Good moves I made recently. Not.

This is mildly gross, so unless you're like Rachel and enjoy poking at gross stuff, you may not want to read it. I don't know if you've ever hit your nose very hard, but I have. I mean, I broke my nose once, but that was about 11 years ago. Dave and Rachel were there. Anyway, that's not the point now. The point is that last week I hit my nose on something (we will not discuss how I managed to do this, because we all know what a picture of gracefulness I am...not) and it hurt a lot. I was waiting for it to turn into a bruise, but it didn't really. I have what appear to be blackheads where I hit it, but they are not blackheads. They are filled with...blood! Dun dun DUN! Or, just eww. Also, Shannon is all sickly this week and now my throat hurts and my nose is stopped up. Of course, I'm a genious and I took her to UrgentCare the other night and sat in the Sick waiting room with her. Good job, self. Oh well, I'll manage.

I feel so old...

Last night I was watching part of Ugly Betty and one character kept talking about Gabrielle Union's character and Stoneybrook. As soon as they said Stoneybrook, I was like, ohhh, is her secret that she's actually from Connecticut and was a member of the Baby-sitters Club? Cause that would be awesome. Turn sout they were spelling Stoneybrook as Stony Brook. So that's not as fun. But now I can't stop thinking about the Baby-sitters Club books.

Some things that entertained me today, and a random thought

I have been trying to drink more water, cause it's good for you or something. In doing so, I now realize just how little I was actually drinking on a daily basis before. No wonder my skin was ridiculously dry and my cuticles were always pulled back and I sometimes even got my symptom that happens when I get really dehydrated (it's not anything gross, or females only, it would just take too long to explain). I was drinking about 30 oz. a day. Oops. Now, even if I've had more than 30 oz. by say, lunchtime, I will get very very thirsty within about an hour of lunch. Crazyness. So, drinking more is good, but also a pain in the butt. And now for more entertaining topics.



This LA Times article about Oxygen network and it's new makeover is absurd. The "pink pastel ghetto?" Telling us what the GM had for breakfast? Read down until you get to Zalaznick's first quote (reading other funny tidbits along the way). Here's what I have to say about her and her thoughts. H2 O no you di'int! (I swear to you, Tyra Banks actually said that on an episode of Top Model this cycle. That show may be the guiltiest of my guilty pleasure shows.) Zalaznick and co. are the ones who took a website I loved (TWoP) and turned it into something almost completely unrecognisable literally days after its founders left. At least I still have Glarkware. Anyway, my ranting is over, I think. I seriously doubt that I would ever say the words, "That's so Oxygen." Unless maybe I were mocking the network or one of it's crappy shows. Or I used it to describe something crappy. And I totally have taken to saying H2 O no you di'int. Shannon can't get the whole phrase out with a straight face, but I can. You know you're jealous.



Something that really entertained me is this cat box. It is extremely expensive and I don't know that I would want to sit on a cat box anyway, but it's an interesting thought. These are just fun to look at and much cheaper than the bench one. But I'm not in the market for an expensive cat box. And I don't need to hide mine, because it's already hidden away in the laundry room. If I were going to spend $65 on a cat box, I would probably go with the pink house one. ;)



This seems like a conversation my brother might have. If they cared about PacMan or ever noticed when their conversations were completely ridiculous. But still.

This was too long to leave as a comment on Rachel's blog.

I know Rachel was talking a little about American Idol on her blog and I wanted to share this with you. I'm not watching Idol this season because it's on like 15 days each week and I just didn't feel like making that kind of a time commitment this year. I am still reading some of the recaps because they're funny and you don't have to actually watch it to get it. But seriously this recap cracked me up. Just read like the first couple pages and if you hate it, then fine, it's just not your type of humor. I won't press the issue anymore. Kind of like how The Office isn't for everyone because some people really don't care for the awkward, uncomfortable humor. Although I don't necessarily agree with the recapper's opinions(in the unlikely event that Mark actually reads the link, I don't want him to get all umbraged with me about it), I think the recaps are funny.

Also, I wanted to mention that there is a Walgreen's seriously on every other corner in Chicago. I only saw one CVS, but approximately 500 Walgreen's. It just seemed strange to me.

And apparently I can't stop pressing the issue right now. This part of the above recap that I bet you did not click on and read any of was really funny to me. He is talking about David Cook's performance. "Will: "This blows. He could have rocked this out and at least made it interesting. By keeping it the same as you would see in the show he pales in comparison to the real voices that can sing it. Two last notes does not a song make. Drop the Chandelier on him. ALW will now write Idol: The Musical. The most expensive set piece will be Ryan's hair." [If I'd ever heard the song before I have no doubt I would agree more forcefully. As it is, meh. I am not ALW and I did not ask to make out with you, and yet you made that choice for me.]"

So each step she's taking is a step of faith towards who she'll be

I really enjoyed Chicago. When I think about taking a trip, I really want to go to D.C. again and maybe New York and several other places, but I never would have thought about going to Chicago. And I'm not sure why, because there's nothing wrong with it. My hotel was downtown near a lot of stuff because I got a hotel as close as possible to the federal building I had to deliver the proposal to. So I walked about for about 5 hours straight yesterday. I did some shopping (bought some skirts) and went to the Chicago Cultural Center and a museum (can't remember what it was called). I went to the Sears Tower, which was within walking distance of my hotel.
When I got there Monday night, after I checked in to the hotel I went to the Hancock Building and the security/doormen told me to go to the Signature Lounge on the 96th floor instead of paying $12 to go to the observation deck on the 94th floor. They also said, more than once, that the ladies restroom at the Signature Lounge was the place to be. So I went to there, because I take direction well. And they were right. All the walls in the restaurant (and one wall in the bathroom) were windows. It was really pretty. The nighttime view from the Hancock Building was cooler than the daytime view from the Sears Tower. Of course, after I got up there and looked down, I remembered that I have a mild fear of heights. Smooth, Andrea. I walked so much yesterday that when I finally sat down for a few minutes to eat a late lunch, my legs were shaking. It was kind of disturbing because they were shaking violently and I couldn't make them stop. And my feet are still sore today. But it was fun and I didn't even get lost or do anything stupid in the airport. It would have been more fun if I could have found someone to go with me, but it was really short notice. And I managed on my own!

