INSURANCE DILEMMA

In addition to Medicare, I pay $170 a month for my current supplemental health insurance policy. It includes doctor, hospital, and prescription drugs and covers everything. But I just learned I would only have to pay $61 if I purchased a policy from the Humana Company, a savings of $1,200 a year.

It would seem the decision is simple. However, I have two concerns. In addition to Humana’s $61 monthly fee, I would have to pay a $10 deductible every time I visit my primary physician and $35 for every visit to a specialist. Since I rarely go to the doctor, the deductibles do not really pose any problem. But heaven forbid, if I were to break a leg or something, it might end up costing me a lot. Although if the costs didn’t exceed, $1,200, I would still be ahead.

But my second concern probably carries a lot more weight. My current insurance carrier pays me $200 a year if I exercise 10 times a month. I have MS and it is important for me to swim at my health club regularly. At the same time, I must admit, my basic nature is to be lazy. And so the $200 is an excellent incentive. Without it, I know that more often than not, I would simply stay at home instead of going to the health club to exercise.

And so, the choice boils down to save a lot of money or exercise 10 times a month. And though I hate to give up $1200, my lazy nature leaves me no option. I have to stay with my more expensive insurance company, to insure that I exercise and keep my MS in check.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

HUMANA INSURANCE

The Other day, my cousin told me that in addition to his Medicare insurance he pays only $31 a month for all his supplemental insurance from Humana. That sounded great to me as, I pay about $175. And so, I immediately called Humana. Sure enough, I too could purchase their policy for the same price. Thus, I made an appointment to meet with one of their representatives.

But later in the day, the more I thought about it the more doubts I had. As a result, I called Humana back to cancel the appointment. You can imagine my frustration when I called and was on hold for 30 minutes while they transferred my call several times. “How ridiculous,” I thought.

So finally, I told the last person with whom I spoke, I was tired of waiting on the phone for such a long time. I said, “I didn’t have to call your company. I could have simply not shown up for the appointment. But that would be rude and I didn’t want to inconvenience some unsuspecting salesperson. Furthermore, if they couldn’t help me in the next couple of minutes, I would hang up.” Well guess what? They took care of it immediately …. thank goodness.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

NEW SWIMMING CAP

I went to Walgreens this afternoon to purchase some vitamins, cosmetics, etc. But at the top of my list I had written new swimming cap so that I could go swimming tomorrow at the Health Club. Unfortunately, when I asked one of the employees where to find swimming caps, she told me we don’t sell them in the winter.

I couldn’t believe it. For years, I have bought swimming caps at Walgreens. And what about all the people who belong to health clubs and swim regularly? In addition, what about all the people who spend their winters in warm climates? At least I thought, I would ask to have Walgreens order one for me. To my chagrin, the manager said that she looked on her computer and there were NONE available. Of course, I was disappointed and frustrated.

I could always buy one on my computer, but it would take awhile before I would receive it and I would also have to pay for shipping and handling. In the meantime, when I finished shopping at Walgreens, I stopped at the health club. Although, I couldn’t swim I would ride one of their exer-cycles. As I walked in, I casually and half-heartedly asked the guy sitting at the front desk, “Do you happen to sell swimming caps?” And OMG was I ever shocked when he said, “Yes.” I never dreamed I would receive a positive response and I was almost ready to kiss the young man !!!!!

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

BATHING CAP

When I finished putting on my bathing suit today at the health club, I suddenly remembered that last week, the strap on my bathing cap broke. Well, no problem … I always keep an extra new pair of goggles and another new bathing cap in my gym bag. But when I reached in my bag, to my horror I discovered, that the cap was not a new one, but an old one that I had worn a few years ago. In addition, it had deteriorated and almost fell apart in my hands.

What a bummer. I was ready to jump in the pool, but now I couldn’t go swimming, as the water would totally mess up my hair. For a few minutes, I just sat there feeling very irritated. But then, I realized it wasn’t a complete loss. I could get in pool and walk in the water – forward, backwards, and sideway -- as I do every time I go swimming.

But when I climbed out of the pool, I though to myself, “It served me right.” When I arrived at the health club, I noticed a van pull into the handicap parking space next to me. The female driver didn’t look disabled and her pre-teen daughter got out of the car. I asked the young girl when she walked past, “What disability does your Mom have?” She just kind of shrugged her shoulders and I said, “Tell your Mom that’s a no-no.”

I immediately regretted it. The young girl had nothing to do with it and if her Mom had walked past, I probably wouldn’t have said anything to her. I felt like a jerk and even thought that surely something unpleasant would now happen to me. Sure enough, one bad turn deserves another -- and I got it.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

GOVERNMENT COMPLAINTS

The people who complain about our government are nothing more than a bunch of grinches. There are problems everywhere in life – marriage, business, relationships, etc – but focusing on what’s wrong accomplishes nothing. When is the last time these complainers volunteered at a local school to read to kids, to join the PTA, to volunteer on Thanksgiving to feed the less fortunate?

People who think positively are healthier and live longer than those who don’t. What this country needs is a good shot of optimism. And unfortunately, all the complainers are just dragging us down.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

SKYPE CALL ON THANKSGIVING

At 4:30 a friend and I are going out for Thanksgiving dinner. And since I’m not busy this afternoon preparing a huge dinner for company, I decided to call my cousin in Door Country to wish him a Happy Thanksgiving.

I turned on my cell phone to make the call. I always use it for long distance calls as every month I can make 300 minutes of free phone calls on my cell phone. When I called, the phone rang only once before the answering machine prompted me to leave a message. I assumed that since the phone only rang once, instead of the normal 4 or 5 that maybe he was home and talking on his phone.

