Wednesday, April 6, 2016

How Animals Can Inspire You... (IWSG)

...to laugh. Okay, so one of these isn't per say an "animal," but it's pretty amazing.

Brought to you by Maggid
WEEEE!


Beware the Kung Fu master!


And you thought fishing was safe.


Can't you just hear him laughing as he runs? Hee, hee, hee, hee, hee, suckers!


Yoink!
(Beware, Elephants are smarter than they seem.)

I'm still kind of on break, drafting like a maniac, but I wanted to pop in and say, I hope you've laughed today. If not, find a good reason. It's when we get too serious about ourselves or life that reality crushes us. Don't be crushed. Be like the first elephant. Jump for joy.





A quick heads up, I'm participating at the Parallels Anthology blog for the A-Z Challenge, posting for C, H, and O. Pop in and say hi! I'll be back to posting weekly in May.



Now it's giveaway time!

Last month Sarah Ahiers shared with us ASSASINS HEART, along with two truths and a lie. Those who guessed the lie correctly were entered into a random drawing for the chance to win a paperback.

The Game:



1. I came in second place in my middle school’s spelling bee when I was in 6th grade
2. I played the violin for ten years.

3. I have had a myriad of pets, including: dogs, goldfish, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, squirrels, horse, anoles, tree frogs, & cockatiels.

The lie: #1. Sarah has never actually entered a spelling bee.

Way to guess everyone! And the winner is:

...DRUM ROLL...


Congrats, Kai!

And now for the next few posts I'll be doing something different. I'm so excited to be in the first ever IWSG Anthology contest that I'm going to introduce you to ALL the other authors, one week (or month) at a time. But of course they'll be giving stuff away. And playing the game.

The first one is:

Dani Finklemeier has decided to write a self-help book about how to take over the world, but she’s not sure where to start. After all, she’s only seventeen and looking for a better way to make money than babysitting. She buys a self-help book that promises to teach her how to write a self-help book in the hope of getting the job done.

Not that it’ll be easy to get any work done this holiday season. Her family is staying at the house for Christmas, and fights break out almost immediately. Dani also has to deal with the fallout from an unexpected kiss with her best friend Seth and the feelings that go along with it. On edge around her family and unsure how to interact with the one person she’s trusted with everything in the past, she can only take what inspiration she can from the crazy circumstances surrounding her and see what happens.

One way or another, it should be an interesting holiday.

Get your copy HERE.

Ready to meet the author?

L.G. Keltner has been trying to write novels since she was six years old. She’s wanted to be many things over the years, but the dream that survived into adulthood was that of being a writer. She graduated from Drake University in 2008, but she’s still learning every day. L.G. lives in Iowa with her husband and children.

You might run across L.G. munching Pepper Jack cheese while kicking trash over a game of Monopoly.

Find her online HERE!

L.G. gave me two truths and one lie to test your "lie detector" skills. Those who figure out the lie will go into my magic hat for the chance to an the ENTIRE series (not yet released) in eBook of SELF-HELP 101! (5 installments between now and February 2017.)

You have until Tuesday, May 3, at 2 p.m. EDT to guess. Be sure to come back for the answers on May 4, 8 a.m EDT.
TRUTH OR LIE

1. When I was 17, I got a chance to travel in Europe for three weeks.  The day before I left, I got up early to run errands.  Then I was too excited to fall asleep that night.  Combine that with an inability to fall asleep on airplanes, landing in Rome at 10a.m., and having an entire day of activities ahead, I was awake for approximately 60 consecutive hours.
2. When I was about 12, I was playing basketball at school.  I decided to make a half-court shot.  Not only that, I decided to do it while facing the opposite basket.  After all, I thought I stood no chance of making it either way.  So I took the shot and . . . I made it.  I turned just in time to see it go in.  I’m sure I could never under any circumstances pull it off again.
3. In college, Jamie Kennedy (Randy from Scream, comedian, etc.) did a stand-up routine at my school. On a dare, I asked him to marry me, and he asked me how much money I had.

So sleuths, which is the lie? Have you laughed today? What did you find funny recently? Do you like funny books? Have you met L.G Keltner before?

119 comments:

  1. Wow, no idea on the lie. Let's go with the first one.
    The elephant ate her phone. Well done! One less person who texts while driving...
    Keep drafting!