It was a pretty fun weekend with our AL Benzes. We laughed a lot, as is usually the case with Dave and Rachel around. And Rachel helped me figure out something to make my hair better
(products are fun). I started showering at night a couple weeks ago and just leaving my hair alone. Apparently most people didn't realize my hair is wavy because I always pulled it straight while I dried it. Then yesterday was a pretty productive day. I got a lot done and Shannon borrowed someone's real mower and mowed the yard. It got way too tall and thick for the little one to handle. Actually, it got so thick that the real mower kept getting jammed and turning itself off. So now we know, don't wait so long ever again. It looks so much better.

I'm flying to Chicago today and I'm kind of nervous. I've never gone on a trip by myself. I think this will be good for me though. I keep thinking I've forgotten something. Also, I haven't flown in a long time. I know it's a much bigger hassle now. But I think this will be the shortest flight I've ever been on. But the flying part itself isn't what makes me nervous. Anyway, gotta go get some work done before I have to leave.

Young Adult Readings

I noticed earlier that The Face on the Milk Carton was on SoapNet and I couldn't resist watching some of it. I loved that book when I was a kid. I read the first three, and just found out there is a fourth. But I remember liking the first two a lot and thinking the third was so-so. I also distinctly recall being mad about the TV movie because they changed things (other than the fact that the movie combines the first two novels). Like they changed the Springs to the Sands and the Johnsons to the Jessmons for no real reason. How is that a big deal in the movie world? It does make some sense that they took out the twins who were her real little brothers, but I didn't see that when I was a child. And I was mad because her boyfriend Reeve was so much cuter in my head than the dude they cast (he was also Kyle on My So-Called Life). I also recall thinking it was weird that the only people with Southern accents were Sharon Stone and her new sister and even cringing some at the sister's bad acting
(cringing hold up on rewatching). Oops.

My very favorite books when I was a kid were the Anne of Green Gables series. I loved those books so much. I remember that my grandparents gave the set to my cousin for her birthday and I read the back of all of them and really wanted to read them. So when my ninth birthday came a few months later, I also got a set of the books! I was so thrilled. And I read all eight books at least eight times. I learned new words. I was such a nerd. I never looked them up in the dictionary or anything, it was all context clues, so sometimes when I would use these new words I would be a little off. Which, whatever, I was a kid. I do remember that I went through a phase in fourth grade where I said things were queer (I learned it from a book) and I couldn't figure out why my mom would yell at me for saying it. Anyway, I also remember being irritated by the movies based on the first couple of those books. They just didn't fit my mental images.

I still kind of get that way about movies based on books that I've read. Recently I saw Into the Wild and thought, while it did have beautiful scenery, it just wasn't the same as the book. It dragged more than the book, and you can tell that Sean Penn was a little too in love with his subject, where Krakauer obviously saw the folly in McCandless' actions, as well as his reasoning behind them. Penn also saw fit to add an abuse plot for his parents. Which, no, dude. He was a middle-class white kid whose parents made some mistakes(but whose parents didn't?), but there was no abuse. But apparently the real story wasn't exciting enough for Penn. In case you couldn't tell, I don't really care for Sean Penn, as a director or an actor. But that's neither here nor there. On the plus side, Alaska is very pretty.

Migraines ad infinitum

Have you ever run for an hour with a migraine? I now have. And let me tell you, I do not recommend it. By the time I was finished I really wished I would just throw up so I could feel better, but I never did. I'm glad I went even though I felt crappy. And I was nauseated all day Sunday, but I think that was just because I went to my grandma's house on Saturday and so ate like crap because my aunt was there, cooking. But it was good. It's so boring to complain about the same thing all the time, so I've been trying not to whine when my head is pounding. And apparently I am an excellent actress because my parents didn't even know I'd been having chronic migraines again until I told them I'd been back to the neurologist. So, yay for me not being super whiny.
I was making good progress on the book I've been reading, but on Saturday when I went to the gym I decided to take Harry Potter instead because it had been a long week (during which I only missed one day of running) and I deserved some frivolous reading. And then I wound up taking book 2 yesterday. Oops. Shannon's sister lent the books to her, so I'm rereading them since I read them a long time ago. And I'm a giant nerd. Yeah, despite what I said about not reading real books at the gym, I have been taking The Executioner's Song with me. It's a little slower than, say, Harry Potter, but having an hour each day when about all I can do is read is good. Well, I guess I could bring headphones and watch tv, but that would be a hassle.
Also, I have mostly been using bits of lyrics to whatever song is in my head that day as my post titles and the other day after I posted I noticed that my title said "what I am's not good..." and then I started my post by saying I was still better than Dave. I meant better at posting regularly than Dave, but I didn't realize it made a sentence when put together with the post title. It struck me as funny, especially since Dave is one of the best people I know. So I altered it a little so it wasn't as insulting. I love you, Dave-you're awesome and definitely the best big brother ever.

Wish I had an umlaut...

