Come on-a my house!

Margie: Edna, I'm very excited about Halloween this year. I think it's wonderful that we decided to have a haunted house for all the children in Jericho.

I do have one small concern, sister, and I'll say this as nicely as I can. You said you'd like to greet the children at the door. If you do that, Edna, they'll run away screaming and will never see the haunted house.

Edna: Margie, if I had a nickel for every time you insulted me, I'd be richer than Bill Gates. You know good and well that the reason I want to greet the children is because I want to see their little costumes. They always look so cute, trying to be scary.

I hope we have a better turn-out this year than we did last Halloween. We spent all that time decorating the house and barely any children came.

Margie: See how you are, Edna? I tell the truth and you call it an insult. I love to see the little costumes too.

There's your answer, Edna. Barely any children came last year because you were waiting by the door. Besides, you ate most of the candy.

Edna: Oh no you don't, you fibber, I'm not the one who went to bed early last Halloween with a stomachache! I don't think we had as many decorations last year, maybe that was the problem. Everything looks nice and spooky this year, and I like how you put those fake spiderwebs out in the bushes.

Margie: I like how you helped Cousin T with his werewolf costume. He's going to do a good job this year.

Edna, here's a scary thought. Do you think Aunt Biddy and Itty Biddy will wear costumes this year?

Edna: Lord help us, those two look so ridiculous on a normal day, I'm not sure you'd be able to tell the difference between a costume and how they usually look.

I ran into Deputy Jimmy yesterday, and he said he's going to bring his two little ones by the house tonight. I told him to spread the word, we've got lots of candy and fun thrills in store for all the Jericho kids.

Margie: Deputy Jimmy? Bye, Edna. I'm going to the mall and exchange my costume.

Edna: Margie, if you can't show a lawman your costume, it's probably not good to show the young'uns either. Good thing I decided on the flapper dress, it's family-friendly.

Now go put something decent on and hurry back, I hear some children coming up the walk.

Happy Halloween
from Margie and Edna!

The very first Girl Scout

Edna: Margie, look here at what's in the newspaper. It says that tomorrow is Juliette Gordon Low's birthday. Do you know who that is?

Margie: Is that the woman who bakes those nice Girl Scout cookies? I do wish I had a few boxes of those. I'm hungry.

Edna: Check the freezer, we had a box of Thin Mints stashed in there the last time I looked.

And no, she's not the one who bakes the cookies. She founded the Girl Scouts of America back in 1912. It says here that she was very artistic, loved pets, and had a great sense of humor. She sounds like our kind of lady, don't you think?

Margie: Oh, she does sound like us. Edna, didn't you join the Girl Scouts once? I tried to join the Boy Scouts you know. I was a young lady ahead of my time.

Edna: You were a young hussy, is what you were. No, I didn't join the Girl Scouts because we didn't have a local chapter and Daddy wouldn't take me all the way to Wichita for the weekly meetings. I wanted to, though. It always sounded like fun, with the camping and the singing.

Margie, we should go on a road trip and go visit Mrs. Low's birthplace over in Savannah, GA. The house is a National Historic Landmark, you know.

Margie: That's a fine idea. Let's ask Cousin T to drive us. We'll go by that Paula Deen's restaurant and eat like pigs.

Edna: Sounds like a plan, sister!

Margie and Edna get in the Halloween spirit

Edna: Margie, Halloween is on Friday, we'd better get cracking if we're going to put together our costumes! Have you thought about what you're going to be?

Margie: Not that it's any of your business, Edna, but I may be a French maid or a Playboy bunny. I'm trying to decide which one the gentlemen would like.

Margie: What will you be, Edna? A witch?

Edna: Kiss my tushie, Margie. You know, something tells me that what the gentlemen won't like is if you dress up as either of those things. On Halloween, you're supposed to dress up like something you're normally not! I know, maybe you should go as a decent, modest, respectable woman.

I actually haven't decided on my costume yet. I was looking through some of Mama's old trunks up in the attic, I thought I might go as a flapper if I can find one of Mama's old dresses that the moths haven't destroyed.

Margie: You're already a flapper, Edna. You flap your gums from sunup to sundown. Why don't you be something you're normally not? Like a nun?

