Lisa Colón DeLay

I will resume blog posts at the end of next week. Until then, remember…

There’s just 1 week left in the Birthday giveaway.

Have a great day, and count your blessings, one-by-one!

selection of hello somebody watches

 

Liger’s aren’t just mystical creatures bread for their skills in magic like Napoleon Dynamite says.

They are actually more prone to cancer and other illnesses. They are a genuine hybrid (cross-breed) big cat spices of a Tiger mother + Lion father.

Once thought to be infertile, they are now bread in some zoos worldwide. (They don’t occur naturally in the wild. The romance just isn’t there.) A Tigon works the other way around: Lion mother and Tiger father.

This website is a fascinating resource with details, plus a reference chart that explains the the characteristics of various hybrid big cats.

A LIGER was born in South Carolina in November 2010, Click here to see a photo and read more about the one at the the Myrtle Beach Wildlife Reserve.

Thanks for visiting this site! If you like ligers, you’ll probably cool. You might enjoy other things at my site. I hope you’ll poke around, and see for yourself.

Liger brothers, and a zookeeper

Faked photo. (The Liger is pretty much my favorite animal.)

This is the final week of FEB FREEBIES!

Some prizes don’t have enough entries to giveaway just yet. Click the category at the bottom called Free Stuff,
for a likely chance to win something.

Now and then, however, I won’t be able to stop myself, and I’ll post giveaways in March, and in the months to come. I have some books coming my way, that you’ll love to try for. Don’t miss out a bit. Click to Sign up (button on the right) to the blog and to get each new post popped right into your inbox-proof-magical. You don’t even have to visit the site to read what’s up. No hassles, and never be out of the loop again! (Wild hooting and clapping heard from imaginary studio audience.)

 This prize is great for the kitchen. It includes a *sweet* flexible cutting board. (I LOVE mine!) A dandy fridge freshener from the Arm & Hammer Baking Soda people. Ahhh-Fresh! A spiffy, metal kitchen caddy from IKEA, good for holding spices, utensils, snacks, or other kitchen-ish things, (comes with mounting hardware.) A Fun Saver disposable camera to record the fun, or give to some little kid who will suddenly think you’re “freakin’ awesome.” Random pixie stix (Yeah, I don’t have a good reason for that. They are the cocaine of sweets.) Also, you’ll see there, a mini spotlight, great for task work. Together, it has a retail worth of $17-20.

Yes! All this can be YOURS! To enter, scroll down, just a bit more for details.

Kitchen gadget combo prize

Hoodie Hoo is a new, made up holiday that encapsulates most people’s desire for winter to end and spring to come! (Click the Hoodie Hoo link if you want to find out a little more.) It arrives February 20 in the Northern Hemisphere, 30 days before the first day of spring. Is it Hoo Doo? Well, only if you think it works. It’s probably just a great way to blow off pent-up frustration at frigid temperatures, slush, icy roads, and brown snow banks. It can make you feel better emotionally.

My birthday comes amid the Hoodiest low point of February, and I’ve always felt its sting. This time of year can be like a punch in the gut. I’ll try to counter act that with a hopeful goodie/prize. It retails at ElizabethArden.com for $20, and smells quite nice–floral with a little spiciness: Sunflowers. Fragrance-phobic? Here are a few reviews of the fragrance by some people who tried it.

It’s a nice way to brighten your Hoodie days in hopes of spring–And also makes a nice Hoodie Hoo season gift for a friend, mom, girlfriend, grandma, aunt, or wife… or adventurous male who enjoys floral spring scents.

To win this prize, name the strangest fragrance you’ve ever worn, (even if it’s a kind of bar soap, or hotel soap), in the ‘leave a comment’ area. A random entry will be selected.

What’s mine?

Dial Soap for Men (After 1.5 uses, I just couldn’t keep up with it. I’m just not man enough)

Sunflowers fragrance, Eau De Toilette, by Elizabeth Arden

Prize: Fantastic Book and Yummy chocolate

My favorite book for learning how to understand God’s Word “How to Read the Bible for all it’s Worth”. This book changed how I read the Bible and understood it, as well as gave me a better appreciation for it, and the God of it.