Did all those ads for Google's new custom time mail freak anyone else out? I find it disturbing that they are offering to help people lie to friends, family or employers, even going to so far as to not just predate e-mails, but make it appear that the receiver already read it and forgot. It seems very wrong. Almost related story: there's something wonky about our timestamping here at work and last week my supervisor was out and she e-mailed us a couple times and it kept showing our replies as being received before her e-mails. It was mildly entertaining.

I'm groggy today. I got sleepy about 15 minutes after I took my medicine last night. The bad part is, it was only half a pill and I'm going to be working my way up to two pills. I feel like I have a Benadryl or Flexeril hangover. So I had some coffee earlier. Also, I used to be a super light sleeper, but having two cats has helped break me of waking up with every little noise. They go to bed when I do so we can cuddle for a while, but then they get up and wander around after I go to sleep. Last night, I woke up at 4:27 because I heard this jingling noise. It took me a minute to figure it out because of the grogginess from the medicine, but Kazoo had walked through my room into the laundry room and started eating the cat food. Little turd! We keep the cat food in the laundry room and don't allow him in my room so that won't happen. He's uber allergic to everything and turns bright pink on his stomach when he's been eating stuff he shouldn't like cat food, garbage or people food. Anyway, I sat up just as he was coming back into my room from the laundry room and Kazoo just froze. Like, if I don't move, she won't be able to see me. Not quite, dude. He's such a ridiculous, adorable dog. I adore him, but sometimes I'm just like, really Kazoo? You needed to eat Nerds and then strew them about Shannon's bedroom? I recently discovered he likes baby carrots, apples (but no skin! see? ridiculous), bananas, and oranges. I don't generally feed him because I like to discourage the begging(and his crazy allergies), but he sits and stares at you while you eat. So I threw bits of all of those things at him (on separate days)because I wanted him to leave me alone and I didn't think he would really eat them. But he did. So now when I eat any of those things I give him little bits because he likes them and will twirl around all crazy like for them. I should know better by now...

To fall is not to fail...You fail when you don't try

Yesterday I went to the neurologist for the first time in about 2 years. This migraine has just been kicking my butt for a month now and I broke. It was kind of funnny because he didn't even realize that I had stopped taking all my dailies like a year and a half ago. Oops. But I was almost ok for a long time! Now I'm going back on something. I get to take Elavil, which he said is really good for chronic migraines (and the girl at the pharmacy told me the same thing, without me even asking). So hopefully it will start helping soon. But I didn't make it to the pharmacy to pick it up yesterday, so I will start tonight. People keep telling me it is an old school kind of drug and will make me really sleepy. Like I need to be sleepier. So, let's hope it doesn't knock me out too badly.

Also, I would just like to share that I ate a banana at lunch today. It wasn't bad, just the texture of bananas is so strange that I don't eat bananas, only banana-flavored stuff. I once sat outside for five hours because my mom said I couldn't go inside until I finished my banana. I did not finish it. Do you know how gross a banana gets after being exposed to the air for five hours? Just, no. Anyway, maybe it's kind of like how I wouldn't eat salad until I was 18. I'm just very slowly outgrowing my quirks about food.

Word to Your Mother

This made me giggle. I can't tell you how much I wish this guy were our local weather guy. I love that he's so enthusiastic about it. Watch some of the Dance Party Fridays related videos. There's one where he raps and some girl does the sprinkler. I think he might rival your dancing skills, Rach. Also, I just love some random Vanilla Ice usage. Ice, Ice, Baby is my ringtone for Dave and this weekend when I was at my grandma's house, Dave called and my phone was out so you could even hear the word to your mother part. My grandma was like, what on earth was that? She's awesome.

So I'm changing who I am...cause what I am's not good

I swear I'm still better at posting regularly than Dave! Ummm...but apparently I also have nothing to say. Shannon's parents got her a lawnmower for her birthday because we are responsible for the yard. Which kind of sucks, but is also good, since that means the landlord doesn't care if Shannon feels like planting flowers over every inch of it. Now, I think you all know I have never mowed a lawn before. I have two brothers, so it was never necessary. My mom sometimes would try to convince me by telling us about how she loved to split mowing duties with her brother when they were kids, but I was too smart for that. Anyway, Shannon's mower is completely people-powered. It is small and light, so we can store it in the dungeon without killing ourselves. So, I tried it for a few minutes. It was a little bit fun and probably a lot good for your arms. And now there is less danger of losing Kazoo in the grass. Also, we have one buttercup blooming! The rest of them are kind of straggling. But it's going to be so pretty. And Shannon bought a ton more plants and seeds to plant, so that will be even prettier.

Kazoo has spring fever, so he has been crazy. I think I have spring fever too. I really want to go outside. Which is rather unlike me, as it is hard work to remain this pale. But I was outside this morning and saw a bee, which helped me remember part of why I do not like the outdoors. Once, I was seeing this therapist (KWC payed for students to go to one for like 6 sessions per problem or something) and he told me that I have seasonal affective disorder, but I was like, dude, I really don't go outside and get any vitamin D in the summer either. Really, truly, I do not-how else would I continue to glow in the dark like this? He seemed skeptical. But I don't think I really have SAD. Just so you know, I did not even go back for a second session(he also told me I had issues with my mother. Duh! I had known that for years, Sherlock!). Speaking of vitamins (and my mom), my mom bought me some vitamins that are for women. It's freaking four pills a day. That's not really a problem, because for a while I was taking 6 pills a day, but four vitamins a day? That seems like a lot. But there's a fish oil one and biotin and calcium and a daily multi. So I'm trying it. Fish oil (Omega 3s) is supposed to help with migraines and since as of tomorrow I will have been going strong for four weeks with this migraine, I am willing to try. I am seeing the neurologist on Monday though, so that may be helpful also. It's just kind of ebbing and flowing. Like right now it's not too bad, but this morning I thought my head was going to explode. It just really gets to you after a while and makes you cranky all the time, even when it doesn't hurt a lot(note-this is not the first time I've ever had a migraine daily for four weeks, but it has been a long time since I've had this much trouble with my head). I've gotten ridiculously weepy and way too empathetic. So hopefully either the fish oil or the doctor, or some combination thereof, can assist me soon.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