And so instead of turning off my phone which I always do when I’m not using it, I placed it on the table and decided I would call my cousin again in a few minutes. But almost immediately my cell phone started ringing. What a shock. Since most of the time my cell phone is turned off, I receive very few calls.

But how lucky for me. It was my daughter-in-law calling. I asked if they were near their computer so that we could switch from our cell phones to Skype. She said yes and what a joy to see my granddaughter on Thanksgiving.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

CONDO PRESIDENT

As President of my condo association, when something goes wrong, my phone starts ringing and the complaints begin. So yesterday, when we received the first snowfall of the season, a full half-inch, I knew I had to cut off the grievances “at the pass”.

Every year the company that plows our private drive, places both sand barrels on our property and stakes around the road to guide the plows. A few days before the snowfall, the company had set up the stakes but not the sand barrels. Luckily, the day before the snowfall, by sheer coincidence, I happened to call the company to remind them of the exact locations of where to place the barrels.

And so the morning that I woke up and saw the snow, I knew some owners would call me unless I took some action. Thus, I immediately sent an email to all the owners stating, “Just wanted to let you know, that I called Bruces yesterday (what a coincidence ;-) to remind them where to place our sand barrels. Unfortunately, they placed the stakes around our roadway the other day, but didn’t get to the sand barrels in time. Who would have guessed we would have snow today when the temperature was almost 60 on Sunday? On the other hand, what else could we expect … this is Wisconsin. But they’ll be bringing the sand soon. Sorry for any inconvenience.”

I guess my email did the trick. Not one owner called me. Whewwwww !!

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

MY SON

My son is wonderful and I love him dearly. But more often than not, he does not respond to my emails which of course disappoints me very much. And so last week, I thought maybe I should send him a message stating, “I sent you a couple emails over the past two weeks, to make arrangements to Skype so that I can see and talk to my granddaughter, Lily. But you have ignored me.”

I admit it would be a harsh and unpleasant email and I would not like someone sending such a message to me. Well luckily I never mailed it. Lo and behold, this morning my son sent me an email, “Hi Mom, I’ll try to Skype in the next few days. Sorry but I had the flu.”

I felt like a creep and I should know better. This is not the first time I think about admonishing him. But each time, before I take any action, he does something to reaffirm to me what a great son he is. Thank goodness, I’ve never acted on my impulses and in the future, I should always remember this important lesson.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

TWO LOAVES OF BREAD

When I check out at the grocery store, I separate my purchases into two parts – perishables and non-perishables. And I have a good reason for doing this. I live in a three-story, townhouse condominium with the garage in the basement and kitchen on the first floor. So when I bring home 10 –12 bags of groceries, I don’t have to carry all of the bags upstairs to my kitchen at one time.

Immediately on returning home from the grocery store, I carry my perishables up to the kitchen. But I leave the other groceries in the trunk of my car so that I can bring them in the next day. Well, yesterday when I finished putting away the milk, ice cream, and other perishables, I realized my two loaves of bread were missing. Good grief I thought, “I must have placed them with my non-perishable items even though I also put them right into the freezer to stay fresh until I need them.” Oh well, there was no harm done. They would be fine in my car for another day.

But, today when I brought the rest of my groceries upstairs to my kitchen I saw there was NO bread at all. Obviously the young woman who had packed my groceries and placed the bags in the grocery cart left the bag with my bread on the checkout counter. No problem, I looked over my sales receipt and found the two loaves listed. So I called the store and sure enough, they had my bag of two breads plus my dozen eggs.

That was the good news. But the bad news was that now I had the hassle of going back to the store to pick them up. Luckily, they told me that if I call the store when I pull up in front they would bring my groceries out to me.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

BRIDGE PARTNER

My Mom and I played duplicate bridge for years before she passed away. But since 2008, I have not found a new regular partner and so now time and again I play with different people. I enjoy duplicate bridge but two things frustrate me. To begin with most of the people I play with are very nice, but some take the game too seriously and after each hand immediately tell me about the things that I should have done better. They mean no harm, but their constant criticisms are not pleasant. In addition, more often than not we place near the bottom.

But yesterday, I luckily found a new partner. Usually a few days before the game, I look through my bridge directory and call several people to ask if they can play. Well the other day, I called a number of players, but none of them were available. So, I started on page one of the directory to look through the book for a possible partner. Finally, near the end, I spotted Sky’s name. I had seen her often at the bridge club and she seemed very nice. Thus, I called her and was pleased when she agreed to play. But best of all, she was also a very polite lady and never found fault with me even once and at the end of the day we discovered we came in second place. WooHoo…Happy Day. Of course, we then decided we definitely want to play bridge together more often.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

THANKSGIVING

When my parents were alive, we always spent Thanksgiving at their house. But now that they are gone, and the rest of my family have “scattered,” I have to make other plans. My son and his family live in Chicago, my daughter and her family go to her in-law's farm so that my son-in-law and grandsons can deer hunt, and my sister lives in Las Vegas.

Luckily, I have good friends and for the past few years four of us have celebrated Thanksgiving together. But this year, two of them have traveled out west and so Sam and I decided the two of us would go out for dinner ourselves at a nice restaurant. Unfortunately, when I started calling a few restaurants I learned many will close that day.

Fortunately, we finally found a place that will open at 5:00 p.m. on Thanksgiving and so that’s where we will go and afterwards, we are going to rent a movie. Meantime, when anyone asks what am I making for Thanksgiving, I smile and say, “I’m making Reservations”.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

WALKER RECALL

Yesterday at the health club, a friend asked if I had yet signed a petition to recall Governor Walker. “No,” I said, “I want to, but where can I find one?” She proceeded to tell me that on the following day she and a group of other volunteers would collect signatures from 3:00 – 4:00 at a park close to my home. I made a note of the information and told her I would certainly try to stop at the park on my way home.