Here’s an edited review of the book, by Terry Akers:

How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth guides readers toward a better handling of Scripture by teaching them how to avoid misinterpretations through the proper use of context. Throughout the book, the importance of reading a passage holistically, according to the overall content of Scripture, is emphasized.  Bad exegesis and quirky doctrines often result when a particular biblical statement or passage is taken out of cultural, historical or theological context and emphasized apart from the whole of revelation.

The book’s introduction explains: “The aim of good interpretation is not uniqueness; one is not trying to discover what no one else has ever seen before. Interpretation that aims at, or thrives on, uniqueness can usually be attributed to pride (an attempt to ‘out clever’ the rest of the world), a false understanding of spirituality (wherein the Bible is full of deeply buried truths waiting to be mined by the spiritually sensitive person with special insight), or vested interests (the need to support a theological bias, especially dealing with texts that seem to go against that bias).”

 How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth demonstrates how the Bible must be read theologically—through the lens of the Incarnation of Jesus Christ—rather than in overly literalistic or idealistic ways. By remaining safely within the “middle swath of orthodoxy” and learning to listen in humility to God’s revelation, Bible reading is shown to be not merely informative, but transformative.

Reprinted with permission granted. Copyright © 2005 Terry Akers (read all of it here)

To win, leave a comment telling which book of the bible you enjoy the most, and why. One entry will be chosen.

One of the most helpful writers for me in understanding God’s heart, and healing from wounds inflicted by other Christians, has been Philip Yancey.

I’m offering a wonderful book by him about seeing God through the life and ministry of Jesus called, The Jesus I Never Knew. This is a great giveaway!

What an eye-opening book this was for me, and a great blessing. To win a (new) copy, and the other goodies shown, guess the number of pretzels in the ziplock shown in the photo below. The first one to guess correctly wins, or the one to come the closest first.

Kit 'o Fun prize

This picture looks simple enough, but this giveaway prize is not THAT ordinary. It’s really a do-it-all kit for a time to remember.

First, the boxes of candy are King sized. That means it has to be better.

Now, some of you (possibly with a y chromosome) out there will see these articles shown, and have no idea how they could make you a hero of sweetness and charm to a significant other, or a whole lot of fun to hang with for a bit. But really-You’ll be seen in the light of a hero!

Here’s how it works: Find someone to spend time with. Your kid, your friend, your cousin, your spouse, or even an unlikely or unlikable counterpart… but, you get the idea. (Humans only please.) Think of something to do, eat the candy, record your adventure with the camera, and then attach the developed photos in the journal, along with captions or comments about your time together. (Remember to replace the picture shown on the outside-the overly-happy, giggly couple-with a photo of your time.) This book can be a continual archive of dates, trips, and adventures; Or you can give it away to the person, right away. See how wonderful you’ll seem? Yes, one giant ball of awesomeness. You can even say it was your idea. It’s not likely they will believe you, but go ahead. And if the winner of this prize sends some pictures back to me, (before March 31, 2010) a cool, surprise bonus prize will be given. Try to not pee your pants with excitement.

Here’s some ideas for your time out:

A walk. A snowball fight. Bowling. Browsing shops in a new town. Doing a random act or acts of kindness. A Museum. Coffee shop hopping. Wine tour  Whine tour. Make a treasure hunt for your friend/date (you know, with clues, etc.) to find the candy, or something else. A game of Paintball. Laser Tag. Horseback riding. Ice Skating. Indoor Rock Climbing. Chess-okay Not Chess! Dinner in, and a movie rental. Parade (St Patty’s Day is coming). A home project. Fight Club (Hey, I don’t know what you’re into, okay?) Breakfast at a diner (Make sure to get pictures of the wait staff.) Build a cake, or something.

SO! Pick one of these choices and elaborate on it, OR make up a good outing or activity out of your own creativity. Or, you can go the other way, and have an awful time, potentially, and record how that goes. You may get a pleasant surprise. Visit a slaughter house, or a AIDS clinic, or a cancer ward. It’s up to you.

Enter your idea in the  ’leave a comment’ section, and the one considered the most worthy (in every way) will win. I will sign the journal, if you’d like, with my best wishes. But, I’ll keep my mitts off the candy, I promise.

Good Wishes to you!

REMINDER: Today is the last day you can try for Becky Garrison’s autographed book in the caption contest. Have fun with that! click here.

Today we honor Presidents. Back in the beginning of this country, it was probably a kind of popularity contest to get the gig, based on merit. Of course NOW, even trying for the job takes on the over-exposure, and preening, and shallow sensationalism of pop celebrity allure and lifestyle. These people bombard us with constant airtime.