So I dvr'ed The Return of Jezebel James on Friday because Parker Posey is awesome. I mean, Dazed and Confused, House of Yes, Best in Show, Josie and the Pussycats. Even though she is in some things that make you go hmm...she's usually good. And I like Daniel Palladino and Amy Sherman-Palladino because they did Gilmore Girls, which was quippy and generally good. But this show is awful. It has a laugh track that is incredibly intrusive and annoying. The laugh track is so bad that at first I thought maybe it was one of those show within a show things. Like a show poking fun at the making of a sitcom. But sadly, I was wrong. Even if I were almost amused by something, the obnoxious laugh track would convince me that I wasn't. Every five seconds the "studio audience" is laughing at Parker Posey. I feel like she's not even trying here. It's so weird. They brought in Lorelai's fiance Max from Gilmore Girls; he and Parker had an exchange about Kleenex that went on for far too long and I honestly think the actors were filming their lines in separate rooms. It didn't seem like they were responding to anything at all and that they had possibly never interacted with another person before. And the second episode, which aired right after the pilot, despite featuring Dianne Wiest, was really no better. Still with the laugh track that just seems to point out how not funny the 'jokes' are. And in the pilot she had a big house, but in the second episode she had a huge apartment with a spiral staircase in the corner. Weird choices in set design and acting. Disappointing all around.

In case you didn't know...

I am kind of a bitch sometimes. Now, I don't want anyone to think I think tattoos are stupid or anything, because that is untrue. I am, in fact, fascinated by them and the people who get them. But I think people who get tattoos just to get tattoos are kind of...stupid. Anyway, the other day Shannon was telling me about one of her friends who wants to get a tattoo of a word and she wanted a cool sounding word, a big word. Now to get a tattoo of a word, just any old word that happens to be big (so people will think you're cool, because not only do you have some tattoos, but you have a tattoo of a fun word!), seems stupid to me. So I suggested ostentatious (I realize ostentatious doesn't actually mean tacky, but Shannon and I discussed it and decided it had that connotation, for us anyway).

And we don't care about the young folks, talkin' 'bout the young style

This weekend Shannon and I got a little bored and did some online shopping because we are old and lazy. We bought Benefit's Erase Paste and That Gal face primer. I think the Erase Paste is totally awesome. You know how I usually look like I have two black eyes because my eyelids are kind of purple (just part of my birthmark-doesn't really bother me anymore) and I have huge, really dark blue marks under my eyes (do still bother me and are only getting worse as I get older)? Yeah, well, not today buddy. It's like a super concealer and I think I love it! It was kind of ridiculously expensive for the tiny jar we got, but you really use a tiny amount, so I think it will be worth it. Shannon loved it too, so much so that I think we'll be getting a second jar so that we each have one. The face primer I am less sure about. It seems fine and all, but I don't know if I love it. We may need to give that one a few days. Anyway, just thought I would share my new product crush with you. I love products. Now if only I could find something to keep my chin from peeling. I know, I'm so gross. But my skin is absurdly dry and once it starts, I can't make it stop. I want to put the prescription stuff I put on my eyes to keep them from flaking off, but it's so expensive and comes in such a small tube that I hate to waste it like that. Dilemma! Anyway, suggestions from anyone else out there with really parched sensitive skin?

The only way to pull off manpris is to PULL OFF your manpris.

I don't know if you guys have ever looked at Stuff White People Like, but regardless, I think this might be the most awesome headline I've seen lately.

P.S. Umm, what? It had to be a Kentuckian.

Fear me now!

15

you need that... like a bowling ball dropped on your head, which means not at all

So, yesterday I read that Patrick Swayze has pancreatic cancer, which is sad. But like a month or so ago, Shannon and I made Jack watch Dirty Dancing, simply because he had never seen it. We could not fathom why he had never seen it and seemed to have little desire to (could have something to do with him only being 21 and also a boy, or it could be that Jack hates things that are awesome), so we made him watch it. So this morning, after GMA assured me he wasn't going to die tomorrow or anything, I asked Shannon if she knew what we should make Jack watch in honor of Patrick Swayze.
Shannon: "Dirty Dancing again?!" (Trust me, she sounded excited.)
Me: "No, Ghost!"
And then we had to discuss Ghost and how Whoopi won an Oscar and the film was up for Best Picture, which is just absurd. It kind of surprises me that if Ghost could even be considered for Best Picture that year, that Pretty Woman wasn't also up. I mean, really. Because according to IMDB, Ghost was also up for a Golden Globe for best motion picture-comedy or musical. Now, I think Ghost is kind of funny, but I didn't think it was really supposed to be a comedy. And it's definitely not a musical. I know it has moments when Whoopi is on screen and she is supposed to be comic relief, but if I am remembering correctly, it is not a comedy, it just is funny bad. Or maybe that's just me.