I could sew your lips together and wrap you up like a mummy. I like that idea.

Edna: You come near me with a sewing needle, and it will be the last thing you ever do. You hear me?

Margie: That's an idea! I'm dressing up like you. Wait until the gentlemen whisper some of your secrets in my ear.

Edna: Margie, that would be a trick that surely wouldn't get you any treats. Nobody knows my secrets, and you can take that to the bank, you jealous hussy.

Margie: But, Edna, I don't want to dress up as a bank teller. What are you talking about anyway?

Edna: Oh good grief. I'll be up in the attic, you come get me when you figure it out.

Margie: Get your bloomers out of a wad while you're there.

Margie's Home Cooking

Margie: Edna, I invited Cousin T for dinner tonight. I declare, that boy beats all. He's just like all these other young people who think home cooking means microwaving or opening a box.

Remember that time I told him I'd made a cake from scratch and he wouldn't eat it? I knew something was wrong because he eats anything. He finally told me he wasn't going to eat anything made from scraps. Lord a mercy!

Edna: Margie, don't you be too hard on Cousin T. You know that half the time you're talking to him he's got his head in the clouds, thinking of some project or another. It's not his fault that he misunderstood you about that cake. Besides, you know he loves your cooking--although goodness knows why. You cook about as well as a pig can knit a pair of socks. It's a wonder you haven't given us the ptomaine poisoning before now.

Margie: You're a lying liar, Edna. I haven't noticed you laying down your shovel or not eating when I cook. You're just mad because Mama left me her recipe book.

Mama knew all about cooking a fine meal. She once said that's how she caught a good husband. Daddy sure loved everything she fixed. Remember her iron skillets? And her fried chicken?

Edna: Margie, the only reason I tolerate your cooking is because you pitch a fit and sulk for days if I don't eat what you fix. You're as bad as a two-year-old sometimes.

And yes, Mama surely did know how to cook. She may have left you her recipe book, but she sure didn't leave you her know-how. I wouldn't mind having a taste of her fried chicken again, that's the truth. And her pecan pie was this close to sinful. What are you going to fix for Cousin T?

Margie: You won't be getting any but I'm cooking fried chicken and gravy, mashed potatoes, hot biscuits, green peas, and a Death by Chocolate cake.

Cousin T will sleep for days after that meal.

Edna: Oh, merciful heavens! I'd best call Cousin T and warn that boy not to come to dinner. If he eats all that, there's gonna be death at the table tonight for sure, but not by chocolate. Don't you remember the last time you cooked that kind of meal for him? He spent the rest of the night getting his stomach pumped. It wasn't pretty.

Margie: Pretty is as pretty does, Edna.

Margie Visits The Dr.

Margie: Edna, come sign this petition before I take it to Bailey's Tavern. It's time for us to get rid of this quack we've called a doctor for all these years.

I went for my check-up today and I'm here to tell you that the old fool has lost his mind. I'm getting me a young doctor.

Edna: Oh Lord, folks, she's on another one of her rampages. Margie, what did the doctor tell you this time that's got you all up-in-arms?

Margie: Edna, first he said my feet and legs were swollen a bit. He said that's because I have water retention. He said it like that's a bad thing. You know, at our age, it's good that we can hold our water and tea or we'd be wearing adult diapers.

Edna: Somehow, I don't think that's what the doctor meant, you nitwit. I don't know, it sounds to me like he knows what he's talking about. Why are you so upset with him, what else did he say?

Margie: I hate trying to talk to you, Edna. The next thing he said was that I need to limit my salt intake. That proves he's a quack.

Edna, I am not going to be a laughingstock! How can I limit salt when I live in a town with a salt mine and all these peanuts? The very idea!

Edna: Margie, I do agree that's going to be difficult. But unless you got a medical degree when I wasn't looking, you'd best listen to the man.

Besides, just who do you think is going to be laughing at you?

Margie: Edna, I'm through talking with you. You're a fruit loop. Now you sign this or I'll forge your name and you know I can.

Edna: You can kiss my grits! I'm not signing your stupid petition, you're just mad because you don't like what the doctor told you to do. And if you try and forge my name, I'll call Deputy Jimmy and have him come out and haul you back to jail. Don't think I won't!