Unfortunately, I had previously made plans for Friday afternoon and didn’t know if I could arrive at the park on time. However, I needn’t have worried. When I arrived home from the health club, I received an email from a neighbor letting me know if anyone in the area wanted to sign a petition, she would happily stop by and let us sign hers. Furthermore, another friend I talked to later that night told me I could download a form on the Interent, complete it, and mail it in.

As they say when it rains it pours. When I woke up Thursday I had no idea where I could sign a recall petition. But by the end of the day, I had several options.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

SMALL WORLD

My phone rang early this morning and the woman on the other end called to cancel our appointment for tomorrow. On Friday afternoons, as a volunteer at the local senior center, I tutor, for free, anyone who needs help using their computers. She apologized profusely and proceeded to explain why she could not make it. Three weeks ago her 14 year-old granddaughter came to live with her and her husband. The girl’s parents had died and now the girl would be living with her 80 year old grandparents.

After explaining these circumstances to me she said, that on Friday afternoon, the Waunakee High School football team was playing in the championship game and she needed to drive the young girl and her friend to the game. “What an interesting coincidence,” I said, “my grandson is one of the boys on the football team.” As my grandson is 16 and a sophomore, I asked if her granddaughter was a freshman. “No,” she answered, “she’s in eighth grade.”

And so we rescheduled the appointment and said goodbye. But later in the day it occurred to me that not only would her granddaughter be watching my grandson playing football, but the young girl no doubt also knew my younger grandson who is in eighth grade and most likely in some of her classes. Sure enough, I called my youngest grandson and he confirmed that he does know her. What a small world !!

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

SMALL WORLD

My phone rang early this morning and the woman on the other end called to cancel our appointment for tomorrow. On Friday afternoons, as a volunteer at the local senior center, I tutor, for free, anyone who needs help using their computers. She apologized profusely and proceeded to explain why she could not make it. Three weeks ago her 14 year-old granddaughter came to live with her and her husband. The girl’s parents had died and now the girl would be living with her 80 year old grandparents.

After explaining these circumstances to me she said, that on Friday afternoon, the Waunakee High School football team was playing in the championship game and she needed to drive the young girl and her friend to the game. “What an interesting coincidence,” I said, “my grandson is one of the boys on the football team.” As my grandson is 16 and a sophomore, I asked if her granddaughter was a freshman. “No,” she answered, “she’s in eighth grade.”

And so we rescheduled the appointment and said goodbye. But later in the day it occurred to me that not only would her granddaughter be watching my grandson playing football, but the young girl no doubt also knew my younger grandson who is in eighth grade and most likely in some of her classes. Sure enough, I called my youngest grandson and he confirmed that he does know her. What a small world !!

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

FORGETFUL FRIENDS

Without a doubt, as we age our memories fade. And over the last few days I have experienced this problem with three different friends.

Last Thurs, I called a friend to invite her to go out to lunch and to the free movie at the Senior Center. As she wasn’t home, I left a message on her answering machine. Unfortunately instead of calling my home phone she dialed my cell phone, even though I have asked her many times NOT to call my cell phone. I keep it in my car for emergencies, and if she calls on a day I don’t go out, then I miss her call. Too bad she forgot and mistakenly called my cell phone.

On Friday, I called another friend to confirm our plans to play bridge at the local duplicate bridge club on Saturday. Unfortunately, she had forgotten that we had set the date a few weeks ago and recently made other plans. So I didn’t get to play bridge the next day.

On Monday, I called a third friend to find out what time she wanted to meet for lunch on Tuesday and go shopping as we had planned a few days earlier. I couldn’t believe it when she said, she was so sorry that she made a mistake. When she agreed to our plans she had forgotten that she had already scheduled a previous engagement. Unbelievable.

Of course, I was frustrated, but then again, I didn’t want to cast any blame. I too have been guilty of forgetting. In fact, I still remember one such occasion which occurred years ago when I was much younger.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

FORGETFUL FRIENDS

Without a doubt, as we age our memories fade. And over the last few days I have experienced this problem with three different friends.

Last Thurs, I called a friend to invite her to go out to lunch and to the free movie at the Senior Center. As she wasn’t home, I left a message on her answering machine. Unfortunately instead of calling my home phone she dialed my cell phone, even though I have asked her many times NOT to call my cell phone. I keep it in my car for emergencies, and if she calls on a day I don’t go out, then I miss her call. To bad she forgot and mistakenly called my cell phone.

On Friday, I called another friend to confirm our plans to play bridge at the local duplicate bridge club on Saturday. Unfortunately, she had forgotten that we had set the date a few weeks ago and recently made other plans. So I didn’t get to play bridge the next day.

On Monday, I called a third friend to find out what time she wanted to meet for lunch on Tuesday and go shopping as we had planned a few days earlier. I couldn’t believe it when she said, she was so sorry that she made a mistake. When she agreed to our plans she had forgotten that she had already scheduled a previous engagement. Unbelievable.

Of course, I was frustrated, but then again, I didn’t want to cast any blame. I too have been guilty of forgetting. In fact, I still remember one such occasion which occurred years ago when I was much younger.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

OLIVE GARDEN

I arrived at the Olive Garden at noon and sat down to wait for my two friends. After ten minutes the hostess asked if I would like to be seated and she would bring my friends to the table. I expected my friends any minute and so preceded to the table.

However, the few minutes turned in to 10 minutes, then 20 minutes, and then 25 minutes. By then I knew my friends would not be joining me for lunch. I had just confirmed our plans the day before and could not imagine what happened to them. “Oh well,” I thought, “I’m here, I’m hungry, and I might as well eat lunch”

I ordered the food and my waitress was so sweet in her concern for me that my friends had not shown up. Nevertheless, I ate my lunch -- their wonderful all-you-can-eat soup and salad -- and enjoyed every bite of it.

