A Sneak Peek and a Winner!

I'm on my last day of vacation today and I'd like

to give you a sneak peek at what I've been up to these past 8 days.

I did manage to fit in a few quick trips through the antique shops in town where

I found 3 of these little elves.  One is hiding in the rear, one has gone missing, and

this one is still wearing his price tag!  Oops.

But the majority of the week was spent climbing up and down a ladder with

paintbrush in hand.  I finally made the decision to

paint our dining room!!!

The room is far from done, but even at night when I took this photo,

it is so much brighter and provides a neutral backdrop to add seasonal decor.

More to come in a later post.

It's time to announce the winner of this year's

Ranger 911 Christmas Giveaway!

I used a random number generator, but since I couldn't figure out

how to post it here, I simply took a picture of the computer screen.

It seems Nurse Sandy will be hopping on the next

Greyhound Bus to visit her new home in the Midwest!

The welcome mat has been laid out.

Her new owner shares her quirky sense of humor.

(Deer mount and the license plate of the truck that hit it.)

Congratulations Pam @ House of Hawthornes!
Please email your shipping address, and she'll be on her way!

Thank you to everybody who joined in the fun.

  I tried to reply to all the comments, but a number

of bloggers were listed as noreply so I was unable to respond.

All the comments were entered into the drawing.

Thanks for stopping by today,

Vickie

Ranger 911 Christmas GIVEaway

It is better to give than to receive.

This year's Ranger 911 Christmas Giveaway is all about

giving.

With the recent disaster of Hurricane Sandy, we've once again witnessed volunteers in action. 

 Click here to view and read a very personal account of the immediate aftermath of the storm
 written by Jersey Shore resident Jenny of Everyday is a Holiday blog.

Photos courtesy of Everyday is a Holiday.

Carnival animal among the debris.

Jeep from carnival ride.

This is just a sampling of the destruction they're dealing with.  There are many

more photos to view by clicking on the link above.

 While you're there, check out

 Jenny and Aaron's fun and funky original art for sale and

 see how they've gone from despair to hope in a very dismal situation. 

  There were and still are volunteers from every walk of life and many organizations

 helping victims on the East Coast and all over the world, but I've chosen the universal symbol

 of the Red Cross as my jumping off point for the design of this year's prize.

    If you've followed my blog, you know by now that I collect vintage

 sock monkeys (you'll meet them next year) and I make new vintage inspired

 sock monkeys from the original Rockford Red Heel Socks.  Our country's

most recent natural disaster is also the namesake of this year's monkey

 I'm offering for this giveaway.

Meet Sandy, a volunteer nurse for the Red Cross.

She proudly wears her starched white cap which was

bestowed to her upon earning her nursing degree.

She dons the traditional blue cape with red lining to keep

her warm when the weather turns cold.  Her only jewelry is the

vintage WWII pin she's clipped to her cape.

Nurse Sandy's white pinafore with a red cross on the bodice makes

her easy to identify in a crowd when her medical skills are needed.
Underneath she wears a red and white thrift store dress.  Thank goodness she found
 the dress so we could get this giveaway post up and running!

She carries a leather bag filled to overflowing with magical potions

to cure whatever ails you.  Let's take a peek inside, shall we?

Life Savers, Kisses, and Hugs.  :)

She puts in long hours and never complains, but at the end of the day

she likes to relax and escape from the troubles she's seen.

She hangs up her hat and pinafore wherever there's a room to be had and snuggles

 under a warm blanket with her night cap pulled down tight. 

A cup of coffee warms her right up.

A good book and she's all set!  It is rather difficult to find a classic book
in her size on such short notice.  Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
 is a classic, isn't it?   It is for us Baby Boomers!

Darn it!  Her vision just isn't what it used to be! 

Much better. 

There are so many ways to give to those less fortunate than ourselves.

You can donate articles of clothing you no longer wear to the Salvation Army or Goodwill.

Craft supplies are always in demand at nursing homes.
Of course, there is still so much to be done for the victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Animal shelters are filled with dogs and cats in need of food, blankets, and a loving home.