When I found THIS prize. I had to get it for my loyal fans. Why? Because it’s so stinkin’ hilarious, that’s why! Check out the top right corner… see what it says? “Celebrity tested!”

Celebrity Tested Lip cosmetic - A must-have prize...Right?

Is this celebrity thing important to our culture or WHAT!? SURE! Come on you peek at the tabloid headlines in the store. I do. You do. Admit it! We just get curious.

Marketers know that a lip plumper won’t sell without expert enthusiasm. Plumper endorsement by a professional is critical. And who would that be? A Celebrity! DUh! The irony is-They don’t even bother to say WHICH ONE! How funny is that?

Is it Megan Fox? Sarah Palin? Sandra Bernhard? Is it Melanie Griffith? It’s probably important that they tell us. What if we don’t like that celeb? Or is it that all of them just somehow know better? This product just cracked me up.

To be awarded this conversation piece, funny gift, or helpful and star-tested lip balm, leave a comment about what lips, or lipstick means to you. (An arbitrary judge will pick one winner.) Yes, this requirement makes little sense, but then, so does the prize, and so does celebrity President status. Happy President’s Day!

UPDATE- WE HAVE A WINNER. CONGRATS TO LISA! 

(PLEASE note: Not shown in the picture, but also part of the prize -chocolate-)

Shown here is a fantastic book by Becky Garrison-Oh, and it’s autographed! (See how to get this awesome prize below!)

A fitting prize combo!

Here’s a book synopsis from Powell Books:

A challenge has been issued on matters of faith and Becky Garrison meets it head on in this witty yet poignant answer to the Anti-God gurus Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Daniel Dennett.

Becky Garrison, religious satirist and senior contributing editor for “The Wittenberg Door,” is taking a stand. Where most Christians assume the character of the Cowardly Lion chanting, “I do believe, I do believe, I do believe,” Garrison refuses to simply thrust tracts at these self-proclaimed infidels.

Instead, Garrison steels her pen and takes on the ungodly program of the New Atheists, skewering each argument with her sharp satiric wit. Garrison turns aside the atheists’ assault without ignoring its real criticisms, namely, the church’s inadequate response to war, evolution, medical ethics, social justice, and other important issues in the post-9/11 world.

This from Becky:

I penned The New Atheist Crusaders and Their Unholy Grail at the request of Thomas Nelson, who wanted a satirical response to a select group of best selling authors, who in my view seemed to be behaving as badly as their fundamentalist counterparts. Both sides presented a black and white view of the world that reduced centuries of Christian and scientific thinking into easily digestible and often inaccurate soundbites. Such exchanges may make for entertaining cable news programming but they fail to present an faithful depiction of the Christian faith.

Since the publication of this book I’ve have the privilege of dialoguing with thoughtful freethinkers in my discussions with people like Greg Epstein, author of Good without God (http://www.harvardhumanist.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1&Itemid=30) and the Purple State of Mind (http://www.purplestateofmind.com) guys, as well as contributing  regularly to Religion Dispatches (http://www.religiondispatches.org) and Killing the Buddha (http://killingthebuddha.com). I’ve found a group of folks, who decry the excesses of religious empires that threaten to demolish the wall separating church from state by siding with my ancestor Roger Williams, who coined the term “soul liberty” to denote the freedom of all to believe according to their own conscience. In addition, we acknowledge that religion and science can live in harmony without producing some faith based pseudo-science or a scientific world consists of cold hard facts that’s totally devoid of meaning.  Also, we tend to roll our eyes at the latest biblical brands du jour albeit evangelical, prosperity gospel, power progressive, emergent, or New Monasticism that end up marketing certain missional mavericks as though they were the Messiah instead of following the living Christ.

What we share in common is a quest to explore what we share in common with our shared humanity in the hopes of addressing many of the concerns facing our world. My hope is that we can turn down the white noise of the New Atheists and then tune in to each other.

How can you get this great prize?

Becky thought this one up herself. This is her photo. Give it a caption. One winner will be picked.

Also-if you have questions about the book, or for Becky, leave them here, and she’ll reply. Fun, huh?

Awkward sign from Becky's trip to Canterbury Cathedral

UPDATE!

I have added a 2ND OPTION for you non poets. See below!

