Passover and a Chocolateria

Dear Sillies,

A very blessed Passover to all who celebrate. It's a time to experience gratitude for our countless freedoms, while we renew our mission - to bring peace to the world. 

I'll honor Passover at a seder (service and meal) this upcoming weekend.

As for this past weekend, I ventured on a solo trip to an old mining town, Grass Valley. It's quaint and beautiful and friendly. A refreshing getaway. 

Okay. I'd "make local habit" at this Chocolateria. Sorry I don't have pictures of my treat, it disappeared too quickly.

Tulips abound. I captured these on someone's front yard. 

Peace to you and the world, my friends.

Keep yourself privy to love, light and chocolate at all times.

When I Met Ray Bolger, the Wonderful Scarecrow of All Time

Dear Sillies, 

Growing up in Los Angeles meant an occasional up-close-and-personal encounter with a celebrity. Among the most famous of them, one of the most talented humans to ever grace planet earth, Ray Bolger, best known for his role as the Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz. 

Taking you back to Universal Studios Amusement Park near Hollywood circa 1980, my family, along with our neighbors (close friends), sat in an outdoor theatre to await a stunt show. Gossipy whispers worked their way through the audience. Folks turned their heads to gawk at a certain couple. Dad, quite sharp regarding popular culture (and all else), pointed out Ray Bolger who sat with his wife a few rows back from us. 

People were polite then. Me, not so much. With camera in hand, I got up nice and close to snap the second photo below of Ray Bolger's joyous profile. So glad I did! 

Sadly, Ray would pass from bladder cancer approximately seven years later. But what a life. What a legacy. When asked whether he received residuals from the show, Ray said "no" but he was thrilled to settle for "immortality" instead. 

The first photo was after the show, when we asked if we could take a picture. Ray was incredibly accommodating. I remember feeling touched by his generosity. 

Coincidentally, one of my (very smart) clients mentioned today that The Wizard of Oz came out in 1939. It's the 85th Anniversary year. I'd already planned to post this today. 

WOOHOO, I was touched by the Scarecrow. 

How lucky I am! (Also, I had a brain enough to hold onto these photos for decades. Yay!)

Springtime Erotica: Sacrilegious Sacrament

Dear Sillies,

Spring hath sprung! Yippee!

In these days of media fraud via AI trickery, please don't question my sincerity. I did all of the cutting and pasting myself. And I did it for you. Sincerely. 

Happy Spring, sweet Sillies.

P.S. You can read this more clearly if you click on the poem. Not sure why it has a cloud factor. Maybe because the artist's brain has said factor.

Bonus points to anyone who can name the man whose face is in the top right corner.

Saint PatErotica, Irish Stew

Dear Sillies,
May we all get lucky in one or many different ways this weekend and week and forever after. 
I love you.
Happy Saint Patty's!

What a Feeling, 1 Million Views Thanks to You!

Hold On For One More Day! March is Here

My Dearest Sillies,
  I hope that you're as glad as I am that Spring shall soon spring forth. 
  As I tiptoe quickly to ONE MILLION views - gasp!- another huge milestone is here. March 5 marks 15 years since I birthed Life by Chocolate. What a fantastical ride it's been!
  In those early days, I used to create posts by weaving personal narrative with song lyrics. We're giving this strategy another go now. 
  The song, Hold On by Wilson Phillips, has lifted my spirits at dark moments over these past few weeks. May it offer you the same. 
  Please enjoy and hold on, with love for yourself and chocolate on the side.

*HOLD ON*

I know this pain

Confusion, rage, despair. Another damn breakup.

Why do you lock yourself up in these chains? 

Our laughter and playfulness kept me in bliss. 

No one can change your life except for you

We'd grow old and crotchety together. 

Don't ever let anyone step all over you

Somehow my love's sudden rudeness didn't cause pause.

Is it really fair to feel this way inside?

He'd checked out. He gave up on me, on us. 

Someday, somebody's gonna make you wanna

Me? Not at all. Six months later now, I still feel love for him.

Turn around and say "goodbye"

I had no say.

Until then, baby, are you gonna let them

"You're a coward," I said, for making me do the breaking-up that he wanted for reasons that he refused to express.

Hold you down and make you cry?

At sunrise the next morning, I returned his spare house key and clumpy flattened air mattress. Done. 

Don't you know?

But weeks later, I came upon his Scrabble game board. Damn. One more thing to return.

Don't you know things can change?

We played over 100 Scrabble games in those nearly 2.5 years together. 

Things'll go your way

I won nearly every round. Still, I celebrated his winnings more than mine. "Yippee! My baby won!" I jumped and shouted, engaging in silly improvisational dance maneuvers after drowning him in hugs and kisses. 

Can you hold on for one more day?

The message "You win" struck when I carried his game to my car.

Hold on for one more day

I left it on his front porch, then drove to work.  Done now. It's over.

You could sustain...

I'll be okay. 

