Friday Funnies

Have a terrific and relaxing weekend.

True Life Tuesday: Jeanne Baret

Jeanne Baret was born on July 27, 1740 in the village of La Comelle in Burgundy France. Her parents were Jean Baret, a day laborer, and Jeanne Pochard. Her mother died in November 1741 and her father in December 1755. Little is know about her early life. Sometime between 1760 and 1764 she became a housekeeper in the home of Philbert Commerson, a doctor and passionate botanist, in Toulon-Sur-Cerroux. In 1764 she became pregnant and it is believed that Commerson was the father although she refused to name who the father was publicly which was a requirement for unwed mothers at the time. She and Commerson moved to Paris soon after her pregnancy declaration. Her child was born in December 1764 and was given u in January 1765. 

While living in Paris Commerson instructed Jeanne in the field of botany. In December 1766 Baret and Commerson joined the Bougainville expedition. Since having a woman onboard would not have been allowed she disguised herself as a man and Commerson's aide. Commerson suffered from seasickness and an ulcer in his leg so Baret spent most of her time nursing him. She was discovered in April 1768 when the expedition reached Tahiti. When they landed the locals called out that she was a woman and she ended up having to return to the ship. Once the expedition made it to Mauritius (then the Isle de France) she and Commerson Commerson stayed behind since Commerson;s old friend Pierre Poivre was governor. While on the island Jeanne still worked for Commerson and went on plant collections in Madagascar. In 1770 she was granted property in the capital of Port Louie. Commerson died on the island in February 1773. On May 17, 1774 she married Jean Dubernat, a non-commissioned officer in the French army. She returned to France sometime in 1775. After applying to the Attorney General she received the money left to her in Commerson's will in April 1776. She and her husband bought property in Dubernat's native village of Saint-Aulaye, Dordogne where they lived with their nieces and nephews. In 1785 she was granted a pension of 200 livres per year by the Ministry of Marine. Jeanne Baret died on August 5. 1807.

In 2018 the International Astronomical Union naed a mountain range on Pluto after her. She was also 1 of 10 inspiring French women celebrated with a golden statue rising out of the Seine during the 2024 Olympic opening ceremony. Finally, in 2026 it was proposed the have her name added to the Eiffel Tower along with 72 other historical women in STEM.

Monday Musings

As this first week of August begins these are the things currently on my mind

1) I can't believe it is August. I feel like I am going to blink and we will celebrating Christmas and ringing in 2027.

2) I am getting a bit nervous about my car. I hope I have it back before school starts in 3 weeks.

3) I am feeling a bit bummed that we are not able to take a vacation again this year. I also feel bad that since I don't have a car we haven't even been able to do anything nearby either.

Here are the pictures for the week.

Preston earned the MVP medal last week at flag football.

Friday Funnies

I hope you all have a great 1st weekend of August.

Three on Thursday

As this last week of July comes to an end these are the things I am currently thankful for.

1) That I was able to take a vacation day today.

2) That I can send Clark to run errands now.

3) That Preston has decided that he now wants to do "homework".

Monday Musings

As this last week of July begins these are the things currently on my mind.

1) The boys start school 4 weeks from today and we have done pretty much nothing for it. 

2) The mechanic told hubby that there is 2 possibilities as to what is wrong with my car. One would be a few hundred bucks and the other would be around $1500. I am sure it is going to be the later one.

3) I have been dealing with some neuropathy in my feet. I think I may need to breakdown and buy some old lady compression socks already.

Friday Funnies

Have a wonderful weekend!

Three on Thursday

 As this week comes to an end these are the things I am currently thankful for.

1) That Clark has his license now so I can send him out to do errands like picking up dinner for us.

2) For this lull at work before things ramp up at the end of August/beginning of September.

3) For the bruises on my leg healing from where I fell against the couch 2 weeks ago. 

Monday Musings

As another weeks begins these are the things currently on my mind.

1) I am a bit bummed that the World Cup is over and we still have several weeks before football season begins.

2) I can feel a bit of the blues creeping their way in again. I am trying my best to fight it off. 

3) I really cannot believe how fast the summer is going by. There is only a little over a month before the boys go back to school.

Friday Funnies

Have a wonderful weekend all.

Books Read: 2nd Quarter 2026

For the 2nd quarter of 2026 I finished 5 books.

1) A Few Drops of Bitters: A Savannah Reid Mystery by G.A. McKevett: another installment of one of my favorite cozy mystery series. These books are not great literature but they are fun and easy to read.

2) Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted by Kristi Nelson: this book was a nice blend of a memoir and practical advice. It did get a bit repetitive at times though.

3) Anne Perry and the Murder of the Century by Peter Graham: an interesting look into the case that inspired the movie Heavenly Creatures. The author is able to breakdown the legal and psychological parts of the trial very well.

4) The Child by Fiona Barton: the second book in the Kate Waters trilogy. I enjoyed the twist at the end. I knew that things were not quite as they seemed but I did not guess the reveal.

5) Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck, PhD: the author gave good practical tips on how to move from a fixed to growth mindset. It really made me think about how I talk not only to myself but to the boys and what to change to make all of us have a more growth mindset.
 

Monday Musings

As another week begins these are the things currently on my mind.

1) The crazy hot temps will be back this week. I always feel so bad for my hubby having to work in that super hot factory.

2) I am wondering if Preston's flag football game will be cancelled on Wednesday because of the heat.

3) I am wondering why it always seems that I end up taking 2 steps back whenever I feel like I am getting ahead.

Here are the pictures for the week.

The hypocrisy is real with these people.

A new flag football season begins.

Friday Funnies

Have a great weekend all!

Three on Thursday

As this first full week of July comes to an end these are the things I am thankful for.

1) That adding Clark to our car insurance is only going to increase our rate $50 a month.

2) That Preston was able to be on the same flag football team as his friend from school and that he has the coach who seems to be the best at teaching the game to the kids (although he does not play around at all).

3) That I was able to schedule Clark's wisdom teeth extraction within a pretty decent amount of time.

Monday Musings

As this first full week of July begins these are the things currently on my mind.

1) We had a very nice 4th of July weekend and I really did not want to log back into work today.

2) Now it is my car's turn to be a problem. Hubby thinks he figured out what the issue is and it will hopefully be a fairly easy and cheap fix.

3) Preston decided to play flag football again this summer. He was supposed to start last week but it was cancelled due to the heat advisory we were under. He was bummed but I was not sad about not sitting in the 100+ degree heat for 90 minutes.

Friday Funnies

I hope that everyone has a terrific weekend. Have safe holiday weekend if you are in the US.\

Three on Thursday

As this week comes to an end these are the things I am currently thankful for.

1) That Clark passed his driving test today and is now an officially licensed driver.  

2) That we should be getting a break from the extremely hot temps soon.

3) For another short work week since tomorrow is a holiday.

True Life Tuesday: Natascha Kampush

Natascha Maria Kampush was born on February 17, 1988 in Vienna Austria. Her parents are Brigitta Simy and Ludwig Koch who separated when she was very young. On March 2, 1998 she left her home for school but she never arrived. A 12 year old witness stated that she saw Natascha being dragged into a white minibus by 2 men. Police examined 776 minivans including the one driven by her kidnapper. He said that he was home at the tine and was using the minibus to remove rubble from construction on his home. The police believed his story and let him go. Rumors of child pornography and organ theft arose causing police to to look at links to crimes of French serial killer Michael Fourniret. Accusations were also made against her family. 

Natascha had been kidnapped by Wolfgang Priklopil who lived about 30 minutes from Vienna. She was held captive for 8 years in a small underground cellar that was soundproof with no windows. As time went on she spent more of her time upstairs but would have to go back to the room at night and while Prilkopil was at work. Once she turned 18 she was allowed to leave the house with her captor but he threatened to kill her if she tried to escape. She was allowed to have books, radio and TV. She also spent time cooking and doing housework. He told her that the doors and windows were booby trapped to explode. 

Natascha was able to escape on August 23, 2006. She was outside with Prilkopil vacuuming his van when he went inside to answer the phone. She left the vacuum running and ran while he was distracted. She ran to the home of a 71 year old neighbor and told her who she was. She was identified by a scar, her passport which was found in the room and DNA. Prilkopil ran in his BMW but the car was eventually found in a Vienna car park. He committed suicide by jumping in front of a train. Natascha wrote a memoir, 3096 Days, released in September 2010. The book was adapted into a movie in 2013

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Monday Musings

As this holiday week begins these are the things currently on my mind.

1) Well I am in my 50s now and I am not quite sure how I feel about it.

2) I feel so bad for my hubby having to work in the hot ass factory during this ridiculous heat wave.

3) I am not looing forward to sitting out in the heat during Preston's flag football game on Wednesday night.

Here are the pictures for the week.

Friday Funnies

I hope that everyone has a great weekend.