Christmas Day - Part One

Christmas Day was very fruitful in terms of sock monkeys. Here are the new additions to my family. Any suggestions on names?

My brother, One Eyed Jack (left), Billy Ground Hog (center) and Henly (right) are sporting their festive seasonal sweaters.

One Eyed Jack and Santa Monk with Goliath Monkey, who looks quite dapper in his Santa hat and holiday scarf.

Santa Monk with the mini monkeys and their mini Christmas tree!

Santa Monk and his old friend, Mr. Hanky, who plopped in for a visit. Howdy Ho!

There will be more pictures posted very soon, but Santa Monk has had a long day. It's time to sign off for tonight. We hope that you had a very Monkey Christmas!

Look Who's Dancing Now!

Uh Oh! Uncle Bill got caught dancing country style with Big Monkey and an elfin friend.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

We're all lit up for Christmas!

Julius the Monkey snow globe is happy to make his first seasonal debut.

The fireplace and mantle are aglow with Mark's LED expertise proudly on display. The monkey stockings have also been hung with care in hopes that Santa Monk will fill them with goodies!

Those are some bright LED's. Freckles and sleigh friends are enjoying their time in the spotlight.

The four glowing Christmas trees are Mark's creations. They actually change color every few seconds. Very nice!

Dancing Elves

Click on the play button below to view a Dancing Elves video starring me, Mark, Karl, Officer Po Po and Farcus.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Pictures with Santa by the Christmas Tree

Santa and his helpers will travel via sleigh to visit all the good girls and boys this Christmas.

You better watch out. You better not cry. You better not pout, I'm telling you why. Santa Monk is coming to town!

Santa's faithful elf Freckles chopped down this tree and pulled it home in his sturdy red wagon. See how it glows!

Kids...here comes Santa Monk, here comes Santa Monk, right down Santa Monk Lane.

He's making a list and checking it twice. He's gonna find out who's naughty and nice. Santa Monk is coming to town!

Way to go Steelers!

The Steelers pulled through once again with a come from behind victory in the last minute of the game! My buddy Chipped Ham Sam missed it all because he passed out around halftime after drinking too many Iron City's in his mugstein. With today's win, the Steelers clinched the AFC North and have a first round bye in the playoffs. Could it be that I may get to witness my hometown team playing in my current home on February 1st?

Girls' Day Out!

Here are the BFF's (from left to right - Mr. Monkey, Sockette, Miss Pearl, Sassy and Princess Monkitha). These ladies are enjoying a bright sunny morning hanging out in a tree at Crystal Beach.

The ladies are taking a break on a pretty pastel bench.

The BFF's pose around this now defunct fountain in Live Oak Park.

What a nice place to enjoy the view - on a park bench surrounded by flowers!

Introducing Miss Pearl

Miss Pearl just arrived in Crystal Beach, but she didn't have to travel far. She's originally from Wesley Chapel, FL, which is only about 40 minutes away. Isn't she pretty as a picture? She got her name from the pearl necklace, bracelet and earrings which are her trademark.

This little lady wasted no time upon her arrival. She's already climbing the best trees that Crystal Beach has to offer.

Big Crazy Moon

Last night we saw one of the brightest full moons in years. Some say that the full moon makes monkeys a little crazy. Here I am pointing out the glowing orb.

The next morning, Crystal Beach experienced an extremely low tide. The sailboats below, which are permanently anchored out in the gulf, are now stranded.

This has nothing to do with the moon or the tides, but it is my favorite tree out at Crystal Beach.

Princess Monkitha Meets Officer Po Po

Here's our own British royalty, her highness Princess Monkitha. She's going out for a bit of shopping in her brand new purple Cadillac Escalade EXT. Our princess has many redeeming qualities such as beauty, style, grace and... good driving? NOT! What's wrong with this picture? Princess, you're not in Great Britain anymore. In America we drive on the right side of the road, not the left. Her designer pink purse is also getting in the way of good driving. Instead of placing both hands on the wheel, she prefers to steer with her tail! This is how she bloody rolls!

Uh oh! Princess Monkitha is in a bit of a spot now. Crystal Beach's Officer Po Po has pulled her over.

Po Po: "Ma'am, are you aware that you're driving on the wrong side of the road?"
Princess: "I dare say Officer, I didn't have a clue. Please forgive me for being such a ninny."
Po Po: "Another thing you might want to consider is steering with both hands instead of your tail."
Princess: "Crikey! You must think I'm half pickled. I do apologize for driving like a cheeky monkey."
Po Po: "I have to issue you a citation for driving on the wrong side of the road though."
Princess: "Officer, can you please remove your sunglasses?"
Po Po: "Excuse me?"
Princess: "In my country, it's impolite to speak to a member of the royal family while concealing one's eyes."

Po Po: "Fine. " (He removes his shades.)
Princess: "Officer, you have the most brilliant eyes. Has anyone ever told you that?"
Po Po: "Princess, I need to finish writing this ticket out for you."

Princess: "You know I'm a fantastic cook. Would you like to stop over for supper? I can make you some bangers and mash, bubble and squeak, and spotted dick for dessert. Or perhaps there's some other dish you might fancy?"
Po Po: "I appreciate the offer, but my position prohibits me from accepting a dinner invitation. Here's your ticket. The fine is $100."