Speaking of movies, I have recently seen the following:
The Darjeeling Limited, which I recommend you watch if you like Wes Anderson movies.
Waitress, which I liked, but it is weird. It's not a romantic comedy, so don't think it's going to be like a Kate Hudson film, because it is decidedly not.
Live Free or Die Hard, which I liked and recommend to my brothers. They would enjoy it. I am a little embarrassed that I watched it and liked it, but you guys already know I like some ridiculously plotted action movies. Also of note, it is PG-13, unlike the previous Die Hards, so Willis' signature saying is out. But there are still some awesome effects and explosions.
Smiley Face, which I only got because I like several of the people in it and think Anna Faris generally does a good job. I think she did the best she could with this, too. It was no Dazed and Confused, that's for sure.

And then Shannon and I watched Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix On Demand and then all the ones they showed on ABC Family this past weekend because we couldn't help ourselves. They are all so good and neither of us has any of them on DVD. And we came to the conclusion that one of us also needs to purchase the books so she can read them (and I can reread them). Because while all the movies are good and I understand that things had to be cut in the interest of making movies that were not miniseries, there are a lot of things missing in the movies. Like poor Ron and Hermione get smaller parts with each new movie (which I think is totally ok in the case of Hermione's SPEW plot in the book-I found it annoying). Anyway, we could get the first six books for like $35 from Amazon, but I kind of want to be a nerd about it and have all seven in paperback rather than six paperbacks and one hardcover. But six books for $35 is awesome, compared to the cost of six of movies!

The playground is where I spent most of my days

So, I was looking at purses online this morning and accidentally came across this. Is that not the most ridiculous, early 90s thing you have ever seen? Except for the fact that it is compatible with ipods. Or something. Anyway, it made me laugh.

Things I recently discovered

Kazoo loves it when people sing.
Skinny Tail gets all hyped up when people speak French. I think she may be a Canadian cat.
Skinny Tail and Fuzzy Tail are scared of storms, but rather than hiding under the bed like normal animals, they huddle separately on top of it.
Some of our windows still have the storm windows in instead of screens. (Are we expected to change them or can we call our landlord to do it?)
The ceiling in our bathroom is slowly falling down. It is mildly disturbing. If only one of us could remember to call the landlord...
Some of the flowers Shannon planted in our yard last year are starting to come up!
Apparently I hum rather frequently without realizing it. Oops.
My car has an oil leak. Whatever, car dude. I totally know how to check the oil and refill it. Not a problem to me!
I need more socks.
I am almost always dehydrated. I'm working on it!
I am super picky about my purses. (I am searching for one now. If you have any places or brands you love, share the knowledge. All the ones I love on Zappos are way expensive.)

I find this mesmerizing

How awesome is this? I think it may be the coolest thing ever to scare the crap out of me. I think it looks really rad, but I would not want to go up or down that.

Anyway, have I mentioned that I love books? I do, and I don't think I've been reading enough, so I've added a thing on the side of books I've read in '08. Hopefully that will motivate me to read more and to read more real books instead of generic crap. Although that doesn't mean I won't be recording the crap that I read just so I would appear smarter or cooler. No, I would not do that, because you fools already know I'm not sophisticated. Also, because that would go against my new policy of honesty. I'm starting a new book today and I'm rather excited.

All alone I built these walls and now I'm gonna let them fall

You know the rules. I am not tagging anyone. Everyone I know has already been tagged, except Christina, so feel free to do it if you so choose, Christina. I also may not follow the rules.

1. I only recently started reading more than one book at a time. And it's really just because real 'literature' books are not suitable for reading while at the gym , so I read regular crap at the gym. I never understood why people would want to start a new book when they weren't finished with the last one.

2. I have always wanted red hair, but I am wary of dying it. So I make do with my brown hair. Even though my mom keeps telling me it's getting darker.

3. I can't fathom why people would want to chew their fingernails. I tried it and, eh. But I do sometimes chew on the skin around my nails. I know, gross.

4. I think my cats think they are dogs. They are such attention whores and never leave people alone.

5. When I was younger, I would get really upset when my mom would tell me that people thought I was snobby because I was really just painfully shy.

6. Even though my brothers have both had lots of problems with their toenails, somehow I have managed not to have any ingrown nails. Which is good because I think feet are disgusting. All feet, not just the Benz feet.

7. I can't stand it when people use big words incorrectly in a failed bid to seem intelligent. Just give it up.

8. Unlike my devious brothers, I pretty much only got in trouble for mouthing off to my mother when I was a teenager. We are finally getting along almost all the time. She even calls me sometimes, which is weird because she never used to call me, since I still live in town and see her at times. Also, she's giving me all the old cups she doesn't want, including the jelly jar Muppet glasses! I love those.

9. I had my tonsils removed when I was 22. It was ridiculously painful. Especially since the doctor hit my uvula with the laser and it was not numbed. It was still totally worth it.

10. I realized the other day that I have been mispronouncing mischievous as mischievious sometimes. Mischievious is not a word. And now I am mortified, but it's not a word I really say much and I doubt anyone around here would notice [I wasn't spelling it wrong, I just apparently wasn't paying attention to the difference in the way I spelled it and the way I (and many other people) say it.]. Still, oops.

Still You listen to every word I say

I've been meaning to post all week and now I can't remember what about. Except for this gem. We went bowling to celebrate my birthday last Saturday and as we were leaving, we paused in the front by the doors to put on our coats and a skeazy dude walked by and started talking to a security guard. The conversation went a little something like this:
Security guard: "Where you been hiding?"
Skeazy dude: "I been in jail, man."
Security guard: "That's a good place to hide."
I never really thought about it, but, wow. We were so at the bowling alley, as Shannon kept saying. My birthday was ok, not great. Although I did decide not to go to work on my birthday. Instead I just got up really early on Monday morning and went in at 6:30. It was a long day.