When I finished, my waitress brought the check, but to my complete surprise she told me my meal was on the house !!!! “What,” I exclaimed. I could hardly believe that they would offer such a nice gift. They said it was a shame my friends had not come and they were happy to do it. I greatly appreciated their kind gesture, tipped the waitress generously, and told them I would write about their kindness in my blog.

Now I just hope that everyone who reads my blog will eat at the Olive Garden soon. The food is great and I know you will enjoy it!

www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

SPONSOR

Shortly after I launched my website, www.FunnyPhotosContest.com, I received an email from a software developer offering to donate prizes to my contestants. He sold a photo organizing program and would send it to my winners. I was thrilled on two counts. First, I was flattered that he had found my website and second, I was pleased he was willing to contribute a gift to my winners.

When I told my sister, she kind of scoffed at the proposal and said, “How do you know it’s even legitimate?” But here it is five years later and he is still a loyal sponsor. In fact, today he sent me a very pleasant and surprising email. Every month, I send him the name of the winner and he sends me the serial numbers for his software that the winner can download from his website, www.picajet.com. But today, to simplify the process, he emailed me 12 serial numbers for the winners of the next 12 months. What a wonderful gesture on his part and what tremendous appreciation I have for him.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

BIRTHDAY PRESENT

Recently at a birthday party someone asked the group, “What was your favorite present?” I thought about the question for a minute or two and could not think of a single present I had ever received on my birthday. My Mom and Dad had always given me money that I appreciated, but most of the time I just put it in the bank and waited until I found something I wanted to buy.

But then it hit me. I did receive a spectacular birthday present one year -- when I turned 16. I had passed my driver’s test and my Dad gave me a gold key to the family car!!! It was a great and very unique present. No one else I ever knew had a gold key to their cars.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

WISCONSIN WEATHER

They say that if you don’t like the weather in Wisconsin, just wait a day or two. And that is certainly true. In fact this past week provides a perfect example. On Sunday when I drove to Chicago to see my two-year old granddaughter, the temperature reached close to 60 degrees. It was a lovely day. But on Wednesday we received a combination of rain, sleet, and almost an inch of snow!! By Friday the snow had all melted and on Saturday the temperature once again reached close to 60 degrees.

As a friend once said, in Wisconsin, don’t be surprised to have winter, spring, summer, and fall weather all within one week.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

HUMIDIFIER

Years ago, when my children were little, my friends and I all read and followed the advice of Dr. Spock, the well-known baby doctor. Most was probably not that great, but one pearl of wisdom has proved very valuable – use a humidifier to help prevent colds, coughs, etc. And so ever since, I have dragged my small humidifier out of the closet every October and filled it every night to moisten the air and keep me healthy during the winter.

It has certainly made a difference for me and the other night on the radio an announcer reinforced the importance of a humidifier by telling his listeners that it can even help prevent the flu. Since my son got the flu twice last month and his wife caught it once, I immediately passed the information on to him. Here’s hoping it helps them as well.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

FREE CRUISE

Telemarketers are certainly creating clever ways to sell their “wares”. Yesterday, when I answered my phone, the voice on the other end was a recording stating that I had won a free cruise. I simply needed to answer a few short political questions to be eligible. Why not I thought, and pressed “1” to continue.

However, the three survey questions were too mundane to be of any value. They were 1) rank how Congress is doing. 2) Rank how the Senate is doing. And 3) Rank how the President is doing. When I finished my responses, a human voice came on the phone and said the taxes and some other minor expense were not included.

At that point, I realized I was one of those fools who are born every minute. And I thought to myself, “I should have known…There’s no free lunch.” So I politely replied, “Thank you, but sorry I’m not interested.”

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

FIFTIETH BIRTHDAY

A friend of mine turned 50 today and when I called to say Happy Birthday, it reminded me of the day I turned 50. I didn't mind reaching that significant milestone. Actually, I just couldn't believe I had lived A HALF A CENTURY. I remember waking up and thinking that it just didn’t seem possible that I had lived so many years.

But then again, when I turned 50, Reader’s Digest sent me a letter wishing me a happy 50^th. And I was so mad at them for flaunting my age, I canceled my subscription !!!!!

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

INDIAN RESTAURANT

Although I retired several years ago, once or twice a year I meet a few of the women I formerly worked with for dinner. Occasionally, we meet at the Olive Garden and I always enjoy my meals. But my friends love Indian food and we occasionally, meet at one of the local Indian restaurants. Unfortunately, I hate Indian food. I just don’t care for curry or the Indian spices.

The first couple of times, I asked my daughter who does like Indian food to recommend something I might like. But that didn’t do any good, I just didn’t like the taste of the food I ordered. But last week when my friends and I met for our long overdue dinner at an Indian restaurant, I decided to ask the waiter if there were any foods on the menu that had NO cury or Indian spices.

Lucky for me he suggested the appetizers and there were several that appealed to me. I ended up ordering their chicken strips deep-fried in a peanut batter. And when they arrived at the table, I was pleased that they not only looked good, but they tasted great. Now I won’t have to dread our bi-annual dinners at an Indian restaurant.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

LIBRARY CARD

About 10 years I started making weekly trips to the library to borrow books on tape. Since then I have enjoyed listening to hundreds of books. But today as I pulled up to the library I realized I had forgotten to bring my library card. This has never happened to me, but I had changed purses and unfortunately I left my card in the other purse.