The local food shelves can't keep up with the growing number of people in need of food.

There are Meals on Wheels to be delivered and soup kitchens in need of volunteers.

Soldiers who can't be home for Christmas would love to receive a letter, or better yet,

a care package to brighten up their day.  The list goes on and on.
  So, please, do what you can.  Every little bit helps.

Now, let's party!!!

If you'd like a chance to win Sandy, all you have to do is leave

a comment at the end of this post.  No Facebook, tweeting, standing on your head,
just leave a comment!  Simple as that!

She may not be your cup of coffee tea, but perhaps you've got a friend

who could use a little TLC this time of year.   Sandy comes complete with her

nurse cap and cape, leather bag, book, coffee cup, night cap, and reading glasses.
I hope to put a smile on the face of whoever wins this hard working monkey.

 If you're reading this post, you're eligible to sign up!
.
The winner will be picked on Sunday, December 16 by a.......well, depending on
 our sketchy rural internet service, a random number generator, or as a backup,
the tried and true "pick a number out of a hat method".

Merry Christmas!
Vickie

While you're out shopping this holiday season, don't forget to toss some

change in the bright red kettle or maybe pick a name off the Giving Tree in

your local mall. Your donations are sure to be appreciated!

I can't wait to meet my new roomie!!!



What's up?

The little Ranger elves have been

busy at work trying to finish this year's 911

Christmas giveaway.  Here's a sneak peek at

 what they've been up to.....

Don't forget to stop by this weekend and get yourself

signed up for a monkeylicious prize!  :@

Vickie

Yipee!  We love a giveaway!

Lena's new home.

Before I announce the winner of my "Ranger" giveaway, I want to thank everybody who participated and left me a humorous or heartfelt comment.  I truly appreciate the comments left by you, my readers and followers.  The winner was chosen by a random number generator and here are a few photos of Lena's new home.

 Lena just loves shabby vintage decor!

What little sock monkey wouldn't love a playhouse that looks like this!!!

And to top it off, she even has a new puppy to keep her company!

The winner is.......

Lynn from Shabby Story blog!!!

If you haven't visited Lynn's blog, be sure to check it out here!  Lots of great ideas and photos!

Lynn, please email your mailing address to mesaba911@gmail.com and your package will be in the mail!

Merry Christmas!

Vickie  :@



"Da Ranger" 911 Christmas Giveaway

When I started up my blog, I was ready to go live only to find out that a website named Ranger 911 already existed!  Go figure.  I was not about to start from scratch, so I just added da to my blog address creating http://daranger911.blogspot.com/. 


If you've seen this address and wondered why, there is a method to my madness.  In the 1970's somebody coined the phrase "I'm from da Range" to poke fun at the Iron Range dialect.  Well, we Rangers took it all in stride and embraced this idea.  We proudly wore our T-shirts with the phrase emblazoned across the chest and slapped stickers onto the rusted out bumpers of our homemade El Caminos.  Picture if you will, a beat-up old junker with the rear passenger seat and part of the roof removed to create a unique car/truck.  Quite ingenious, actually.  You might even say the ultimate repurpose.

So, now you know the story behind daranger ( not to be confused with deranged).  It's time to get to the point of this short history lesson.  I'm embracing my Range roots and hosting a Minnesota Iron Range themed Christmas giveaway.  Without further ado, let me introduce you to the prize.

Meet Lena.

As you know by now, I have a collection of vintage sock monkeys and I create new vintage inspired monkeys from the original Rockford Red Heel socks that are still manufactured today.  Lena loves to shop at Rummage in the Park, our local vintage clothing shop, but unfortunately they had nothing available in her petite size. So, off to my artist studio ( kitchen table ) to design a stylish winter coat and hat for her.

She is wearing a festive red corduroy swing coat accented with faux fur collar and cuffs.  When her hands get cold, she warms them in her fur-lined muff.  She is feeling very "Jackie O" in her retro pillbox hat edged in the same fur with a black feather peeking out.