I got my hair cut tonight and I think I like it. I guess I will know more tomorrow after I wash and dry it. But what I do know I want to say right now is that in my small group on Thursday the lesson we were on was about fears and what you do when faced with yours. Now, I didn't really say anything of substance, which is not unusual because I am afraid of everything. I am so afraid that if I open my mouth and tell people what I think, rather than things I've learned from books, then they will think I am stupid. I almost always handle my fears by ignoring them or running away. I think I should start having the courage to be myself. I am terrified that people will look at me and listen, and see me for what I really am and despise me. I don't share my opinions on much with many people because I am so afraid of displeasing someone. Shannon started harrassing me the other day because she realized that we've been friends for 12 years and she doesn't even know what my favorite restaurant is. I recently noticed that I alter my speech patterns and even my vocabulary to match those of the people I'm talking to. It must be time to do something different. But maybe I should start small. Like asking for help when I need it, instead of being too ashamed of needing it in the first place to even ask. Or just speaking up once next week in small group... We'll see. I know this might seem inconsequential or ridiculous, but I was listening to this song earlier and the lyrics were something like 'I feel guilty sometimes when I pray, Stealing time from needs that are great.' And I almost always feel that way, but I'm going to try not to. Apparently being old has made me uber introspective. But it has also made me tired after a long week and I have to work all day tomorrow and I think it's going to seem much longer than my real job.

Wow.

So it's kind of crazy in the BG this morning. It got all icy on the roads within 30 minutes of the time the freezing rain started. Even thought at 6 this morning they were still saying the freezing rain wouldn't start until after 9. They were so wrong. Unfortunately, I was already on my way to work and now I'm stuck here because there are so many accidents that all the roads are blocked. Three of the 10 people in our office made it in to work. Anyway, I got an e-mail this morning about the death of a family member of someone who works for us and it made me giggle a little because it says the intermittent is to follow the funeral. Yes, intermittent. And now I can't get the "Friends, Romans, countrymen..." speech from Julius Caesar that we had to memorize in the tenth grade out of my head. I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones; so let it be with Caesar. I won't continue with all the honourables and ambitiousness that follows. But for real, I so can't get it out of my mind.

Beaucoup de livres!

Even though I'm ridiculously swamped at work for the next few days, like to the point I should not even take five minutes to write this and I am probably not going to go to lunch, I am doing it anyway because I'm very excited. I ordered some books last week and I got them just now! One of them is an actual book that I think is going to be quite an undertaking. And I got books from Dave and Rachel for my birthday. So now I have two real books to read and several frivolous ones. Thanks guys! I had fun this weekend. Your dog is really sweet and has the silkiest fur ever. You and your kids crack me up.

Lagniappe!

This is the funniest movie review I have ever read. Awesome. And it's not like I'm harboring some secret hatred of Madonna, either. It' s just amusing. Also, this is very entertaining. I love how the reporter got on board with all the chicken puns. Fowl!

I can feel my latent patriotism disappearing...

I got an e-mail about this last night. I had not heard anything about it until I Googled it. And when I did so, as Shannon can attest, I gasped out loud I was so horrified. Now, let me be clear. I am not excited about abortion or anything. It's something I would never do, but I know that it's something that happens. (Sidenote: It drives me crazy when people say they don't believe in something, like divorce or abortion. Obviously divorce and abortion both exist. What you mean is that you don't approve of them! Urgh.) I just don't think that making someone who has already made up their mind to have an abortion look at their ultrasound would really be kind or helpful in any way. Well, here. This girl mostly says what I mean. As we all know, I can't write for shit. Anyway, what I mean is, I don't think that this is something that the government should be legislating.

Yay!

The writer's strike is over! For real. And we even know what's coming back. And it's even snowing here right now, even though Chris Allen said there was nothing on the radar. I like snow enough that I don't really care that it took me a few minutes to get my car door open this morning because it was icy. Awesome day.

Three posts in one day?!

I would like to preface this by saying I think this was written by an adolescent. But there is nothing on TV tonight.

1. Has anyone seen you in your underwear lately? No.

2. Is it awkward when you run into your exes? I don't run into them, so whatever

3. Have you kissed someone this past week? No

4. When did you last talk to your brother or sister? I actually spoke with Dave, then Rachel, then Mark yesterday. Hat trick!

5. What did you do the last time you were home alone? Dumped stuff from the DVR to DVD and took Kazoo for a walk. I'm not home alone very often.

6. Do you ever wanna know who you are going to marry? What kind of weird question is this? This survey seems to be exceptionally strange, Christina.

7. Have you ever watched the Real World? Not lately.

8. How much cash do you have on you? I actually have like $35 dollars. Bonus!

9. Who are the 3rd and 7th texts in your phone? They are from Jennie and Mark, but this question is worded all wrong.

10. Are you tanned? Never

11. Are you upset with anyone? Just myself...

12. who are you not talking to? Uhh, no one that I can think of.

13. Have you ever seen your best friend cry? Yes.

14. Did you get any compliments today? Yes.

15. Have you ever gone to court? I've been to the courthouse.

16. Are you friends with your neighbors? No...but they were the jerks who moved and abandoned their puppy, so I don't feel bad about it.

17. Have you ever punched a guy? Not really.

18. Do you get jealous easily? Don't think so.

19. Have you ever played Spin the Bottle? No

20. Bricked someones house? No

21. Have you ever had a crush on your brother or sisters friends? I'm embarrassed to admit that once upon a time, I did. But it's not like I was ever good at hiding anything, so I think you peeps already knew that.

22. Have you ever gone to the beach? Yes, several times.

23. What are you listening to? LA Ink. I'm afraid to get a tattoo, but I'm fascinated by the tattoos of others.

25. How good is your eyesight? Not good at all. About 20/400. I love my dad, but the only genetic gift he gave me is bad eyesight!