I assumed they might not give me the books, but hoped they knew me well enough to check out the books without the card. I certainly did not have time to go home and make a second trip to the library. To my surprise, I explained to the woman at the desk what happened and she told me it was no problem at all. In fact, she has checked so many books for me over the past several years, that she didn’t even ask my name.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

TRIP TO CHICAGO

My daughter, Cathy, my grandson, Jacob, and I drove to Chicago today to visit my son, Rick, and his family. As Jacob just turned 16 in October and passed his driving test the following week, I knew he would enjoy driving my car and so I gave him my keys and off we drove. However, I did choose to sit in the back seat. I would let Mom sit in the front seat to “supervise.” Jacob is a good driver and didn’t really need any supervision, except he’s a teenage boy and as you would expect, every so often Mom had to remind him to slow down.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

VISITING LILY

Tomorrow, my daughter, Cathy, and I are driving to Chicago to visit my son, Rick, my daughter-in-law, Jen, and my two year-old granddaughter, Lily. I don’t get to see Lily often and so I always look forward to our visits. But tomorrow’s visit may have special significance.

Recently Jen sent me a photo of Lily wearing a cute little pink sweatshirt type jacket. I smiled when I saw it, because I own a very similar jacket. And so, I plan to wear it tomorrow and hope Jen will take a photo of Lily and me wearing our matching jackets. We will surely look just like twins …..

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

GAS STATION SURPRISE

I’ve known for a long time that when a car with a disabled license plate drives up to a gas station, the law requires the gas station attendant to fill the gas tank, but only charge the driver the lower self-serve gas price. Although I’ve had M.S. for 40 years, I can pump my own gasoline and so I always have. However, today when I pulled into the gas station, where I have purchased gas for years and years, one of the staff came up to my car, before I got out and offered to pump the gas for me.

I greatly appreciated his thoughtful gesture and thanked him very much. In addition, when he finished I told him to tell his boss to give him a raise. But I smiled when he replied, “Oh, I just got one last week!”

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

I'm looking for some home remedies to get rid of wrinkles.

CATHY’S NEW JOB

I am so proud of my children. And today I have good cause to, once again, be so very proud of my daughter. On Friday, after a job interview, she called to tell me how it went. As she talked I could tell the employer would surely offer her the job. Since she has had almost 20 years of experience as a claim’s adjuster at one of the largest insurance companies in the area, she was bringing extensive knowledge and well-honed skills to the new insurance company she was applying to. In addition, she is not only very intelligent, responsible, and efficient, but she is a very warm and friendly person with a delightful personality.

And sure enough, she called me today to tell me they offered her the job. Of course, there will be some trade-offs. But she was ready for a change and time to move on.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

WRONG EYE APPOINTMENT

I hate waking up early. After all, now that I’m retired, there’s no reason to wake up early and so I go to bed later and sleep later in the morning – usually until 8:30 or 9:00. However, when I had to schedule a follow-up eye appointment, the only time my doctor could see me was on Monday, April 4^th at 8:40 in the morning.

Oh well, if I have to wake early I just have to. But to make it worthwhile, I decided to take along my grocery list so that I could do my grocery shopping after the eye exam. Unfortunately, when I arrived at the clinic, the receptionist told me my appointment was on Friday, April 8^th!!! I couldn’t believe it as I had marked my calendar carefully when I made the appointment. Thank goodness I had planned on shopping so that I at least accomplished something and didn’t wake up early in vain.

But darn it. I then had to wake up early again four days later for my eye exam.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

PENS FROM ANCHOR BANK

Tomorrow about a dozen women from my high school graduating class will meet for lunch at Olive Garden. As we have all enjoyed our class reunions so much, we decided that those of us who still live in Madison should meet for lunch once or twice a year and enjoy each other’s company more often. And so, I organized our luncheon.

Last week, one of the women said to me, “I hope we have name tags.” We graduated 50 years ago and have certainly all changed. It hadn’t occurred to me and so I was glad she suggested it. Since only 15 ladies will attend we won’t have a table for “Everyone” to check in and so I thought, I would just place a nametag next to each person’s plate.

But then I realized we would need some pens. And voilla I had a great idea. I called my bank and asked if they would like to donate 15 pens for our reunion. I didn’t know how they would respond. But, I was presently surprised when they said, “Yes.” You know what they say, “Be careful what you wish for.”

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

CAPTION CONTEST COINCIDENCE

I have operated my website, www.FunnyPhotosContest.com for six years and once or twice over that time, a couple different people will submit similar captions to my “Caption Contest.” But today I encountered an incredible coincidence.

Today, to my surprise, when I checked the entries, I received two entries within a few hours of each other that were identical !!! One arrived from Fort Madison, Iowa and the other from Dallas, Texas. And I laughed out loud as I read each of them, “elHHello, I’m Mister Ed.” Actually, there was a slight difference, but so insignificant I hardly noticed. One ended with no punctuation mark and the other ended with three exclamation marks !!! So what do I to if the Judge picks that caption as the winner? Guess they’ll simply have to split the prize.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

OVERHEAD CAR LIGHT

During the first four or five years I owned my 12-year old car, I had to buy a new overhead light in my car every year. I don’t know why it kept burning out, but it did. oweHowever, during the past several years the light has worked just fine.

And so it surprised me last night, when I got out of my car, that the light wouldn’t turn off. Well, I couldn’t leave the light on all night as the battery would die and I had an early eye doctor appointment this morning. So, I moved the light switch back and forth a couple of times to see if I could get it to work and/or turn it off. However, at that point I couldn’t get the light to go back on at all !!!! Good grief, I thought, now what. Guess, I’ll have to take it to the gas station one of these days and let them check it.

Meantime, this afternoon, when I finished grocery shopping I noticed, as I approached my car, that the rear door on the driver’s side was not tightly shut. Of course, I smiled with relief. That was the problem and all I had to do to correct the problem was shut the door.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

DENTIST BILL

When I worked at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, I never had to pay for my dental checkups as my insurance covered it. But now that I’m retired, I must pay when I have my teeth cleaned. It’s not a big deal and I simply write a check at the front desk when I schedule my next appointment.