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    1. Glad I could make things challenging. Thanks for your guess!

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  2. I don't like spiders. :) Ha! What Alex said...one less person...I agree!! Have fun in your planning stages.

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  3. I imagine that elephant saying, "Dance for me, human, dance!"

    Funny videos, all.

    I don't know which one the lie is, either, but I think I'll go with #1.

    Happy drafting!

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    1. My goal was to make guessing tricky, and it appears that I've succeeded. Thanks for submitting your guess!

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  4. Thanks for featuring me today! This is so cool!

    I absolutely love elephants. They're such fascinating creatures.

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  5. That elephant jumping on a trampoline makes my heart happy. Why can't everything on the internet be real?! ;) And fish-slapped! Lol!

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  6. Hehehe! Thanks for the laugh. :) And yay for L.G.! I guess the lie is #3 even though it is really funny.

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    1. Thank you so much, and thanks for submitting your guess!

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  7. Bye bye cell phone hahaha! Love the elephant, but fun fact elephants are the only animal that cannot jump. Unless they have a trampoline.

    I’m exploring different types of dreams and their meanings.
    E is for Epic Dreams
    Stephen Tremp’s Breakthrough Blogs

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  8. Haha! Thanks for the laughs. That baby one is the BEST.

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  9. I don't know why exactly but that baby one totally cracked me up. Thanks for the reminder to laugh. I think I'll go see what the tortoises are up to.... :)

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  10. LOL! What a sneaky little raccoon.

    My guess - #3.

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    1. Thanks for your guess! Only time will sort fact from fiction. :)

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  11. Love your sweet Kung Fu Master and your other fun pictures.

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  12. Ha, those are all great. No selfie for you!

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  13. The fish slapping the guy across the face cracks me up every time!

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  14. Good laughs! The elephant has it right, be in the moment, not looking at a camera. Enjoy the drafting!

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  15. Enjoy the drafting stage. You get to dream up all those ideas, but without having to concern yourself with putting them down on paper in a coherent fashion for anyone else to understand. The raccoon was great!

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  16. Those weasely raccoons... yuck. I will never forget them stealing trash from my family's outside garbage bins as a kid. My dad had a war with them, placing bricks on top of the garbage lids, and somehow the raccoons would still knock them off!

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  17. Thanks for the laugh. This was just super.
    Hugs,
    JB

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  18. That baby one is so funny. And I think that was the fishes payback. Muahahaha!

    I hope your break is productive! Good luck with drafting!

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  19. Yes, I've laughed today. Good luck with your break and writing!

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  20. This made me laugh today for sure! I love elephants so much! Good luck with writing!!! :)

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  21. I've laughed now! These were awesome! Can't pick my favourite. Best of luck with writing, Crystal. And thanks for the funnies. They are precious.

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  22. So now you've brightened my E day on the #atozChallenge. I'm going to see that elephant on the trampoline all day long.

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  23. That baby cracked my up! Thanks for the giggles Crystal. :) X

    shahwharton.com

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  24. Good to see you! Hope your time has been productive. With the help of cheese, hopefully. :) Thanks for the laughs and the info.

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  25. I haven't laughed out loud, but I'm at work today, so someone's sure to do something...

    Lie...#2...

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  26. I can't stop laughing at the Kung Fu master. LOL I admit I watched it repeatedly. ;)

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  27. Great videos, Crystal. I needed a good laugh today. Thanks for that.

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  28. Those videos are hysterical. It definitely put a smile on my face. Best of luck to L.G. Keltner.

    http://baerbookspress.com/blog/

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  29. Love those mini-videos. Who would think the elephant could grab the phone! And, technically, they are all animals. But who cares about 'technical' today?

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  30. Oh my goodness! I needed that laugh. Thank you. My son and daughter keep things pretty interesting in my house. There interpretations of just about anything help make life so much fun. And the lie...I am going with 1 since the other two are way are incredible...lol

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    1. Thank you for taking the time to guess! I'm glad to hear you thought that 2 and 3 were incredible. :)

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  31. That raccoon... I think it inspired a character. No joke.

    Thanks for the laughs!

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  32. Animals are awesome. They have such a healing quality, either with humor or compassion. Love the elephant on the trampoline!!