Edna the mermaid

Edna: As a little girl growing up in land-locked Kansas, it might seem unlikely I would have dreamt of becoming a mermaid. Margie and I knew how to swim; we'd sneak off to the swimming hole on hot summer afternoons when all our chores were done. Mama thought we were napping, and she would have been scandalized at the thought of us stripping down to our skivvies and swimming in public. But there, under the murky water, I'd pretend I was a beautiful mermaid with long flowing hair and a powerful tail that could propel me all the way across the ocean if I so chose. I never told anyone about my dream; Mama and Daddy would have thought it too fanciful, and Margie would have teased me mercilessly. So I kept my thoughts a secret, and would hide myself among the library shelves, quietly marveling over the mermaids in the picture books.

By the 1950s, I was a married woman. My husband Joe was a traveling salesman, and his work took him far and wide while I was often left home alone to twiddle my thumbs. Joe wasn't always a trusting man, and I do believe he worried, because I was still a pretty young thing then. I can remember the day he returned from one of his jobs, saying that he was taking me along on his next sales trip. We were going on a week-long car trip, he said, and I didn't even care where we were going. I was simply delighted to be going somewhere outside of Jericho, KS.

By the time we finally got to our destination, two days after we'd set out from Kansas, I was dusty and tired. Joe had driven as if on a mission to get to Florida, and I was wondering why I'd agreed to come. Our trip so far had been nothing but greasy diners and low-rent roadside motels. Joe didn't seem to mind, and why would he? He was used to this kind of life. All I wanted was to arrive wherever it was he was so all-fired up to get to. I'm afraid that I wasn't the best traveling companion, and I frequently let him know just how uncomfortable I was during the trip.

We didn't even stop at a hotel to freshen up before he drove me straight to what turned out to be the most magical place I'd ever seen: Weeki Wachee Springs. It didn't look like much when we first got there, but I had no idea what was in store for me. Joe led me to a pavilion and sat me down in a small theater that overlooked what seemed to be a large glass-fronted aquarium. I turned to give him a piece of my mind: we'd driven all this way just to see a fish show? My lands, we'd been driving along the Gulf of Mexico for almost the whole day, we could have seen all the fish we'd wanted without coming this far! But just as I started to speak, the music started, and he gestured that I should watch the tank.

It was as if I'd been sent staight back to my childish dreams in that Kansas swimming hole. The tank was filled with glorious mermaids! It was a mermaid show, something I hadn't even known existed. There were the most beautiful women dressed as mermaids, doing all kinds of acrobatics and amazing feats underwater. One of them even ate and drank and combed her hair, all without coming up for air.

I sat there, stunned but delighted, and wondering how on Earth had Joe known that this was what I'd needed, this brief and fanciful return to childhood? When the show was over, I turned to Joe, but I couldn't say a word. Joe simply looked back and said, "Happy Anniversary, honey."

Margie and Edna's fast food rant

Margie: Edna, I am sick and tired of these fast food ads and coupons choking up our mailbox. They're just junk which ends up causing us to waste space in the garbage can.

You know that in our day the food was slow cooked at home and only some women were fast. I remember Mama telling us about fast women and how they'd come to a bad end in life.

Edna: Margie, there are so many responses I could make to that comment, but I won't because I'm a classy lady.

You're right about fast food being a big problem today. Even with coupons, eating at those restaurants isn't cheap. It's much more economical to do some good old-fashioned home cooking. But I have to admit, Margie, I'm partial to those McDonald's french fries.

Margie: I'm glad you brought that up, Edna. Some of the girls and I went to McDonald's today and I ended up with a lettuce burger. You know what that is?

It used to be called a Big Mac but the meat on that thing looked like a piece of thin sausage. Tiny. They try to fill you up on the bread and lettuce. I almost pistol whipped that manager!

Edna: These big corporations should be ashamed of themselves, what they charge for just a tiny bit of food. It's just criminal.

But Margie...I thought you got banned from McDonald's after the last incident.

Margie: Edna, can't you ever stick to the subject at hand? Give me that junk. I'm going to address envelopes. From now on I'm mailing this trash right back to them!

Time for a little housekeeping...