But last week, I forgot to pay because the hygienist scheduled my next appointment in her room as soon as she finished cleaning my teeth. Thus, I didn’t have to stop at the front desk. In addition, I had plans right after my dental appointment to meet some friends for lunch. And so paying my bill just slipped my mind as I walked out of the dental clinic.

They, however didn’t forget and today I received a bill. It’s too bad I didn’t pay at the time, as I remember getting a discount in the past for paying promptly. Oh well, I’m sure I won’t forget next time.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

CATHY’S CURVES’ FRIEND

It sure is a small world. And so yesterday I shouldn’t have been surprised when my daughter, Cathy, told me one of the other ladies working out at Curves with her, asked if I was her Mom. Somehow they happened to mention their maiden names and when Cathy mentioned her maiden name, the woman said, “I know your Mom. She does volunteer computer tutoring at the Senior Center where I work part time. “Well,” I said to my daughter, “Look’s like I’ve got my 15 minutes of fame.”

And ironically enough a similar situation happened to me a couple of weeks ago. When my new neighbor moved in, she introduced me to her mother. The woman happened to mention she use to work at CUNA. I asked if she knew my daughter who also works at CUNA and she replied, “I think so. Does she make the delicious peanut brittle that is sold in Tomah, Wisconsin?” “That’s her,” I replied, “But she doesn’t make it, she buys it when she visits her mother-in-law in Tomah.” It sure is a small world and my daughter also “got her 15 minutes of fame.”

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

SURPRISE FROM NADYA

About 40 years ago I sold real estate for a short time. But when I quit, I continued to keep my license in hopes that I could on occasion make money with it. In fact from 1996 until the “no-call list” went into effect, I called owners who were selling their homes, to recommend good realtors I knew, in order to earn a referral fee. It was a lucrative little endeavor as I made a few thousand dollars a year for just making some phone calls.

This winter I decided to try again. And so in January I began calling homes that were advertised as “For sale by owner”. However, lately since I am having no success I have been feeling very discouraged. And so, I am trying to come up with a new idea to change my luck, as I certainly won’t quit.

But hooray!!! Today I received a great surprise -- an email from Nadya a realtor I am working with. She just listed a condo I referred to her for $185,000. That means I could earn about $500. Not bad for sitting at my dining room table making some phone calls. Here’s hoping in this poor real estate market, the condo sells, as I won’t receive a check until it does.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

SURPRISE FROM NADYA

About 40 years ago I sold real estate for a short time. But when I quit, I continued to keep my license in hopes that I could on occasion make money with it. In fact from 1996 until the “no-call list” went into effect, I called owners who were selling their homes, to recommend good realtors I knew in order to earn a referral fee. It was a lucrative little endeavor as I made a few thousand dollars a year for just making some phone calls.

This winter I decided to try again. And so in January I began calling homes that were advertised as “For sale by owner”. However, lately since I am having no success I have been feeling very discouraged. And so, I am trying to come up with a new idea to change my luck, as I certainly won’t quit.

But hooray!!! Today I received a great surprise -- an email from Nadya a realtor I am working with. She just listed a condo I referred to her for $185,000. That means I could earn about $500. Not bad for sitting at my dining room table making some phone calls. Here’s hoping in this poor real estate market, the condo sells, as I won’t receive a check until it does.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

MY SPRINT BILL

When I opened the letter I received from the Sprint Telephone Company this morning, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The letter showed I owed $102 for two past due bills and the current month. But I pay my bills as soon as they arrive and so the letter thoroughly surprised me. In the past I would put my bills in a drawer when they arrived and then a week or two later pay them all at one time. However, occasionally, I forgot about the bills and ended up paying them late and incurring an overdue charge.

But the letter from Sprint also warned me that they would terminate my service if I didn’t pay promptly. I certainly didn’t want to lose my service as I’ve had it for close to 10 years and still pay the low $35 I paid when I first purchased my Sprint phone. And so I looked in my checkbook and discovered that I had in deed not made a payment since Jan. 5^th. How could that have happened I wondered? The company must not have sent me a bill in February and March.

Thus, I immediately called to ask why they hadn’t sent me a bill. The representative didn’t know and suggested I call back in the beginning of Apr, if I did not receive my next bill. At that time they would follow-up and investigate the problem. Thus, I marked my calendar and then quickly called Sprint to make a payment over the phone to make sure I didn’t lose my service.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.c

LASER EYE TREATMENT

In February, my eye doctor scheduled laser treatments to “tweak” my cataract surgery. At the first appointment, my doctor treated the right eye and everything went fine. But at the second appointment, the doctor asked if I would let her student perform the treatment. I felt uncomfortable, as I didn’t want to hurt his feelings. And so I came up with an idea.

I said to the doctor, “How about if you do half and he does half?” But I wish I hadn’t, because now my eye is worse than before the procedure. I have a follow-up appointment in a week and I sure hope the doctor can fix it.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

NEW PORTABLE PHONE

My daughter stopped by yesterday with the two new portable phones I asked her to buy for me. In the last month, my portable phones, have died twice in the middle of a conversation and in the process caused all the other phones in my house to stop working. Thus, I knew I needed to replace them and yet, it hasn’t happened again for two weeks and so I thought, “Maybe the problem will go away.”

As a result, I said to my daughter, I better keep the sales slip, in case I decide to return them in a couple weeks if my phones seem trouble-free. But she suggested I keep them anyway, as eventually portable phones do need to be thrown away and I will need new ones. As I was concerned about the batteries wearing down, she said, “No problem. Don’t place them in the phone and charge them until you want to start using them and you’ll be fine.”

But then when she proceeded to open one of the boxes to show me, she discovered the box on the seal had been broken, the battery was already inserted in the phone, and it was obviously a used product. Wow…. I’m so glad she discovered this error. We immediately called the store where she purchased the phones and gladly heard we could exchange the used portable for a new one!!!!

