Gourds and Helmets
As you will soon discover, I come to the keyboard tonight with nothing to write about … but it’s happened before, especially on Top Sites Tuesday, the BlogDumps meme that asks us to post our Two Thoughts on Tuesday. I’ve been doing TST for so long … and commenting back and forth with Wolf and Trina, BlogDumps’ founders, that I feel like I know them. One of the pleasures of blogging is meeting people whose lives are totally different than your own. I can tell you this. I don’t live on a farm. Build my own power generating windmills. Throw huge Halloween costume parties at my farm. Play with tractors and in between do construction and repairs. I don’t suddenly take off on a six week sailboat trip and wander up the coast, looking for a new engine. Wolf and Trina do, which makes it fun to follow them. Over the last few TSTs, they’ve been posting about the field of pumpkins they’ve planted, so when an invitation arrived on
Facebook to Like Paul’s Pumpkin Patch (Wolf is a Paul. Or is it the other way around?), I clicked right over to see it. It’s here. There’s pumpkin philosophy … I would rather sit on a pumpkin, and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion – Henry David Thoreau … and updates on the crop’s progress. They even posted about another crop: The Gourds are coming up too! we should have a few ton by the end of the season 
which gave me my first opportunity to comment … I said: So, I think it’s safe to say that you won’t be Out of Your Gourds. Hilarious, right?
That got me thinking … Thought Number One … isn’t it crazy how many euphemisms we have for crazy? Doesn’t everyone have someone that’s Nutty as a Fruitcake? How about Not Playing with a Full Deck or Has a Few Screws Lose? Muri will sometimes say, He has a few wires crossed in there somewhere and we all know someone who’s Lost his Marbles or who’s Not Hitting on All Cylinders. The blog, List of the Day, has a good list of crazy euphemisms, many of which I’ve never heard. I really like Two Fries Short of a Happy Meal and A Taco Short of a Combination Plate. Of course, it figures I would like euphemisms with food.
When I was in college, we used to say, Are You Out of Your Helmet? I Googled the phrase to see if it was used by anyone outside of the University of Connecticut circa 1966. It wasn’t. I’d probably have forgotten that little gem long ago except for the number of adults I see riding bikes with their kids,
sans helmets, in the park. Of course the kids have helmets … that’s required by California law. Now, tell me … in a bike accident, who has the highest possibility of injury, a kid who’s two feet from the ground on a mini-bike or an adult, wobbling along trying to stay near the kids? And if someone gets hurt, who is the most likely to be able to take care of a hurt someone, the adult or the kid? Sometimes, I want to walk up to the parents and scream, Are you out of your helmets? But they’d have no idea what I was talking about and call the police. But really, aren’t they? So, Thought Number Two is an unsolicited public service announcement: Don’t be out of your helmets when you ride your bikes !!! See what happens when you start off with nothing to write about? Now don’t you dare leave without pushing my button … gently … to make me Number One on Top Sites Tuesday #160.
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Tags: bicycling, blogging, curmudgeonly rants, euphemisms for crazy, helping others, memes, postaday, Top Sites Tuesday
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July 17, 2012 at 2:48 pm
Wolf and Trina are pretty interesting people. I follow all their varied talents as well. They not only lead an interesting life but seemingly work all the time. What a work ethic!!
There are a LOT of words to describe crazy and stupid but then there are a whole lot of people that provide opportunities to use those words.
July 27, 2012 at 5:35 pm
Amen.
July 17, 2012 at 8:06 pm
Hi Bud,
I think you are right, I’m out of my gourd! I looked across the farm today and all I see are Pumpkin plants everywhere! Thanks for the kind words
I too like euphemisms, I must be “three bricks shy of a full load” with this latest project (not the canoe)!
Clicks!
Wolf
July 17, 2012 at 8:11 pm
LOL I really didn’t expect to read about myself when I came to visit this week! I find that reading about other people is fascinating, I enjoy reading about your evenings out at the theatre (no theatre near the farm)
The pumpkin philosophy has been fun too, who knew so many people say things about pumpkins LOL
Have a great week!
–Trina
July 27, 2012 at 5:34 pm
I really do enjoy following you both around, so to speak. Ans I’m enjoying the Facebook page, too.
July 18, 2012 at 6:08 am
I asked the Geezer if the quote was familiar. “Gourd” yes, “Helmet” no, he said. He was familiar with local jargon about brain power – at his college the saying was “He (she) needs a sawdust replacement.”
Sandy
July 27, 2012 at 5:33 pm
Yes, Sandy, even my wife wasn’t familiar with “helmet.” Perhaps I was hallucinating. Do dogs hallucinate?
July 28, 2012 at 6:03 am
Absolutely – We dream humans will grow tails and develop good judgement.