Over the last couple weeks, we have been honored to be the lucky recipients of several awards. We apologize for how long it's taken us to write a thank-you post, but we're old ladies and we don't move as fast as we used to.

We want to sincerely thank the following bloggers for bestowing upon us some truly lovely awards:

Uber Amazing Blog! award from Moms...check nyo

The I heart your blog award from Cactus Jack Splash

The Brillante Weblog award from the Garden Gnome

The Guilty Pleasure Recognition Award from Guilty Pleasures

Now, we know that we're supposed to pick our own favorite bloggers to pass these awards along to. But asking us to do that is like asking a loving mother to pick which of her children is her favorite. So instead of doing that, we will simply say this: we are humbled, as always, when our readers say that they enjoy visiting and reading what these two old sisters have to say. Thank you all so much.

It has also come to our attention that we have been named honorary Captains in the All Arkie Army by everyone over at the All Arkie Army. Thank you all very much!

Margie gets the munchies

Margie's top five snack foods

1. Chocolate- anything chocolate. If Edna is around, though, you best keep chocolate locked up or it will disappear. Edna eats chocolate like a goat eats grass.

2. Peanuts- parched like Mama used to make in the oven. I can't chew so good these days but I parch the peanuts, shell them, put them in a plastic bag, then Cousin T comes with his hammer and mushes them for me. They're easy to eat then.

3. Popcorn- My favorite is the kind Edna and I pop over the fire. It's old-fashioned but tasty. We sometimes have to pop extra because it goes so well with Special Tea.

4. Crackers- any kind. I like pretty crackers like those Ritz ones. Sometimes I just take my teeth out and gum the suckers.

5. Prunes- After eating so many snacks it's usually time to stew and eat some prunes. All those snacks can really get you clogged. Besides, Edna hates them so I can eat all I want without hiding them.

Have I made anybody hungry?

Margie and Edna talk football

Margie: Edna, I'm sick and tired of us going to Bailey's Tavern every Saturday night and being the only non- football addicts there. We can learn a little bit about the game so we can converse intelligently with folks.

You come sit down and let's watch this game on TV. Mr. Hawkins has taught me a few things about it and we're not too old to learn more.

Edna: Margie, I'm not so sure that I want to converse with those hooligans down at Bailey's about football, they're always shouting and rough-housing. But I'll give it a try if you think it's a good idea.

Did Mr. Hawkins tell you why the ball isn't round? That has always stumped me.

Margie: Edna, Mr. Hawkins is a smart man. He said the ball is shaped like that because it will fly through the air like a missile. I must say, though, that I don't understand why that young man who throws the ball is called a quarterback.

Edna, how does he play with a bad back like that?

Edna: Margie, they probably don't literally mean a quarter of a back, but it beats me what that name really means. This whole game is a mystery to me, I tell you what. I don't understand why they keep knocking each other over like that, it's very rude.

But to tell you the truth, what I really want to know is why they call that one player a "tight end". They all look like tight ends in those tight pants, that's for sure.

Margie: Edna, I see your point. Why don't we forget learning about football and study these tight ends in more detail? You get the special tea and I'll make popcorn!

Edna: It's a deal, sister.


*photo courtesy NYPL Digital Gallery

Edna's lawn art

Edna: While Margie is away this afternoon at Ladies' Bible study, I thought I'd finish up a project I've been working on. This is our front yard, but I think it looks kind of plain and in need of sprucing up.

Maybe I'll start with a tasteful birdbath.

And you know, Margie always says that lawn gnomes give her the heebie-jeebies, but I bet she'll change her mind once she sees how cute this one is.

And you can't have a decent front lawn without a couple of flamingos.

Or maybe just a few more. Doesn't that brighten the place up?

Oh my, I think Margie's going to be so surprised when she gets home!

Margie and Edna: Boss's Day

Margie: Edna, did you know it's Boss's Day? I'm glad we don't have bosses anymore. I love being retired.

Your old boss at the Salt Mine sure deserves a prize though. Remember how you convinced him that part of your job was to look nice? The old fool paid for your beauty parlor trips and all your makeup and perfume.