26. Would you ever want to swim with the sharks? No, that sounds like a bad idea.

27. Have you ever been out of your country? Yes.

28. Would your parents be mad if you got arrested for fighting? Let's think about who my parents are for a minute...aaaand the answer is yes! Although it is highly unlikely that I would get in a physical fight.

29. Do you have a Honda, Toyota or Nissan? Yes, a Nissan.

30. What time did you wake up this morning? 6:50 am.

31. What are you doing Saturday? Hanging out with some awesome Benzes!

32. What is in your back pocket? I'm wearing pajama pants-no back pocket. Although that reminds me I need to get the two dollars out of the pants I wore to work.

33. What were you doing at 3am this morning? Sleeping.

34. What do you usually do first in the morning? Brush my hair and then shower.

35. Ever went in a car with people you just met? Not that I recall.

36. Made out for more than 3 minutes? Probably.

37. Slept in a different bed? Yes.

38. Made out in a cinema? No. If I actually go see a movie, then it's a movie I really want to see and also I want to get my money's worth.

39. drove in a car with people you just met? I think this is a repeat

40. Thought your cousin was hot? No. So inappropriate.

Sports are dangerous...

This is insane. I can't believe that guy is ok. This is why I have always maintained that hockey is way more hardcore than other sports. Dudes are flying around the ice and getting into fights with what amount to weapons strapped to their feet. And I was reading about this and learned about this business, which is even crazier. It almost made me cry. Because I'm just like that. And then I remembered that dude who was skateboarding and lost his board and fell really far and hit so hard that his shoes flew off. Sports are crazy.

Take back your free advice - I don't accept.

I went to the eye doctor this morning. Getting old stinks. My right eye moved three steps and my left eye moved two. I didn't even realize how much I wasn't seeing until I put the contacts in the new prescription in. I mean, I knew my eyes had changed because the words on the screen at church have been fuzzy for a while. But that wasn't a huge deal because I know all the songs. And the last couple times we've actually had new songs, they have been ones I had just learned at Dave and Rachel's church (where the screens are easier to read). But that's neither here nor there. The point is, my eyes are screwed by genetics and the fact that I do a lot of computer work. At least Dr. Love gave me some more stuff to keep my eyes from peeling. Yay for eyelids that aren't falling off! Also, she was very impressed by my eyelashes. So I told her it was just that I have good mascara. She didn't think that $25 was too much for mascara. And I guess since it is the best mascara I've ever used, it's not too bad. Thanks, Rachel!

You're crazy for thinking I'm above this

I've been having a lot of problems with my head lately. So today I got to just sit around and do nothing and it was awesome. My head actually feels better and I hope that maybe it will stay that way for a few days, at least. I saw The Namesake, which I liked. And A Mighty Heart, which was very good. Both of them made me cry, but I totally knew it was coming with the latter, seeing as how we all know how that one ends.

I think I am ready to cut part of my hair. I don't want to lose the length, but it's time to do something. I can't do anything with it and it takes forever to dry. So...a real haircut is coming up soon! As you know, I haven't had a real hairstyle in many, many years. In fact, it's been so long, it's making me feel old. I guess it's because my birthday is coming up and I am about to be in my upper middle twenties that everything is making me feel old lately.

cool blue reason wraps around my throat

So last night, Shannon and I realized that while we thought our neighbors had moved out this weekend, we both saw their dog yesterday. We went to investigate further and it would appear that they did move out and the jerks left their puppy on the screened-in-porch. The dog is, we believe, under six months old and he is a pit mix. He's really sweet and really skinny. So we gave him some food and water and talked to him and Shannon was going to feed him again this morning. We are trying to find someone who wants him, rather than taking him to the Humane Society. We both got all riled up about the situation, and then more so when we realized how skinny he is. We saw the dog outside a lot before, but he wouldn't ever come near us because he was scared of Kazoo.

One more thing. We were watching the returns last night and CNN kept "projecting" that so and so won such and such state. Which, like, fine. But they were projecting when only one percent of the returns were in! Really, CNN? One percent? That is ridiculous. Shut up, Wolf Blitzer. Get back to me when you have more than one percent. Also, how surprising were the GOP results? Insanity. Anyway, I have work to do.

Happy Mardi Gras and Super Tuesday!

It's Super Tuesday! I am also very excited by this, Christina. On a note unrelated to things I am excited by, I actually watched the Superbowl this year. We found it pretty dull until like the last two minutes. Shannon got so bored she forgot to cheer when something finally did happen. We got internet at the house this weekend, so that was cool. I saw The Descent this weekend, which if you're into horror movies, is worth it. I know it came out like a year and a half ago here, but I am slow. I jumped a couple times and, as Shannon said, we are never going cave diving! Not that that was something I planned to do before, but still. It's a little slow at the beginning, but once things start happening, they don't stop until the bitter end. Which I read was different here in the U.S. because we weren't satisfied by the unambiguous U.K. ending. Whatever. Not all movies have to end happily. And even with the altered ending, I came to the conclusion that the U.K. ending made readily apparent. Anyway, I liked it. I also watched A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints, which was one of the free movies on the On Demand thing. It was worth it, since it was free. It was strange and I am not prepared to say it was bad, but I'm also not going to tell you it was good. Also, did any of you guys watch Eli Stone last week? I watched because I love Greg Berlanti shows, but I have mixed feelings about it. The pilot didn't grab me.

