Thanksgiving 2009....and Twyla & Siro's new dogpark buddy

Larry just finished putting together two new videos. The first one is video from the annual Thanksgiving feast at Steff's house. It's always so wonderful to get together with the people you love.

YouTube - Another Happy Thanksgiving

The second one is Twyla and Siro playing with their new friend at the dog park. She's a sweetie...and a very brave one at that!

YouTube - Twyla and Siro fool around with a new buddy

Larry did a fantastic job with these...as usual. And he always picks the perfect melodies to go with them.

Hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Larry chalks another one up!

Happy Halloween and Happy Birthday to Larry! He's another year older and hasn't aged a day!

I love you, sweetheart!


(click on photo for larger image)

Another birthday gone....

Chalk one more up and start working on another year! Ahhhh.....

I just LOVE getting older. The only other alternative is unthinkable!

My darling love, Larry, created another wonderful video to celebrate this one...October 17, 2009. I don't know how he does it but I love it!

Give it a peek...you'll get a kick out of it.. I did. But I'm prejudiced when it comes to him. He always manages to give me a thrill. Try it, you'll like it!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8HTk87fTDQ

The Ever Mellow Siro

Old friends...good memories!

Recently there was a Burlesque Festival in New Orleans and they invited some of the most famous striptease artists of Bourbon St. when it was in its heyday in the 1960s to be their special guests. The current strippers call them "The Legends".

Three of them were among my best friends...we had LOTS of fun back then! They invited me to be with them at the opening cocktail party and it was so great seeing them again after all this time.

Here's a photo Larry took of us at the special reserved table in the corner of the room. People came up and "oohed" and "aahed" and asked for autographs. They even asked for mine! I said I wasn't a dancer and they said they didn't care. If I was with them I must be "somebody!" *giggle*

My friends Rita, Eve and Tee Tee are here with the other two Legends at the festival.

From left to right we are: (Seated) Tee Tee Red, Wild Cherry, Eve St. Pierre and Evangeline the Oyster Girl. (Standing) Rita Alexander the Champagne Girl and me.

(click on photo to get a larger image)

For more on the Festival click here:
http://www.neworleansburlesquefest.com/Activities.html

For an interview with Rita, click here:
http://bestofneworleans.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A60963

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY FROM THE LANES

Sydney's July 4th!

Mary Anne's lovely Sydney graces our Grand Old Flag!

Siro and Twyla are in a whirl!

My Little Mockingbird

There's a wonderful singer outside my back door that I listen to all night when I'm on the computer. From what I've researched, he's very likely a bachelor Mockingbird who's looking for a mate...and when he finds her the concert will end.

I don't wish anything sad for my little singer but I'll be happy if his concert never ends. He has claimed my Magnolia tree his very own and tonight I got the idea of recording him on my camera. It turned out to be a very good idea....and I caught a few minutes of his performance which usually starts at about 1 a.m. and goes on til at least 5:30 a.m.

Happy Birthday, Siro and Twyla!

It's really hard to believe, but Siro and Twyla are 5 years old on June 1st. We wish them a really Happy Birthday with loads of hugs and kisses!

Siro and Twyla want to wish all their brothers and sisters a wonderful 5th, too!

Our New Brindle Great Dane!!!

Well, not really...but one can always hope.

Baskets full of Posey

Another great sign from Larry has hit the TV screen!

Chris Paul holds the record for 108 straight games with a steal

End of the year at the Hornets game. We were there when Chris Paul got his steals record of 108 straight regular season games with at least one steal. We were ready with our signs.

The Times Picayune covered it and I ended up in the online version plus Bob Licht, the play by play CST-TV announcer wrote it up. I admit I stole the idea from him but I only plagiarize from the best!

Here's Bob's article...and the T-P photo is above




CP3 & NBA HISTORY
December 18, 2008

Michael didn't do it. Neither did The Big O, Wilt the Stilt, The Logo, Magic, Stockton, Elgin, or Dr. J.

Chris Paul is in the record books…again. Only this time he has a record that may never be broken. Of the thousands of players who have donned uniforms in the Association only two have ever grabbed a steal in 100-consecutive games (Alvin Robertson and Chris Paul). After Paul passed the former San Antonio Spur with his 106th-straight game with a steal (ironically, against the Spurs) everyone else is in last behind CP3.