Edna: Bless his heart, he always was a bit gullible. Remember when you got promoted to head librarian at the library, and you got to boss everyone else around? You had all those other librarians running scared.

Margie: You know me, Edna. I had to scare them because I'm just an old tender-hearted class act. I didn't want them taking advantage.

Who was your favorite boss, Edna?

Edna: "Tender-hearted class act"?? Surely you must be thinking of someone else, you wouldn't know tender-hearted if it sat up and introduced itself.

My favorite boss was the kind old man who ran the patisserie where I worked when I was a girl living in France. He made the best cakes, and he let me take home all the petit fours I wanted. Now THAT was a tender-hearted class act. Who was your favorite boss, Margie?

Margie: Edna, your nose just grew a foot for lying. We all know no girl of Daddy's lived in France. You did spend a summer in Paris, Texas working as a waitress.

My favorite boss was the kind man who owned the dime store where I worked. I liked him because he had a handsome son who would escort me home every day when I got off work. I could tell you stories, Edna.

Edna: Margie, I don't want to hear your lying stories and I don't think our readers do, either. You can just sit right there while I go get my passport out of my vanity table. Then I'll expect an apology from you.

Margie: Here comes the fake passport again. Oh well, by the time she gets back she'll have forgotten why she went to get it anyway.

Edna: Forget it sister, I don't have to stay and listen to this, I'm going to go down to Bailey's Tavern. You can go suck eggs.

Margie: Told you she'd forget.

National Grouch Day

According to Sesame Street Magazine, October 15th is National Grouch Day. So go hug your favorite grouch today!

And if you're the grouch, then you have our permission to punch anyone who tries to hug you.

*photo courtesy Sesame Workshop

Margie and Edna: Origins

Some of the more recent followers of Margie and Edna may not be aware of the ladies' humble beginnings, so today we'd like to shed a little light on their origins.

Margie and Edna's past began well before this blog did. They have their roots in a CBS television show, Jericho. In the spring of 2007, Jericho was canceled and fans got angry. What followed was a massive fan uprising. Ultimately, the nutty fan protest led CBS to change its mind and complete a shortened second season of the show. (Sadly, the show didn't survive its second season and was canceled again.) The "Save Jericho" campaign of 2007 took place largely online, with fans of the show making use of blogs and other resources such as Digg to spread the word about their show and its plight.

Margie and Edna debuted on the Remote Access television blog in August 2007, and made several repeat appearances there as well as on other blogs. (It should be noted that the characters of Margie and Edna never actually appear on the show itself. Rather, we created these two characters as a way to be able to comment on the show's action without the limitations of being in the show, which gave us a certain amount of freedom in what we could have the ladies discuss.) The two elderly sisters soon grew in popularity within the Jericho fandom, and in October 2007 a short video was created to illustrate their place in the community of Jericho.

We'd like to share that video with you today, and we hope you enjoy it. With the inception of this blog in March 2008, Margie and Edna were able to branch out from the Jericho universe and into a world of their own, much to our delight. We thank you all, both old fans and new, for continuing to provide an audience for these two crabby old ladies.

We Get Sentimental

Margie: Edna, I must be getting feeble-minded because I'm going to tell you something I've never told you before. You best be nice or I'll never tell you anything else ever.

It was 1940 and I was out with my beau. Your beau had taken you to a moving picture. You know Daddy made us come home early if we went out? Well, my beau and I lost track of time so I got home well past curfew. I knew my tushie was in big trouble so I needed to find a way to sneak into the house.

I was peeking in windows to see if I could get in when my eyes beheld the most amazing sight. I heard music and then I saw them. Edna, Mama and Daddy were dancing! Yes, I said Daddy. They never knew what time I got home that night and that's why you didn't get in trouble either.

Listen, Edna. Here's what they were playing.




Edna: Oh Margie, what a sweet memory of Mama and Daddy! Thank you for sharing it with me, I always knew that Daddy was a softy.

Remembering S & H Green Stamps

Margie: Edna, look what I found in the cupboard while I was rummaging around trying to find my box of prunes. Mama left these to me in her will.

Let's test your memory. Do you recollect where Mama got these lovely cups?

Edna: Are you telling me that Mama left you prunes in her will? How very odd, since I got furniture.