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  33. Back in the day when I smoked I spent sometime outdoors. My backyard touched a greenbelt and I had quail, raccoons, stellar jays, mourning doves, cats, snakes, dogs and more. Each of them told me a story. :-)

    Anna from elements of emaginette

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  34. coons are such an endless source of delight :)

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  35. Thanks, Crystal, you did make me laugh today and I did need it.

    Susan Says

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  36. I love funny books! I think Erma Bombeck single handedly got me through the first months of motherhood. Thank you for the smiles today. :) I'm glad to hear you're getting so much done!

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  37. Kung Fu Baby is the best!
    I've read LG's book...it's a charming story.
    Writer In Transit

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  38. The elephant on the trampoline looks to be having a great time. And the dude getting smacked by the fish made me spit my water.

    Congrats to Kai and to LG. I'll guess #1 is the lie.

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  39. Thanks for the smile, Crystal! I needed one today.

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  40. Love the raccoon one--now I know what's happening to all that cat food.

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  41. You post the best gifs!! ^_^ Happy Drafting!!

    I'm going with #2 for the lie. I hope #3 is true! That is too awesome!

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    1. Thanks for stopping by and trying to discern fact from fiction!

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  42. That raccoon is a hoot.
    Waving to L.G.
    Have a good one, Crystal.

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  43. Omg! Hilarious! Just what I needed. I've kind of been on away too. Just focusing on work and life. Miss reading your blog! xoxo

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  44. Great gifs! Thanks for the smiles. I am fortunate enough to have met LG at a bloghop. And my guess is #3 is false.

    Best to both of you,
    Nilanjana
    Madly-in-Verse

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  45. Haha! I love animals, they can always make me laugh. Thanks, Crystal :)

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  46. Congratulations to LG!

    Funny funny...especially the jumping elephant and the flying fish.

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  47. Thank you for making me laugh. I needed that. Good-luck with the rest of your editing.

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  48. Thank you so much for the laugh and the reminder! I always seem to take everything so seriously that I forget to enjoy life.

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  49. Loved the gifs. Thanks for the laugh! Congrats to Kai!

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  50. Love the bouncing elephant and the karate master! :)
    We definitely need joy!

    And congrats to L.G. - Love that book!!!

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  51. Hahaha I've seen that raccoon stealing food before and it always cracks me up. Thanks for the laughs!

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  52. Your gifs are so funny. I needed that dose of laughter. Thank you.

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  53. Bouncing elephant!

    No idea which is the lie, but I'll guess #1.

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  54. I love your gifs, especially the elephant/trampoline and the sneaky raccoon. I'm drafting also. Good luck to us both! :)

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  55. Great Pictures!!!! Thanks for the chuckle!!!

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  56. Hi, Crystal...

    Loved the pics... sooo funny. Thanks for the laughs...


    Thanks for featuring L.G. today. What a fun story! I should be a very entertaining read.

    As for the lie.... I'd say #2

    My new condo is right off 535 and Vineland. Next to the Premium Outlet stores, but closer to Landry's restaurant. So COOL! We must get together for a coffee or something. It would be awesome to meet you in person!

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    1. Thank you! I hope people find it to be an entertaining read, anyway.

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  57. Totally channeling my inner-joy elephant today *and thank you for the cheese, it paired well with the wine:) L.G. is such an imaginative and convincing writer, I've no idea which of the three is a stretch, but I'll wage #2 is a bit of fiction. Congrats on Self-Help 101--looks hilarious!

    The AtoZ of EOS
    #TeamDamyanti

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    1. Thanks for the kind words! They mean a lot! I made it a goal to make the two truths and a lie as convincing and entertaining as possible. It seems I might have succeeded. Thanks for guessing!

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  58. I won! I won! I really won!!! Thanks so much Crystal and Sarah. I can NOT wait to read this book. Yay.

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  59. The Kung Fu master is adorable, so is the elephant.

    Rachna Chhabria
    Co-host IWSG
    Rachna's Scriptorium

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  60. Those videos made me smile. Thanks for sharing.

    Hope your draft is going well. My guess for the lie is #2.

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  61. Elephants stole the show in the end but Kung Fu Baby has a strong second place. I can imagine the elephant saying "No photos!". Also the raccoon going "I need some food man."