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

THANK YOU NOTES

Today when I collected the letters from my mailbox, I found two small envelopes with my daughter’s address on the backs. I couldn’t imagine why she had sent them to me. To my delight, each of my grandson’s had written a thank you note to me.

Recently I gave them each a good “chunk” of money to invest in their college funds. Two years ago, I inherited money from my Mom and it has been “sitting” in one of my investment accounts. When I received the money, I immediately decided to earmark the money for my grandchildren’s education. And so I haven’t spent any of it. But it occurred to me that, heaven forbid, if I land in a nursing home someday, my grandsons may get nothing. Since I own my house and have several IRA’s, I feel confident that I will have enough money for my future. And so I thought it would be wise for me to start giving the boys $13,000 a year, the amount the government allows as gifts without tax implications.

And in the meantime, my wonderful grandsons thoughtfully remembered to send me a thank you note. I am sooooooo proud of them. And my Mom, who loved her great grandsons dearly, would be so pleased to be contributing to their education.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

MY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE GIFTS

Last Saturday when I went to the bridge club, I took two batches of my chocolate chip cookies with me. I planned to drop off one batch at the gas station to show my appreciation to Jim, the owner, for unlocking my car doors a week earlier. I had locked myself out while pumping gas and Jim didn’t charge me a penny for opening the doors. But as I was driving, I decided to call the gas station first to find out when Jim would be in that day. “Oh, he doesn’t work on the weekends,” I was told. Oh well, I would just take the cookies home and put them into the freezer and try again later.

The other batch was for Mike, one of the men who played bridge weekly, at the local bridge club. After our game the previous week Mike had done me a favor. He had mentioned he was on his way to the library. So I asked if he would return my books at the same time. He did and I decided he also deserved some cookies. But when I got to the club, I learned Mike had gone out of town. I could hardly believe I struck out twice in one day.

But not to worry. I had extra cookies at home that I had planned on giving to Barb, a neighbor who helped me take in my groceries recently and another batch for Alisa a new neighbor who was moving into my 4-unit townhouse in another week. Thus, as I drove home Sat. afternoon, I decided I could easily drop off one batch to Barb, which I did. And lo and behold when I pulled up to my garage, I saw Alisa moving some items into her new condo and so I was able to give my second batch of chocolate chip cookies to her. “All was not lost!” I had successfully delivered two batches of cookies after all.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

THREE-LEGGED DOG

For the past six months I have noticed a new man in my neighborhood walking his dog – a small sandy-haired canine. Because he started walking the dog during the winter months, I could only see the dog’s head and top of it’s body as the snow covered his legs. I watched mesmerized by the dog’s jerky gait.

But one day when the snow had melted and the man walked past with his pet, I finally saw the dog hobbled by on only three legs. It broke my heart. Although, I know it’s not unusual for owners to amputate an injured dog or cat's leg and the animals do just fine, it makes me terribly sad. And so today, when once again I saw the man and dog, a little pain tugged at my heart-strings.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

MORE TELEPHONE PROBLEMS

It happened again this morning for the second time in exactly two weeks. While talking on the portable phone in my upstairs bedroom the phone died in the middle of a conversation. When I picked up the phone in my other bedroom to call back my friend, I only heard a crackling noise on the line. This was the exact same thing that happened previously.

The telephone repairman said he thought the problem originated from the base of the portable phone in my living room. So sure enough when I unplugged that phone, my telephone problem disappeared just like last time. And when I then plugged the phone back into the wall socket it once again worked just fine.

But obviously, this problem will continue to occur and so I have no choice but to buy two new portable phones!!!

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

EMAIL ADDRESS SIMILARITY

The ladies in my high school graduating class are planning a luncheon in April and I am in charge of sending out all the emails. Initially, I simply sent out an invitation, but so many women sent back, not only their response, but some “news” about themselves. Because I enjoyed reading their emails so much, I decided to forward the emails to the others.

Thus, in the last few weeks, my classmates have received quite a few messages from me. But today, I received a very interesting response. A guy in California, Mike, wrote, “Please remove me from your list. I graduated in 1983 in California . Thanks.” Wow … you can imagine how surprised I was! Although, I immediately noticed he shared the same last name as one of my classmates. And so, I called Natalie, told her what happened, and asked her, “What IS your email address?” Sure enough. Their addresses were identical except for one letter. Natalie’s email starts with the letter N followed by her last name, whereas Mike’s email is limited to just their same last name.

I immediately wrote back to Mike, explained the situation and told him I corrected the error. And what a nice guy he must be. Within a few minutes he wrote back, “Not a problem. I appreciate your timely response. Hope your reunion is enjoyable. Mike.”

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

FIRST PLACE AT BRIDE

I could hardly believe it when the director announced the winners. My partner, John, and I had won. For years, when my Mom was alive we played duplicate bridge once or twice a week and often came in either first, second, or third. But over the past three years, I have not played as often and do not have a steady partner. And so, most of the time I come in last or near the bottom.

But today we won. Actually, I think luck played a big part. We only had to compete against four other pairs and many of the best players were out-of-town at a tournament in Louisville, KY. Nevertheless, it was fun to be the winners.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

T.D.S., MY TELEPHONE COMPANY

Shortly after I woke up Tuesday morning. I called my insurance company. But after just a few minutes of conversation, the phone went dead. I went into another room to place the call again. However, when I picked up a different phone, all I heard was static. Of course, I quickly went downstairs and tried my other phones, unfortunately, they also emitted a static sound.