To put Paul's remarkable record into perspective if another player wants to BEGIN his "PAUL PURSUIT" he must first get a steal in every game for an entire season. That would put him at 82 in a row. Then he would have to continue…and we're still not sure when this streak will end. This steals streak may be the energizer bunny streak…and keep going and going…

Chris Paul's streak now has its own banner in the New Orleans Arena. You know your streak is special when it gets an arena banner…and that thing will be updated until some team or some statistician denies Paul a pilfer.

Chris Paul's streak also has a new sign in the arena from "The Sign Man" (season ticket holders Larry and Apple Lane). It reads "Man of Steal" and has Chris Paul's head on superman's body. Instead of an 'S' across the chest…Apple has fashioned a '3' that looks perfect across the Hornets' point guard's chest. Apple thanked me on Wednesday night for giving her the "Man of Steal" nickname. I credit her for taking it to the next level.

We should also applaud the 16,000 plus fans that rose in unison and cheered as Paul broke the NBA's unbreakable record (it stood for 22 years). Paul said afterward that it sent chills down his spine and almost made him want to stop. Chris, thanks for not stopping until you helped erase the nine-point fourth quarter deficit to San Antonio and sent the Spurs to Orlando shaking their heads like 29 other teams have throughout the incredible streak.

The last NBA game Chris Paul played in and failed to get a steal was a first round playoff game on 4/25/08 at Dallas. Since the league doesn't count post season games in a player's overall statistics we have to go back to the 2006-2007 campaign for his last REGULAR SEASON game without a pilfer. That occurred on 4/10/07 in Oklahoma City, OK against the LA Clippers.

LARRY'S XMAS PRESENT FROM HUGO CLAUS

Larry got a very special surprise present from Hugo Claus at the Hornets game.

Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqMk_Rch9EE

Merry Christmas to all!

And to all a great holiday season!
...........

THE NEW "MAN OF STEAL"

Yes! There's a new "Man of Steal"!

No, I didn't make a spelling mistake.

Chris Paul, the incredible and amazing Hornets Point Guard has set a new NBA record for getting at least one steal in 106 straight regular season games. The previous record was set in 1986 by Alvin Robertson.

He's our guy!

CP3! MVP!

Happy Holidays from The Lanes and Their Danes!

Larry has created our 2008 Holiday Greeting in Hi-Definition and posted it to YouTube.

Please click on HD to see the video in all it's wintry glory.

If you are in AOL please view it on Internet Express.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwsK1JW0xj0&eurl=http://www.youtube.com/greeting_view?s=8rWcArfTEho&p=2A1119216D2A156A

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Thanksgiving Day -- November 27, 2008

(Click on photo for full size image!)

Another wonderful Thanksgiving spent at Steff's with the people I love the most. Catherine was back with us once again and the only one missing was Mikie...who was too sick to venture out.

I'm still busy cropping pix I took and when I finish I'll post some of them. In the meantime, here's Jay, Julia, Honey and Doris seated on the sofa, and standing are Larry, me, Catherine and Steff.

Cisco and Augie are in front of the sofa and Sophie is probably lurking under the coffee table. But don't worry... I'll have pix of the little princess later.

My Birthday Video

I can't believe I forgot to post the wonderful video my lovely Larry made for my birthday. What a sweetheart. I didn't know he had kept all these photos! We've had such fun together.

Thank you, my love!
Apple

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9IAz3abrFw

Our gorgeous boy Siro now and when he was 10 weeks old

Count our blessings....and Here's Buster!

Our blessings have indeed been our safety and our wonderful dogs, Siro and Twyla, who make things seem like they're really not as bad as they seem. They have been nothing but a joy to us. And their beauty isn't the least of the talents they have. And each other, of course. But taking care of them keeps us busy and gives us something wonderful to look at so it makes time go by much faster than if we didn't have them. Pictures of the kids, although you'd think it was a piece of cake, is a really hard job to do. They're both "camera shy". Turn on the camera and they find the best hiding places! But today I got some lovely shots of Siro and I've decided to post him on my blog and on Flickr.

I also have a couple of really neat ones of Buster , too. One is a wonderful show shot and one is a heat shot...also taken at a show. Buster is "Rojon's Ransom Demand" and he only needs one more point to be a Champion! Shouldn't be long at all now. Here are Buster's neat portraits first. What a guy! He's co-owned by my breeder Mary Anne Zanetos and Ann Maile. They're so proud of him. How can you not be?