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  62. The Kung Fu Master baby is my favorite. I watched it a lot. Like a lot. Glad to hear you're writing! Enjoy your break and see you in May!

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  63. Ha! Ha! The elephant got her cell phone. The real funny here is how she jumps up and down, trying to get it back. That phone is GONE, lady!

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  64. Ha! Love the gifs. Thank you for sharing. And please send that last elephant to my house to take away my kids' iPads. They need to read more.

    L.G. Self-help 101 is a great read.

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  65. Ha! Love the gifs. Thank you for sharing. And please send that last elephant to my house to take away my kids' iPads. They need to read more.

    L.G. Self-help 101 is a great read.

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  66. Those did make me laugh! Thank you, it made my day.

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  67. Those gifs made my day! I think the baby is my favorite! L.G.'s book sounds hilarious! And I think #2 is the lie.

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  68. Crystal, those pictures are hilarious... if I get near an elephant, I won't be putting my phone near his/her trunk... lol... that's a bit expensive... xox

    It's nice you checked in <3 (I have problems with good byes when it's sudden with no explanation... those are the toughest... and not when someone passes away, I've learned to deal with those a bit better)

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  69. What fun pics. And congrats to LG. Best!

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  70. Thanks for the laughs! I love the first one best :) Best of luck with that draft :)

    Cheers!
    Jen
    Jen Chandler was Here

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  71. We laugh every day. Sometimes the joke's for us, sometimes the joke's on us. Either way it's a good time. Love the GIFs. Last time I got to interact with an elephant he asked me for a dollar and took it with his trunk (no, really).

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  72. Hehehe I love the jumping elephant. Good luck with the drafting. :-)

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  73. I also got a kick out of the elephants! LG's book looks like a fun read! I think #1 is the lie, but I'm awful at these things.

    Julie

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  74. Animals can give us many humorous moments. My cat does some goofy stuff. Thanks for visiting my blog during the challenge!
    Mary at Play off the Page

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  75. Loved the funny photos... They always make me giggle:) I think #1 is a lie.

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  76. Great videos, they all made me smile, especially the baby. Too cute!
    Good luck with everything, I'll look for your A to Z posts.

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  77. YES!!! I have laughed a lot today - and, thanks to your spiffy gifs - I continue

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  78. If I had to guess about the lie I'd have to say the first one (60 hours? I couldn't imagine!). And laughter is so good for the soul. My husband and I were watching Taken 3 and I laughed hysterically at parts that I'm sure weren't meant to be funny:)

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  79. That jumping elephant was a win for me until I saw the flyby fish. So funny!

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  80. I am a total softie for cute animal giffs & photos.

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  81. Those are funny! The Kung Fu baby really cracked me up!

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  82. I think 3 is the lie.

    I wouldn't want it happening to me, but that elephant taking the phone is hilarious.

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  83. Hi Crystal! Fun times at your blog. Hope the writing continues strong!

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  84. The pictures did make me laugh. I needed them today.
    May # 3 is the lie.

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  85. Happy drafting, Crystal!

    Hi, L.G. The lie is... #1?

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  86. LOL! That elephant taking her phone and the racoon taking the biscuits! So funny!

    Raindrops of Sapphire

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  87. Thanks for the laugh:) Definitely needed it! And I'm guessing you must have gone to Europe. I went when I was 15 with my aunt and it changed my life.

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  88. OMG! That elephant took her phone?

    Congrats to Kai!

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  89. You deserve a platter of cheese for those pics. They were delightful and made me smile. Thanks!

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  90. LOL I am laughing my ass off at that raccoon!!

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  91. That gif of the jumping elephant is so precious. Best of luck with all your drafting!

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  92. Those animal gifs are hilarious! Thanks for the laugh. Enjoy your blogging break!! :)

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  93. Thank you for the funnies, Crystal! I hope your drafting is going well this month!

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  94. Ha, ha, love the elephant on the trampoline. Good luck with your drafting!

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  95. I'm always happy to see animals. They never fail to make me smile. Happy weekend :-)

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  96. I'm going to say #2 is the lie. Not that it's impossible -- Sigourney Weaver made a backwards basketball shot in Alien 4.

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  97. Those are all hilarious, even if I'm ridiculously behind on saying so. ^_^ Hope April's been good for you.

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  98. Is that elephant real? That's awesome!

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Hit me with your cheese!