A tasty selection of the world's best coffees

 This is prize # 4. 

Ever try Kona /Arabic coffee, or coffee from Kenya, Sumatra, or Guatemala? Now is your chance. This delicious 1.87 lb coffee set can be yours, or be mailed to the coffee lover of your choice

To get this big ticket goodie will require some effort to win. But, listen! It is not hard.

You may write one, or post one and give the author full credit. This handy site even creates them for you, in a snap. How simple, and perfect. You can probably almost smell the coffee now!

What is a cinquain, you ask? Fourth grade was so long ago!

The modern cinquain is based on a word count of words of a certain type, in 5 lines.

This is the formula:

line 1 – one word (noun) a title or name of the subject
line 2 – two words (adjectives) describing the title
line 3 – three words (verbs) describing an action related to the title
line 4 – four words describing a feeling about the title, a complete sentence
line 5 – one word referring back to the title of the poem

OPTION 2

List 4 – 7 describing words (also known as adjectives) detailing WHY you like coffee. (Extra points for creativity)

Thursday Feb. 11 at 7pm, (EST) is the deadline. Each person may enter TWICE.

And-hey-Be kind, let your coffee-loving friends know about where they can get some coffee lovin’!

Best wishes.

This prize is for the birds

Prize # 3. 

If you are okay with lo-tech entertainment, this is a nice goodie, just don’t eat it. It’s for the birds. This is fun for the kids, and cats also. The CD includes information on birds.

To win this prize, you list five birds, but if someone has written them down, you can’t repeat those choices. I have shown my daughter a picture book of birds and she has selected 3. Whoever guesses the most correctly to her choices, first, wins.

ipod-retractable wall charger + candies

iPOD-CHARGER

retails: $19.99

This goodie is a great for travel, office, or to have as a spare in another spot in your home. The retractable cord makes it very portable, and keeps wires at a complete minimum. This prize makes a thoughtful gift for an iPod user, too. (For a U.S. electrical outlet, candy included.)

The first to correctly answer this riddle wins this prize of February Freebie Month. (Which is how I am celebrating my birthday-like a hobbit.) If you choose, this  gift may be sent to a friend, if you win. 

RIDDLE:

What is often bought by the yard, but worn by the foot?

answer

below

(carpet: Answered by DEB! Congrats.)

(UPDATE 2/5: Lisa Minnich! Congratulations. Chip guessing is YOUR talent. You were the closest with your guess of 68. The answer is 79. It seems the jar was more round then many of you determined.)

First treat of February. Guess the # of chocolate chips 1st to win.

Hi Everyone,

I love chocolate, so my first giveaway is just that. Twixels is a lot like Twix, this is, if Twix were fortunate enough to be born in New England and go to private school were they wear matching V-neck sweaters with shield patches. (Notice the Triple Chocolate…obviously the preppy type.) The King Size Reese’s speaks for itself. Enjoy the vintage Reese’s commercial below, too. Hey kids, in the 1980′s, teens walked around snacking straight out of peanut butter jars-all the time!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJLDF6qZUX0]

I’m sending out both of these to the FIRST visitor who guesses most closely  to the correct number of chocolate chips in the glass jar. Please, don’t reply on Facebook, just here, in the “leave a comment” section. Happy February! (Note: If you win, this prize may also be sent to a friend.)

February marks a month of surprises. But here’s a little surprise to whet your appetite. MEEP MEEP MEEP!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hczaiM3LH0M]

Please NOTE: Beaker sings phonetically. English is not his native tongue, as you recall. More important information here.

This is the 2nd year I’ll use my birthday month to shower readers with gifts. It was fun last year, and this year, with quadruple the readership here, it should be even better!

And yes, it is a “custom” in the tradition of hobbits. (hobbits -give away gifts on their birthday)

I have a photo below of just a few things that will be up for grabs. I’ll be popping up every few days in February  to offer you goodies, gadgets, books, surprises, and combo packs just for interacting here at this blog. (No strings, no money, I just enjoy mailing packages of gifts.)

Sometimes, word spreads fast when it comes to gifts, still, I thank you for passing this news along where you can.  Watch for more informative posts, especially in February. If you enjoy giving more than receiving, and  feel so moved, give your present away, and “pay it forward.”

Thanks, friends!

Just *some* of the gift items for blog readers in Feb.