Thank goodness for cell phones. I called the phone company and they told me that a service repairman would fix my phone later that day. Then they asked if I had paid for a repair service plan. Since, I had not paid the $3.00 a month charge, it would cost me $60. Oh well, I have lived in my house for 31 years and never had any trouble before. Thus, I rationalized that I had actually saved money. The cost of $3 a month for 31 years would have totaled $108. So I got a deal after all.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

ST. PATRICK’S DAY PARTY

Every year, the health club I belong to hosts a wonderful St. Patrick’s Day party at a great restaurant. The food -- corned beef, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, rolls, brownies and chocolate chip cookies -- is delicious and better yet, free to all the members. I have attended each year and have always enjoyed myself. Although, the first year I joined the club, I hadn’t planned on going as I assumed that most of the attendees would be young singles.

However, my Mom always loved corned beef and cabbage and so I decided to take her. Surprisingly enough when we sat down, my Mom at 85 was not even the oldest person at our table. There were several in their 90’s!! This year I attended with another member of the health club whom I met in the swimming pool when I first joined. We arrived at the party at 2:00 and after eating we continued chatting away. I checked my watch a couple times and about 4:00 I said it was probably time to get going.

But what a surprise I had when I got home. It was 6:00. How could it have gotten so late? I only live 3 blocks from the restaurant. But, I discovered it happened very easily. The last time I wore the watch that I put on today was ten days ago, before day-light savings time took effect. So all afternoon, I was looking at a watch that was an hour behind.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

WONDERFUL NEIGHBOR

Yesterday, when I drove home from the grocery store, I had 14 bags of groceries in the trunk of my car. As I pulled into my garage, one of my neighbors happened to walk by. And when she saw me begin to unload my groceries she offered to help. I didn’t want to bother her and so I said, “Oh, thank you but that’s not necessary.” Nevertheless, she protested, “I would be glad to help.”

Since my garage is in the basement, I have to drag them upstairs to my kitchen on the first floor and she knows it is not easy for me. Because she so sincerely wanted to help me, I said yes and was really grateful that she did. This is not the first time she has offered her assistance and I feel so lucky to have such a wonderful neighbor.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

SHIRLEY SWEET

I seldom attend Friday night services. In fact, I only go for Mom and Dad’s Yarhzeit and the High Holidays. But this year I went to Friday night services two weeks in a row. When I was at services for the Yarzheit service, the Rabbi announced that the following week he would be honoring my cousin, Shirley Sweet, for working in the Temple’s office for 50 years.

Well, of course I wanted to attend. In addition, there was a special dinner before hand that I knew I would enjoy. A friend agreed to go with me and so we went. When the Rabbi began reading the Torah portion during the service, I immediately recognized it as the same Torah portion read at my son’s Bar Mitzvah. What a coincidence that I had been at this very same service 30 year’s ago.

The Torah portion was about sacrifices and I remembered that Rick had been playing hockey that year and had to miss a hockey game the night he was Bar Mitzvhed – his example of a sacrifice .

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

EXCHANGING MY NEW CD PLAYER

What a bummer. It’s such a hassle for me to get to Best Buy. And I’m frustrated because I was just there this past Tuesday. And now I have to go back again this week to exchange my new CD player.

When I bought my new machine I bought a smaller one with out a tape player. But I had one important question for the salesman. “Does it display the minutes for each track on the CD?” I asked. He replied that it did and so I bought it. Unfortunately, when I unpacked it and placed a CD inside the display on the outside only showed me which track I was listening too.

It made me furious. But what can I do. I only wish I had just bought the same kind of CD player that I had before

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

NEW CD PLAYER

About ten years ago, I started listening to audio books recorded on tapes and CD’s. Because I live alone and am retired, I have lots of time to listen – when I’m getting dressed, cooking, cleaning, etc. It’s a wonderful pastime plus I never feel alone, as all day long I have someone “talking to me,” well at least telling me a story.

On the other side of the coin, my CD/tape player gets used so much – often four or five hours a day -- that my machines don’t last long. And sure enough, last week, I pushed the play button and it popped down into the machine. Luckily, every time I have purchased a new player, I have also paid about $10 for the store’s warranty program. And so, when I took my CD/tape player back to the store, I received a new machine for free. Not bad, even though I paid another $10 to make sure I once again obtain another free machine when my new one breaks.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

MY LOCKED CAR

I can’t believe that I did it. I have pumped my own gas for over 30 years and never locked myself out of the car when I filled the car’s tank. But on Tuesday, I must have accidentally pushed down the lock button when I closed the car door. And so when I attempted to get back in, I discovered all the doors were locked.

Oh well….not to worry. I have Triple A Insurance and I would just go inside the gas station and call. Although, I did have the problem that my AAA car was in my purse and sitting on the front seat. Nevertheless, I entered the gas station and described my plight. “No problem,” the attendant said, “we have equipment to unlock the door.” Although it took a little longer than they expected, they released the lock on my car and I was on my way. But before I drove off, I told them, “I owe you big time and next week, I will come back with a batch of my chocolate chip cookies for you!” My grandsons say that I make the best chocolate chip cookies of all. Then again, what grandchild doesn’t think his/her grandmother makes the best chocolate chip cookies.

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

CATHY’S VIDEO

Recently my daughter, Cathy, posted an extremely funny video on her Facebook page. Along with it, she wrote, “I laughed so hard, I cried.” And though I didn’t cry, I too belted out a big laugh. In fact, a couple days later when I tried telling a friend about it, I could barely finish, as I burst out laughing just as I began delivering the punch line. The video is titled, “You Better Know How to Spell” and began with a man calling 911, yelling desperately, “Please send an ambulance immediately. My wife is badly hurt.”

“What is the address?” the dispatcher replies. “I live at 837 Eucalyptus,” says the man. “How do you spell that?” asks the dispatcher. After a lengthy pause, the husband says, “I’ll drag her to Elm Street !”

By Hannah www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.