13 things that scare me

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During this spooky season, it's not goblins and ghosts that give me goosebumps, but these...

13 things that scare me:

• Holiday potlucks with people I don't know well enough to have been to their house to see how they prepare food

• Holiday potlucks with some of the people I do know well enough to have been to their house to see how they prepare food

• The sound of rocks being stacked, reminding me of Crowhaven Farm

• One of my grandkids...or kids...or Jim...or myself falling down the millions of stairs in my house

• The state of our society as we struggle to adjust to and compensate for the thousands (millions?) of jobs lost that will never return

• Grown men in Speedos

• Having a flat tire in a dark, relatively seedy part of Denver after a PR event. (Which, believe it or not, happened last night. Luckily Brianna drove, Brianna changed the tire...while I used my iPhone as a flashlight for her.)

• My boiler

• Sleeping with one hand over the edge of the bed

• Jim's driving (It's not him, it's me...most of the time)

• No life insurance

• Having an angry—or amorous—buck charge me and the dogs while on our morning walk

• The possibility I may never have a book traditionally published

Photo: stock.xchng

Today's question:

What scares you?

The other half of my story

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The infrequent visitor to Grandma's Briefs might get the impression I have only one grandson because a large number of my posts are about Bubby, my first grandson. That impression would be incorrect, though, and only half my grandma story. I do indeed have two grandsons.

I write about my first grandson far more than I write about my second grandson because my second, Baby Mac, doesn't do a whole lot yet except look cute. But he is pretty darn good at that one thing he does:

Okay, I suppose I should stop being a big, fat, lying grandma and tell the truth here. Baby Mac really does do more than just that one thing he does so well. He also keeps Megan awake most of the night. He poops up a storm. He loves and adores his big brother. And he continues to be a world-class storyteller at the age of four months:

That little storyteller is the other half of my grandma story—which makes for one pretty awesome whole.

Today's question:

Who is one of your favorite storytellers—be it a friend, family member, writer, speaker, etc?

Rock Dog

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Several years ago, my sister gave Jim and me a singing stuffed dog for Christmas. It was a "Sports Fan" dog, which was fitting because at the time, Jim and I were spending many a weekend driving seven hours—each way—to cheer on Andrea as she played "keeper" for her college soccer team.

The dog was a funky gag gift that brought smiles, but it didn't get much play. Until Bubby came along.

Despite my removal of the flag that could stab one's eye out, Bubby loves the singing canine. He named it Rock Dog because this is what it does:

Every time Bubby visits Gramma's, he plays with Rock Dog. Over and over and over and over.

I've actually hidden Rock Dog a time or two, when the rockin' gets to be gratin' on Gramma's nerves. I always pull him back out again, though, as Bubby so enjoys it.

One day during Bubby's recent visit—as he played Rock Dog for the 60 billionth time that morning—PawDad decided to play for Bubby the real song that was his beloved Rock Dog's claim to fame. PawDad pulled out our Queen collection and rocked Bubby and the rest of us with the better, longer, louder version of We Will Rock You.

After several repetitions—the last few featuring PawDad on air guitar and Bubby on air drums—PawDad played another Queen song of his choosing. Then Megan made a request for Somebody to Love. Next, I requested Bicycle Race. Then, of course, we moved on to Fat Bottom Girls followed by Bohemian Rhapsody.

Bubby patiently waited for his turn to make a request. When he saw an opening, he boldly went for it. Standing in front of his music-playing PawDad, Bubby earnestly called out: "Do you have Itsy Bitsy Spider?"

Which, of course, brought the house down. In giggles. And which, of course, brought Bubby down. Not because of the giggles but because PawDad didn't have his requested song.

Slightly disappointed in PawDad's sorry music collection, Bubby left the boring old folk to rock the stereo without him and took Rock Dog by the hand. He plopped down on the living room floor, pressed "Start" on the plaything's paw, and returned to clapping and stomping along with his beloved Rock Dog. Over and over and over.

Today's question:

What song(s) do you remember playing over and over and over?

Photo replay: Snow delight

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The week Bubby visited, the weather was the best autumn offers: clear skies, resplendent sunshine, warm days and crisp nights.

The morning Megan and the boys were leaving for home, Bubby threw open my bedroom door first thing, exulting, "Gramma, it SNOWED!" 

Other than a few freak flurries in the desert, it was Bubby's first experience with real snow, accumulating snow. Such a delight!

Today's question:

When do you expect to see your first snow of the season? Or have you already?