Of course I remember where those cups came from, I'm not a complete idiot. I remember her saving up green stamps for a good long while before she traded them in for those pretty things.

Margie: I loved those stamps. Remember how Mama gave each of us our own book to put the stamps in? Once we'd filled our book Mama would let us get whatever we wanted.

I got a beautiful mirror once but you looked at yourself in it and it cracked. What did you get?

Edna: I got a pretty little lamp, I had that for years until you sold it at our last yard sale. I remember that you could get quality merchandise with the stamps, too. It wasn't like that cheap stuff you buy in the stores today, that falls apart after you've only used it a few months.

Margie: Isn't that the truth? Companies used to take pride in how long their product would last. Nowadays, they want it to tear up as quickly as possible.

Here's a little Ideabook, Edna. You can look at it and enjoy the memories.

Edna: Why, thank you sister. I wish they still had the green stamps redemption program, I could use a new lamp.

Edna gets a phone call

Edna: Now Margie, I know you don't like to hear anything that has to do with Aunt Biddy, but I need to tell you about a phone call I just got.

Margie: That's fine, Edna. Which funeral home did they send her to and I'm not going.

Edna: Honestly, Margie, I am alarmed at how heard-hearted you are! She's not dead, you nitwit. Well, unless she died some time after I hung up the phone with her a few minutes ago. She wanted to talk to me about her two boys who just got put in the Kansas state pen near here.

Margie: Lawsy me, Edna. What did those boys do now? Why did she want to talk to you about it? Because you almost went to the Pen once?

Edna: Margie, I did not almost go to the Pen! Good grief, you're thinking of the plot from that late-night movie we watched last week. Aunt Biddy says that her boys are in the Pen for check fraud. Bless their dim-witted hearts, they tried to cash those fake checks using their real IDs, and the coppers snatched those boys right up. Now, here's the real bad news...you'd best sit down for this.

Margie: I'll sit down, Edna, but you just remember I have my pistol aimed to shoot you right between the eyes.

Edna: Well then, it's a good thing that I had Cousin T hide your bullets. Aunt Biddy says her boys are going to be in prison for a year, and she wants to move here to stay with us while they're in the pokey, so she can be closer to them. You know how she dotes on her boys.

Margie: Edna, let me make myself perfectly clear. Wait and let me put my teeth back in my mouth.

I'd rather adopt Johnny Cash Biddy and Elvis Aron Biddy as to have Aunt Biddy anywhere near me. If you'd like to rent a house and move out with her then feel free. I have extra bullets and I will shoot the both of you. If that fails then I'll burn this house down so she has nowhere to stay.

Edna: Now hold on a minute sister, it's just like you to jump to conclusions! Did I say I told her "yes"? What I told her is that if those boys were darn-fool enough to get themselves into that kind of trouble, they deserve to be away from their mama. Maybe it might teach them a lesson about making better choices. Besides, I spent more than enough time with that idiot woman and her brood down in Florida this past summer, what makes you think I'd want to live with her for a year? That whole family is crazy, and I get enough of "crazy" just living with you.

Margie: Edna, it looks like I taught you something after all. You're a good sister. Well, sometimes.

Edna: Why Margie, you're making me blush. I told Aunt Biddy that if she calls here again, you'll be answering the phone. I don't think we'll hear from her for a good long while.

The Biddy Boys.
Aren't they a couple of handsome devils?

*photo courtesy of Photobucket

Margie's Marvelous Movies

Margie: I've seen a lot of movies in my day and I love the old ones best. Give me a good love story or some manly men or a little something scary and I'm happy.

I want to share with you four of my all time favorite movies and you really should try to see them.


Waterloo Bridge (1940)




Who can resist Robert Taylor and don't I wish I looked like Vivien Leigh? This is a tearjerker you'll love.



Magic (1978)



Who knew what Anthony Hopkins would go to become? He is fabulous in this film.


The Enchanted Cottage (1945)




Look at Robert Young. Yummy. This is such a delightful love story.



Rich and Famous (1981)




This movie shows what Edna and I would be like together if we liked each other.

