Blue Moon

This just in from the Ya Gotta Watch Those Sweet Old Ladies Department: You expect an overkill of cute decorations and sweet sentiments among senior citizens this time of year, and my colleague thought that's what she was seeing on a hand-delivered Christmas card ... until she looked a little closer. There, next to the lamppost under which a group of cute-faced young carolers was singing, was a penciled-in pile of dog poop and footprints tracking it across the snow in front of the cheruby singers. ... I won't say who drew this (Enid Swartz) but it sure cheered up my holiday to see it.

Some other curmudgeons living east of Nashville had the downtown Eureka Springs Webcam on to watch their grandson in the Running of the Santas last Saturday. ... Fifteen minutes before the race -- picture this -- no one on the street ... a man walks into the street between the Basin Park Hotel and the Quilt Shop and moons the camera. ... Do you think these gentle folks were upset? No, they emailed their daughter in Eureka Springs and said they wished either Eureka would fix the camera so one can see better, or the mooning individual would in future paint his arse blue so they could tell if it was a full moon. ...

If they want it to be official, I'm afraid they'll all have to wait until 2012 when the next blue moon will be on August 31. (Secret mooner, if you're reading this we're expecting a show.)

Pontificating on that very subject with knowledge gained from the Library of Useless Information ... someone who has an annoying affinity for Olde English, tells me the title blue moon comes from the word belewe - or betrayer - moon because each season normally has three full moons and when a season has four moons, the third one betrays the rightful moon by arriving early...blah, blah, blah ... something like that. I don't care, and I don't think those folks east of Nashville really care. ...They just want the guy to paint his arse.

Anyway, back to reality show politics ... what if Donald Trump held a Republican candidate debate and nobody came? ... just wondering.

Wonder with me by emailing oliverdeplace@hotmail.com.