The Princess drives off in defeat, mumbling "That Officer Po Po... what a wanker!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have plenty of things to be thankful for this year, and one of them is this 20 pound turkey I'm about to carve. Doesn't he look delicious? Gobble Gobble!

I'm surveying my plate-o-plenty before I dig in. There's turkey, stuffing, green bean casserole, yams (don't ever ask Mark about yams...), mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls and cranberry relish (not pictured). Bring it on! I might do seconds too!

Now for the finale. Look at this luscious pumpkin pie with whipped cream. This is going to hit the spot!

Ohhh... my pink eyes were bigger than my stomach. I ate way too much, and now I can't move. It's time to drift off into a turkey coma. I'll be signing off for tonight. I hope everyone had as great a Thanksgiving as I did.

Surgery Day

As some of you may know, Mark had surgery today to implant an Ommaya Reservoir in his head for future chemotherapy. He has a fantastic blog with incredibly detailed information about his condition at Mark's Melon if you want to check it out. Here I am doing my pre-operative examination of the patient's head at the hospital this morning.

During and after surgery, I kept track of Mark's vital signs. Here I am checking his temperature. I am wearing my surgical gown and mask to maintain a sterile environment for my patient post surgery. By the way, everything went very well! Mark will come home tomorrow, and he'll be enjoying a big Thanksgiving celebration feast on Thursday. I'm sure he'll update his blog very soon with all of the medical details.

Warning! Viewer Discretion is Advised!

The following post may contain an image that is disturbing to others, so viewer discretion is advised. You have been warned!

You may recall that I am an Olympic champion runner in the monkathon from my posts earlier this summer. Laura is also a runner, although far from Olympic caliber.

I'd like to introduce another athlete in my family. Monka is a legend in his own right. As you can see from his fierce demeanor, he is a force to be reckoned with. Fists a pumping, belly a bouncing, you better get out of his way when he's sprinting towards you. Monka's motto is "Float like a watermelon sting like a bee."

Extra Extra - Read all about ME!

This post is long overdue, although many of you have already seen my article. One of our local publications, the Tropical Breeze, features a column each month called "Collecting Adventures" by Rosemary Potter. The October article is written about me and my sock monkey family (oh yeah, I think they mention Laura and Mark too). I've included the following link in case you haven't seen it yet. Big Monkey's Article

Sock Monkey Art

I am a bit of a Renaissance monkey. Here are some examples of fine art that I have added to my collection. The first is a self portrait crafted out of wire, created by the talented artist from Picturesque Wires. If you peruse this web site, you shall find my likeness under M for Monkey. She perfected all of my characteristic features including my pink eyes, Popeye forearms and classic red bow tie.


The picture below represents peace, love and harmony between tuxedo cat and sock monkey. This is an example to live by. Karl and Megan (the resident tuxedo cats) are completely on board with this concept now. Their initial interpretation was that tuxedo cat knocks sock monkey down and plays with the red pom pom atop his hat. I have firmly corrected this notion. This fine piece of artwork was created by the eBay seller affordable!!art.

G'Day mates!

My name is Herbert, and I've come all the way from Australia to join Big Monkey's clan. He seems like a good bloke, and you've got some bloody nice beaches here in Florida. Blimey! There's a lot of pretty sheilas living in Crystal Beach! I've traveled far from home, but no worries, because Big Monkey and his friends have made me feel welcome. Throw another shrimp on the barbie because I'm here to stay!

I've come to America bearing gifts for my new host. Bananas are always appreciated.

You Bet Your Babushka I'm Croation!

I'm preparing one of my favorite meals from "Croation Cuisine the modern way." It's called Goose Turopolje style. The fun part is catching the goose with your bare hands! Right now I'm mixing together the side dish which consists of corn grits, goose liver, stomach and spices. Yummo! I'm donning a traditional head scarf called a babushka, just like my ancestors from the old country. If you would like the full recipe for this luscious dish, just let me know.

Meet the Croation Socksation... Velike Ludorije

That's ME, by the way! It's my Croation code name on Facebook. Can you believe the Facebook Police wouldn't let me join as Big Monkey? That's OK because I am one step ahead of them... ha ha! I've already got several friends, and I'm looking for more! Drop me a line, poke me, send me presents, etc. Some of my entourage might be signing up in the future. I wonder if they'll let Officer Po Po join? If not, we'll call him Službenik po po. More to come on my Croation heritage... I'm digging out my organ meat cook book to share some of my favorite recipes from the old country with you.

Victory is Ours!

Sock monkey and swing voters came out in full force and led the Basock - Big Monkey ticket to a sweeping victory! Here the two rivals, Basock and Cecil shake paw / tusk after a rough campaign. Cecil will continue to be a maverick, and Barbie will disappear into cheerleading obscurity.

Election Day - Crystal Beach

Our sock monkey candidate for President, Basock, poses in front of the Crystal Beach Town Hall, Precinct 563 in the State of Florida after casting his ballot. He is proudly displaying his American flag and "I Voted" sticker.

The hopeful vice presidential candidate, Big Monkey, smiles broadly after participating in the democratic process.

Here is a sample ballot illustrating the candidates for U.S., state and county offices.

A close up reveals our two major party candidates - Basock and Big Monkey as well as Cecil Walrus and Barbie.

This is going to be a tight race. The outcome may be determined by the swing voters, pictured below. More to come when all the votes are tallied!