IKE has come and gone...

We were so lucky that Ike passed us by without doing much damage to the area. But, oh... the case wasn't so lucky in a lot of other places.

That crazy storm destroyed part of the Texas and SW Louisiana coasts and then took the wildest curve that hit Chicago and even Ohio, where Mary Anne lives. She lost a couple of trees and power for a while, too.

I just don't understand where all these storms are coming from. They don't make 'em like they used to. The big ones used to come along once every few years and didn't have the surges that they have now. Now, we're getting more than one in one season.

Thank goodness no one I know got more than they could handle. I sure hope that's all for this year. We need time to breathe.

Just got Cable back on

We just got cable back on. Wheee! Just in time for some entertainment while I unpack and repack for hurricane Ike, who seems to want to get back in the Gulf.

The bad part is...I'm getting too old for this!

The good part is...the more we do this the more the dogs will get used to it and won't be as anxious.

The only alternative is to move...but I'm not doing that. What would the Hornets do without us?

Back from evacuation...again!

We just got home from another hurricane evacuation. This time it was "Gustav".

We got home at night so we can't see if there's any damage but it appears the house and the street are fairly normal. The only thing we can see so far is the wonderful Night Blooming Jasmine bushes in the back yard are lying on the ground. They still smell wonderful, though.

If that's all...we're fine.

The pups were a little anxious while we were gone and didn't eat much...but they still enjoyed their favorite treats so I figure it was just the confusion and change.

There are some more disturbances in the Atlantic but I hope they stay away. We're keeping our fingers crossed.

My darling Larry was a total prince! He drove all the way (I don't drive) and did all the heavy lifting, too. Actually, he did all the lifting, period. He is my Hero and my Superman and I don't know what we'd have done without him.

I do love that man!!! ;-)

Mary Anne and Ann's handsome Buster

What a guy!!!

Abbie and Barrie

These are Siro and Twyla's nieces. Their beautiful sister Macy is the mama.

90° Hot....but 2 Cool

It was a hot day at the dog park... but not too hot for Siro to have two ears up! ;-)

"I do what I do 'cause it's ME!!!!!"

He-e-e-e-e-e-ere's CARLO!

Dealing with the New Orleans summer...

What? Hey my feet were hot!

Twyla doesn't seem to mind the spiciness it gives.

Honestly, nobody said I couldn't do this!

You're gonna give me that dirty old ball in exchange for 'what'????

Siro getting a leaf and blossom massage from the Crepe Myrtle Tree..

CAN THERE REALLY ONLY BE ONE?

Happy 4th Birthday to Siro, Twyla and their siblings!

Amazing that the Lane Danes and their siblings are already 4 years old. Larry and Apple are wishing them many more. And Siro & Twyla have their own birthday wish to express....and to Carlo, too.

THE END TO A SPECTACULAR SEASON

A wonderful season of NBA basketball by our New Orleans Hornets has ended.
But WHAT A RIDE!!!

We had a fantastic winning season, winning 56 games out of 82, and then we progressed to the second level of the playoffs. It took the reigning champions 7 games to knock us out.

Chris Paul was almost voted MVP. And he will always be OUR MVP!
Coach Byron Scott was selected Coach of the Year.
Chris Paul and David West were both All Stars this year.
And Coach Scott was selected to be Coach of the Western Conference All Star Team.
Tyson Chandler had the season record for offensive rebounds.
And Chris Paul had so many records, assists...steals...etc., I don't have room to list them all. If I did I wouldn't have room for the team photo.

Larry was runner-up in the CP3 for MVP video contest. And they showed the whole video before the game on the giant JumboTron screen. People in the Arena were standing around watching in delight. One of the security guys thought it was a special video created by the Hornets and said, "Wow! They really did a great job!" We had to tell him it was Larry's creation. (You can see it by clicking on the link at the post below this one.)

I got to present the Game Ball! I presented it to referee Mark Wunderlich and had a few words with Chris Paul before I was escorted back to my seat by Hugo the Mascot. Wow! What fun! Those pix are down below, too.

At the end of the final regular season game Larry's number was pulled out of a hat by Chris Paul and he was presented with an autographed jacket. That pic is below, too. (I just posted it a little while ago. I'm so behind with my blogging!)

Thanks to the team, to all the coaches, to Jeff Bower, the GM and to George Shinn, the owner. They gave us a great year of fun and entertainment.

