Bestest.Ramadan.Ever.

Several years ago, I got interested in writing children's books, so I wrote a few stories, joined SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) and started going to a monthly critique group. Well, time went by, I collected a lot of rejection slips, and these days I don't do much writing (except, of course, on the chicken blog). But I still go to my critique group. And exciting things are happening! In the beginning, no one had been published, but since then we've had two published authors and now there's a third - my friend Medeia, whose first book, Bestest.Ramadan.Ever. came out earlier this month.


Here I am re-creating a photo with Bestest.Ramadan.Ever. It's a young adult book about a teenage girl named Almira and her life of high school, friends, boys (especially a cute one named Peter), and her traditional Muslim family. It's written in Medeia's humorous, sweet style and I think it's great!

Here's the original photo. This just might be the bestest "books" re-creation ever!

The present

If you look closely in the lower right hand corner of today's photo, you'll see there's a wrapped present. I totally missed it the first time I saw it and thought the only props I needed were a handsome husband, a picnic basket and a flower. Then I noticed something colorful in the corner. I took a closer look and realized it was a present! Of course, I was immediately curious. Who is the present for? Is it a birthday present? A Christmas present? Are they dating and he's about to propose? It's a mystery!

nnnnnnnnn Here I am with Robert re-creating the photo at TY Park this afternoon.



And here's the original photo, from the website of a retirement community in Englewood, Colorado. The website offers no clues about the present, so obviously it's up to us to solve the mystery. What do you think? Is the present for him? For her? What is it? Am I wrong and it's not a present at all? And as long as we're at it, what's in the picnic basket?

How to Wear Animal Prints After 40

Today's photo comes from an article called How to Wear Animal Prints After 40. According to the article, animal prints "have gotten a bad rap as something that old ladies tend to overindulge in." Uh oh! But fortunately, the article gives us some animal print wearing pointers.

nnnnn Here I am re-creating the photo from the article in my faux leopard print coat.

And here's the original photo. Yes, it's the ever-beautiful Lauren Hutton. What an inspiration! And of course, she's following the rules perfectly - she's wearing a classic shape, she's not showing too much cleavage or leg, and (phew!) she hasn't over-accessorized. Well, it's over 90 degrees here in South Florida, so I think it's time to go back to my t-shirt and shorts look. But wasn't it fun to see a little leopard print on the chicken blog?

No more landline

According to a recent study, more than a quarter of homes in the United States now have only a wireless phone and no landline. Last week, Robert and I joined them.

Here I am at Stanley Goldman Park this afternoon re-creating a "senior lady on a park bench with a cell phone" photo.

Here's the original photo. Why did we do it? Well, when you're retired, things should be easy, and it's easier to have one phone number, one phone to answer, no answering machine to check, and one less bill to pay. And with our house phones gone, we now have more room for pictures of the grandchildren! It's too soon to know if we'll save money - it depends on how much we use our cell phones - but whether we do or not, we're already enjoying being landline-free. Strangely enough, it doesn't feel strange at all.

Yikes!

Today's photo is from Primera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska advertising their Medicare supplement plans. I've seen hundreds of retirement photos, but this one takes the cake for being the most dangerous-looking, about-to-break-someone's-back photo yet.

nnnnBut we're not worried! Here we are re-creating the photo at South Lake this afternoon.

And here's the original photo. All I can say is, if this is what seniors in Alaska are doing, I'm glad they've got medical insurance - they'll need it!

Love match

Sometimes it's all about the photo. Today's photo comes from the website of Yours, "the UK's favourite magazine for women in their prime." But it could just as easily have come from any senior website or article. What a great photo!

nnnnnnnnnnnnnnn Here we are re-creating the photo at West Lake Park.



nnnnnnnn nnnnnn And here's the original photo. A love match for sure!

How to Get a Cheap Haircut

Today's photo comes from a British article called Pensioner Discounts: How to Get a Cheap Haircut. It's a fine article, but we really don't need the information. I've cut Robert's hair for 42 years.

nnnnnnnHere I am re-creating the photo from the article and giving Robert a haircut.

This is the original photo. Looking back, I don't know why I had such confidence that I could cut his hair. I'd never had any training and my mother didn't cut my father's hair. But one day I gave Robert a haircut, we both thought he looked perfectly handsome, and the rest is history. And here's something interesting - since we retired, I've met several couples - some married over 50 years - where the wife has always cut the husband's hair. Is this the secret to a long marriage? Maybe so!

Freebies for Seniors

Today's photo comes from an article called Freebies for Senior Citizens. Woo hoo! You can't get any better than free! It's got information on all kinds freebies, from free newsletters and publications (Medicare Part D Report, Menopause E-Newsletter) to free product samples (Miracle Grip Denture Adhesive, Serenity Undergarments) to travel freebies, gardening freebies and even freebies to have on hand for grandchild visits. There are links to the freebies so you can get your free stuff.

Here I am with Robert re-creating the photo from the article in the Regions Bank parking lot this afternoon.

And here's the original photo. The one thing I can't figure out is why this couple looks so glum. We're talking about free stuff here! Gee, I hope it's not because they realized the link to the free sample of Serenity Undergarments says "404 - File or directory not found."

Props

I'm always fascinated by the props in retirement photos. For instance, in today's photo, there's one prop - an apple. In order to do the best job I can in re-creating the photos, I always try to understand why the props are there. Usually it's easy, but today I'm not so sure.

Here we are re-creating today's photo, and as you can see, I'm holding the apple. The question is - why am I holding it? Did it fall out of an apple tree and I picked it up? Am I hypoglycemic and I carry an apple with me everywhere? Is it to throw at wild animals if one attacks? Is it some kind of new Apple cell phone?

nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnHere's the original photo. What do you think?

Activities for Seniors

Today's photo is from an article called Activities for Seniors Part 2. I was excited to find it because now that I'm a senior I'd like to do some senior activities. But the only activities listed were dance, email, friends, and gardening. Hmph, I thought, I could have done those as a junior! So I went back to Activities for Seniors Part 1, thinking I must have missed the real senior activities. But no, it just had art, birdwatching, and collecting. Well, phooey, I thought, aren't there any activities that only seniors can do?

Here I am with Robert re-creating the photo from Activities for Seniors in our back yard.

And here's the original photo. Okay, fine, I thought. I'll make my own list of activities for seniors. After all, we've lived this long - we deserve our own special activities! Here's what I came up with: count my aches and pains today, count my gray hairs, wonder what an Android is, and go to funerals. Never mind. Let's just dance.

Plaid shorts

These days, plaid shorts are everywhere. You can see people of every age wearing them in stores, at the golf course, and pretty much everywhere you go. They're even in retirement photos. This one is from Cascades at World Golf Village, a 55-and-over active adult community in St. Augustine, Florida. Obviously, they know what's up. So do we, so we put on our plaid shorts, grabbed our putters, and headed to the golf course.

nnnnnnnnnnnHere we are re-creating the photo at Hillcrest Golf & Country Club.

And here's the original photo. When I was little, I thought the future would be about cities on the moon and rocket travel. Who knew it would really be cell phones and plaid pants?

Jumping in the rain

Today we have two reasons to jump for joy.
1. We're finally getting some rain after a long drought.
2. The Florida Marlins won their last two games!

Here we are at TY Park re-creating a "jumping for joy" photo. I'm holding Robert's brown umbrella and he's holding my blue one, which a good thing because it's actually raining.

Here's the original photo. Of course, we always have lots of reasons to jump for joy - our great kids, our fantastic grandkids, a wonderful furry companion (Joey, of course) and a nice life in South Florida, where it's always beautiful no matter what the weather.