/Hungarian Folk Singers/Singers.
Fifteen, 2) 99% type in this link for an interesting article about literacy rates across the land: https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-highest-literacy-rates-in-the-world.html
Sixteen, 2) Simultaneous kissing more info: more than 6,400 couples locked lips outside the Budapest Parliament Building.
Seventeen, B) Last name first a bit more: In Hungary, when people write their names or introduce themselves, they typically use their last name first.
Eighteen, Libya. Nineteen, Yarn. Twenty, Pittsburgh.