We'd also like to thank the many people who work for the Hornets organization for the care and kindness they show to the fans. I do believe they are unique! Mr. Shinn even "worked the room" before some of the playoff games. He went around thanking the fans for coming and helping to make the season such a good one. I've never seen the owner of ANY team, be it ballet or basketball, have such a personal touch with his fan base.

Good for you, George Shinn! You've been great with the team, the fans and the city of New Orleans. There's no league like the NBA and no organization better in it than the Hornets.

Special thanks to Bob Licht and Gil McGregor with CST. Nobody is better at broadcasting the games! We wish you could broadcast them all!!! REALLY!!! You're the best!

And thanks to Jim Eichenhofer for his great job(s)... Randell Collins, who's been part of our Hornets experience from the beginning... and to Blake Simon, our season ticket rep, for the superb job he does for us.

It was a great ride...and we're sure 2008-2009 will be another exciting season. We can't wait!

LARRY AND CHRIS PAUL

Larry was presented with an autographed jacket by CP3 on the final night of the regular season.

When I looked at the jacket I said "WOW! Perfect! It's exactly your size!"

Larry said, "What? Are you crazy? This isn't a jacket to wear...this is to frame and hang on the wall!"

What do I know! LOL!

CP3 for MVP

Chris Paul is the best thing that has ever happened for the New Orleans Hornets team. His statistics ('stats' in sports lingo) are amazing and collectively better than any other NBA player this year. For this reason we are convinced that he should be named the 2007-2008 NBA Most Valuable Player.

To show you why we (and many of the people involved in sports who we've read, seen and heard) think CP should receive the MVP award, Larry has created this fabulous video tribute to Chris Paul...known to all the sports world and his fans as CP3. Please watch it and SPREAD THE WORD!

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.fullscreen&videoid=31982758

Valentine's Day 2008

My wonderful sweetie pie Larry gave me these beautiful roses! He always remembers how much I love pink roses. ;-)

Another grand 'Pizza Nite' at the Vogels'

Here's one of those scrumptions pizzas in the making:


Tom and Malle "Lovebirds" Vogel:


Larry and Apple "Sweetie-pies" Lane:


Tom doing his famous Al Jolsen imitation:

NO...that's not snow!

This pic was taken in the middle of January but NO...that's not snow! The kids had just "dismantled" one of their stuffed toys.

Don't they look innocent?

BCS Championship Game with LSU!

We watched the BCS Championship Game with Tom and Malle and their kids Vico and Carlo.

Larry and Tom obviously thought it was boring.



But Malle and I had a good time in spite of it.

Long time no post!

It's been a long time since I posted any pictures here, so I last night I decided to do a little catching up.

A few months ago I caught my three kids (Twyla, Siro and Larry) cuddling up together in bed.

Too bad I can't get a picture of all four of us snuggling.

My exciting Hornets experience

On January 30 I got a chance to present the game ball at the New Orleans Hornets game vs the Golden State Warriors. I was so excited! I went out on the court where I was joined by Chris Paul, Hugo the mascot and one of the referees, Mark Wunderlich.

They announced me and I presented the ball to the referee and shook hands with CP and the Ref and Hugo escorted me back to my seat. Wheeeee!

Unfortunately, the Hornets came to the end of their winning spree. I really hope it wasn't my fault.

Anyway, here are pix of the event I got from the Hornets and a video clip that Larry took.


VIDEO: YouTube - Apple, the Game Ball, and Chris Paul

HAPPY HOLIDAYS 2007

10 WONDERFUL YEARS!

On December 15th Larry and I celebrated 10 years of wedded bliss!

I love you, Sweetheart! Don't ever change!

THANKSGIVING DAY AT STEFF'S - 2007

As usual, Steffy set a lovely Thanksgiving table.

Mikie sipped on "Mimosas".


Larry was sad because Augie wouldn't come inside and play.

Steffy stirred up a great dish of stuffing.


Jay was ready for dinner but Julia was still playing with Sophie, who was under the table.


But she finally got into the spirit and was mighty glad she did!

Steff and Larry were just waiting for everybody to start!

Me??? I'm always ready to chow-down! ;-)

It was another wonderful Thanksgiving Day at Stephany's. The only thing that was lacking was Honey and Doris couldn't make it. We really missed them.

Oh, well...maybe next year.