Things'll go your way

Pain will come and go, while it generally softens over time.

If you hold on for one more day

I miss him sometimes, like now.

If you hold on

Worlds upon worlds have opened to confer gold glittery magic. Were I still in his/our world, I'd not have entered any of the others. 

Can you hold on?

I'm sure of it. I win. 

Hold on, baby.

I'm a winner.

Mike's a Winner! Valentine's Erotica

Dear Sillies,

Congratulations to Mike for his winning haiku at Life by Chocolate's Annual VDay Hate Fest! WOOHOO! See last post for his clever entry.  I'll be in touch with you, horny old goat* (credit to DebraSheWhoSeeks for this term). You'll soon receive a sweet, sweet package in the mail. 

Joanne's a winner too! She always is. Plus she followed the rules for haiku. 

It wasn't an easy vote. For some reason, though, it seemed my male bloggies were fast to give a nod to Mike's mathematical entry. Go figure. 

Now, my sweets, let's focus on the love that truly sustains us...love for each other, love that leaps out from our chosen or biological families, love for our wonderful selves, love for kindness and beauty and nature and humor and chocolate that's fair trade not Hershey's waxy yucky stuff that enslaves children to make a fast billion.

Back on point, you are very much loved.

Valentine's Day Hate Contest Ballot

Hi, My Dear Sillies,

VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!

Not unlike our national ballot's looking, the choices are limited. What happened, my friends? You got shy. I know that many of you, including HRH, had won in the past. That should not be a reason for opting out, though. I know, haikus aren't easy. Thought we'd try something different. (Note that one of the following does follow the rules for a "proper" haiku. Yet we know I'm not always proper.) 

You have two good choices. I might need help understanding Mike's use of numbers. Math isn't my specialty. Wink.

Please VOTE, VOTE, VOTE but only once. Celebrate all the love that abounds. ALL of it, not that sticky sweet sappy money-making Hallmark fantasy stuff. The real love that keeps us afloat and starts inside. Woohoo!

On that note, I love you.

Vote please. 

Mike

Roses are nice,

Violets are fine,

I’ll be the six,

If you be the nine. Haiku!

 

Joanne

Haiku :

Slurped some bad oysters

Conjured past V dates with you

Washed down with champagne

Special thanks for my friends, Mike and Joanne, for entering!

Eat good chocolate any and/or every day. Just don't purchase the cheap stuff, not ever, especially not on Valentine's Day.

Valentine's Erotica, VDay Hate Contest

Dear Silliest of the Sweet Sillies,

Happy February! We like to celebrate the month with a contest. You're challenged to create an offering that bashes the commercialized, yucky, sticky, sappy, misguided fantasy "romantic love is all you need" and blah, blah, yada yada Valentine's lovers' nausea. 

This year, your challenge is to submit a Haiku: Three lines that consist of 5 syllables in line one, 7 syllables in line two, and 5 syllables in line three. You'll vote on the winner, and that lucky person shall receive a very sweet package in the mail. 

Simply leave your haiku in the comments section. Please, only one entry per person, and admissions will be accepted through Sunday 2/11 at midnight, PST. 

Also, I'm so, so close to becoming a millionaire! Less than 10,000 page views to go. Woohoo!  It's unbelievable and will merit hearty celebrations.  

I look forward to seeing your entries. 

Another note: I loved Wonka and may even see it again. Timothee Chalamet brought to the screen a remarkably charming portrayal of young Wonka. Highly recommend. 

Love you, my Sweet Sillies. 

Ode to the Big D

Dear Sillies,
I'll let this Ode speak for itself.
Honestly, though, please let me know if you miss the big D too. I need to not feel so alone in this.
Love you.

Happy New Year, 2024! Horsing Around

Dear Silly Lovies,

HAPPY NEW YEAR! May your joys far outweigh your struggles this year. And may you not forget the value of laughter, the sublime feeling of biting into a divine piece of chewy chocolate, or the thrill of mixing in some naughty.

I recently returned from a wonderful trip to Los Angeles, wherein loving family resides. On my way home, I had to try Marianne's garlic chocolate ice cream in Gilroy, the garlic capital of the world. 

Both flavors are strong, yet they work together harmoniously. Marianne did this right. It was yummy and gone very quickly.

Also on the way home, I stopped to eat Chinese food. The placemat informed me that the year I was born, 1966, is the year of the Horse. 

Let's see, this presumably makes me: 

Popular and attractive to the opposite sex. - Yes, the ones who haven't seen my morning face. 

Often ostentatious - Yes, but not purposefully.

and impatient - Yes, purposefully.

I need people - We all do, and I need most people to leave me alone. 

I'm to Marry a Tiger or a Dog early - I'm not a morning person. See above regarding opposite sex.

but never a Rat. - I married a Snake, purposely, but he was also an ostentatious Rat and an impatient Boar. I needed him to leave me alone. Divorce ensued.

Any other Horses out there?

More love and all kinds of goodness to you for this New Year!