Remembering American Bandstand

Bandstand began as a local program on WFIL-TV (now WPVI), Channel 6 in Philadelphia on October 7, 1952. Then it was hosted by Bob Horn and was called Bob Horn's Bandstand. On July 9 of 1956 the show got a new host, a clean-cut 26 year old named Dick Clark. When ABC picked the show up, it was renamed American Bandstand, airing its first national show on August 5, 1957.

Edna, the Fashion Policewoman

Edna: I'd like to take a moment to speak to all you young (and not-so-young) ladies out there about something I've noticed. These days, it seems like every time I step out to do some shopping, I see women who clearly don't know how to dress in public. I'm not talking about the hussies in the low-cut tops and short skirts. No, I'm talking about something much more insidious and wide-spread: the women who wear pajamas to go shopping. Never in my life have I seen a generation of people so unwilling to make themselves look presentable before stepping out of the house! I can remember a time not-so-long-ago when a true lady never went out shopping without at least putting on a dress and white gloves.

While I'm not suggesting bringing back those kinds of standards of decency, I would at least ask you to take a look in the mirror before you leave the house and ask yourself: is this an outfit that I could sleep in? Did I sleep in this at any time in the recent past? Are my pants made out of flannel and/or do they have a drawstring waist?

If the answer to any of these questions is "yes," then don't wear it to the grocery store!

In case you need some visual aids (because I think some of you do), here are a couple of examples of what I mean:

I don't care how cute or coordinated the outfit seems,
these are PAJAMAS,
not going-out-in-public clothes.

This is something you could leave the house wearing!

Ladies, have some dignity! Have some pride in your appearance! Listen to me: it doesn't matter how you dress up pajamas with expensive purses or fancy earrings, or if you brush your hair and put on makeup before you go out. They are still pajamas and meant only for relaxing in the boudoir.

Margie's Manly Men

Margie: While Edna is gone to the beauty parlor (lost cause), I pulled out my picture books. I love the old movies of the 30's and 40's because of the manly men. They don't make them like that anymore.

I thought I'd share my favorites with you all.





The original Dimples Boy




Tom Mix could sure thrill a lady




How I loved Roy Rogers. Look at that sweet face




Gene Autry could sing me to sleep any time

The Special Tea Award

Over the course of our relatively short blogging career, we've had a number of people come visit us here at the Basement. Many people leave comments, and we thank you all, since we always love to hear what our readers have to say. But there are some individuals who are unfailingly kind, humorous, and enthusiastic when commenting on our blog. To honor them, we have come up with this:

We are giving this award to the following bloggers: Maitri, glor!e, Lidian, and Mr. The Hawg. They are talented bloggers in their own right, and are just really nice people. We think that it's always a good thing to recognize kindness as well as excellence, and we hope they appreciate this award.

Unlike most blogging awards, there are no rules with this one. It does not need to be passed along (unless the recipient wants to), nor is it necessary to link back to us or even post it on your blog. We just want you to lift a virtual cup of special tea, think fun thoughts, and enjoy your award.

Please know that this is not a one-time-only award. We'll be giving this award out periodically in the future, since there are other people we'd like to honor for their support and good humor. So keep watching, you might see your name on the next awards list!

Old Sears Catalog

Margie: Edna, come look what Cousin T bought us at the flea market. He found an old Sears catalog. This sure brings back a lot of memories. Remember all the uses Mama could find for a Sears catalog?

Edna: My lands, I sure do. Mama sure was resourceful, wasn't she? I remember how she used to wrap Christmas presents in the pages when times were tight.

Margie: She sure did and she'd use some pages to start the morning fire. Mama always wanted the house to be warm when we got out of bed.

It sure wasn't fun using those pages in the outhouse though. My behind was always... never mind.

Edna: You always give our readers too much information, Margie.

Margie: Lawsy me, Edna. Look here. Remember when we ordered these pretty slips? They don't make them like this anymore. Look at that price!

Edna: I know, and those slips lasted for years, didn't they? Longer than some of your marriages, anyway.

Margie: Dear readers, I'm not talking to this moron. I want to say to you all that I have fond memories of the Sears catalog and the main reason is because I cut the models out and made paperdolls. I hope you all have happy memories like this.

Edna: I bet they do. You know Margie, I'm an old woman, you need to get to the point faster next time.