To keep her tootsies warm, I made her a pair of Steger Mukluks.  For those of you unfamiliar with these boots, they are manufactured by the Will Steger ( most famous for his polar expeditions ) family in Ely, MN, gateway to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area.  They are guaranteed to keep her feet warm in even the coldest of weather!

There are many styles and colors to choose from, but Lena thought the blue Navajo design brought out the pretty blue color of her eyes. So stylish and warm!

I considered making her some leggings or snow pants, but there's always the problem of what to do with her tail.  And, really, would you cover up this cute tushie?

I almost forgot to show you her thrift store find!  She is quite a savvy shopper as you can see by this vintage suitcase she found at the local Goodwill.

And to complete the prize package, I'm including a 1 pound bag of Minnesota wild rice along with the recipe for Lena's favorite hot dish.  After all, this is Minnesota, dontcha know!  And you can put away your deer rifle.  There is no venison in this particular recipe.

Before I finish this post, I have a few disclosures to make.

• Lena does have those button eyes, so she is definitely not a toy for small children.
• She has already picked up the Range dialect, but don't worry, I've been working with her.

Me:     Now Lena, you must remember to say yes, not yaw, and no instead of nope.  Got it?

Lena:   You betcha.

As Uncle Uno always said, "You can take da Ranger outa da Range, but you can't take da Range outa da Ranger."

Lena's got her suitcase packed and she's ready to go!

To enter this drawing, simply leave me a comment to this post.  If  you are reading this post, you are eligible to enter!  The random drawing will take place on Sunday, December 18.  Alrighty then, let the game begin!

My name is Vickie and I'm from da Range.

Lucky Lady

The time has arrived to pick the winner of my "blogiversary" prize giveaway.  As I stated in my last post, it would be a random drawing with a name drawn from a hat.....literally.

For the hat, I chose one of Bill's newly autographed hats.  I thought it kind of went with the "luck of the draw" theme.  So, without further ado................................

I elected Rhinestone Reba to do the honors.  No peeking!

And the winner is.....

Comment # 7.

Congratulations, Leah!!!!!

A signed copy of "Five Little Monkeys" is on it's way to you!

Thank you to everybody who participated in this event. 



(The next monkeylicious giveaway will be held during the Christmas holiday season. Ho!Ho!Ho!)

Ranger 911 Anniversary Sweepstakes

Here it is!  The moment you've all been waiting for has arrived!!! 

Next Tuesday, August 16, marks the one year anniversary of my blog.

I didn't even know what a blog was until several years ago when a Google Image search lead me to a photo posted on a blog.  Then, my niece started her blog, followed by my daughters and that's when I decided to join the madness.  So, I  hopped on the Blog Bandwagon too!  Well, maybe not hopped, climbed slowly is more like it.

I'm not a tech savvy person, and that's an understatement.  I got rid of our dishwasher in favor of hand washing dishes.  Yes, it's true.  I don't carry a cell phone in my purse.  No texting either.  I don't have an inkling how to program a vcr, dvd, blu ray player.  I had never even downloaded pictures from my seldom used camera!  And yet, I set up my blog and learned to download and edit photos all by myself!

In honor of this momentous occasion, my blogiversary, I'm hosting a prize giveaway.  During this year, one of my most popular posts (according to my thousands 21 followers) was Five Little Monkeys.  On a lark, I grabbed an armload of my favorite vintage sock monkeys and a spool of fishing line and shot the photos for the post in under an hour.  There are times when one must let their inner child run wild.  Some of us more than others. 

After viewing the post, with it's accompanying music, my girls asked me to make the post "as is" into a book.  So, I did.



Now, you too could be the owner of a signed, very limited edition (one of 8 copies in print) hardcover book.  If you are reading this, you can enter.  Just leave a comment to this post and YOUR name could be drawn out of the hat.  Literally.  No random computerized number selection at Ranger 911;  I told you I'm no techie!  The drawing will be held on August 16, so enter soon!



Kung Fu Sock Monkey say:

Don't be shy, Grass - hop - ah.  He who hesitates is loser.  Time to sign up is now.

:@

Thanks for stopping by and commenting from time to time.

vickie