You're crazy for thinking I'm below you

So I've been really busy at work for the past couple weeks, which you may have deduced from the dearth of posts. But I'm not swamped today, so yay! It's been all cold again, so I'm glad that my mom bought Shannon and I blankets. I actually had to put extras on my bed. As Shannon pointed out, I could just bring in the other space heater my dad bought us, but that would be a hassle. I would be afraid that the cats would knock it over and start a fire or something.

Last night Kazoo told me he likes Bush and that he wants to vote for Hillary. I was quizzing him about politics and I could tell because he got all excited and tried to lick my face when I mentioned those two names (not in the same sentence or anything, because...no). Anyway, I was reading an item today about how the lady on A Daily Show last night mispronounced Obama's first name. Which I noticed while watching it, but what they failed to note was that the lady he had on Wednesday night also mispronounced Obama's first name. It seems very strange that two people who are going on a show to talk about politics would not know how to pronounce a candidate's name.

From Rachel

1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:00 AM

2. Diamonds or pearls? Yes

3. What was the last film you saw at the movies? Atonement. I am conflicted about it...

4. What is your favorite TV show? I'm not sure.

5. What do you eat for breakfast? Water

6. What is your middle name? Rachel

8. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Jack's Mannequin-Everything in Transit

9. What kind of car do you drive? Sentra

10. Favorite sandwich? I guess peanut butter and jelly

12. Favorite item of clothing? Pajama pants!

13. If you could go anywhere in the world for a vacation, where would you go? Europe

14. What color is your bathroom? White

15. Favorite brand of clothing? Rachel got me hooked on Gap

16. Where would you retire? I don't know...that is a really long way off

17. Most memorable birthday? Eighth. I got to have a party at the CLC and when we had my family party at our house, my grandfather had to take my dad to the hospital because he had a kidney stone.

18. Favorite sport to watch? Basketball

19. Furthest place you are sending this? The World Wide Web

Deleted by blog author... haha

22. Favorite saying? No se.

23. When is your birthday? February

24. Are you a morning person or a night person? Depends on what I'm going to be doing at those times.

25. What is your shoe size? 7 1/2

26. Favorite food for dinner? Spaghetti

27. What did you want to be when you were little? A teacher

28. What are you doing today? Working...

29. What is your favorite candy? I love Skittles, but I can only a few before my jaw starts to hurt.

30. What is your favorite flower? The kind that blooms

31. What day are you looking forward to most on your calendar? Whatever day I get my tax return

32. What church do you attend? Living Hope

33. What are you listening to right now? People talking down the hall

34. What was the last thing you ate? Potato soup

35. Do you wish on stars? No.

36. Do you believe in angels? Yes

37. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Green?

38. What is your pet peeve? When people mispronounce words that are clearly spelled the way they should be said. E.g. nuclear, realtor, supposedly, library, ask, across. You know...

39. Last person you spoke to on the phone? My dad

40. Do you like the person who sent this to you? Not even a little...

41. Favorite soft drink? Dr. Pepper, right now

42. Favorite restaurant? Kyoto, right now

43. Favorite movie? I don't know

44. Siblings? Yes

45. Favorite day of the year? Thanksgiving Day

46. Favorite day of the week? Saturday

47. Spring or fall? Fall

48. Hugs or kisses? Hugs

49. Chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate

Deleted because it has nothing to do with my blog

51. What is under your bed? Nothing

52. Who is the friend you've had longest? Christina

53. What did you do last night? Made dinner and watched House

54. Favorite smell? Clean laundry

55. What are you afraid of? Bugs, especially ones that fly

56. How many keys on your key ring? I am going to guess 7

57. How many years at your current job? In two months it'll be three years

58. Favorite city to visit? Washington D.C.

59. How many towns have you lived in? Two

60. Do you make friends easily? No. I don't make good first impressions, or second. But I, too, tend to keep the friends I do manage to make for a long time.

Some people suck...

This is despicable. Those people are so disgusting. I would link to their actual site, but just reading about them on Wikipedia made me cry. So, no. I didn't visit their site, even though it is on that press release. That much vitriol directed at everyone and everything makes me sad. It's "Christians" who behave like that that give the rest of us a bad name. This is the same group who picketed Matthew Shepard's funeral and the funerals of soldiers who died in Iraq. Picketing a funeral...nauseating.

TV Talk, mostly

I know Rachel mentioned coming in fourth when we went bowling, but guess who came in third...that's right, me! I beat my previous personal best by about 30 points when I bowled a 110. I was shocked. And so was everyone else. Including the guy bowling next to us. Anyway, I finished My So-Called Life and lent it to Rachel. It was just as awesome as I remembered. I really like that the kids wear the same clothes repeatedly. I'm not sure if they did that for the realism or simply because they had a small budget, but either way, I like it. And it inspired discussions of when everyone wore flannel and clothes that were way too large, rather than way too fitted.
Yesterday I had a nice relaxing day off and finally got to watch the last two episodes of Heroes that had been sitting on my DVR since 11/26 and 12/03, respectively. I know a lot of viewers were less than thrilled with the first volume of the second season, but I didn't hate it. I must admit, I am glad they killed off at least part of the annoying twins and possibly Niki, too. I found her character kind of silly all along. I am also so thrilled that they didn't kill Kristen Bell. I was worried for her character when I saw the promos about two heroes giving their lives. So, yay. But none of you clowns even watch Heroes, so I don't know why I'm detailing it for you. I should be working.

I seem to have lost my mind...

I have been obsessing about my teeth lately. I know that if you dream about your teeth falling out it can mean you feel a loss of control (and sometimes I do dream that my teeth are loose and start falling out, but not lately). I have been worrying over my teeth while I am awake. And also, I don't think I have ever felt in control and it's hard to lose something you've never had. Anyway, I think they are moving and getting crooked, which is possible, I suppose, since I got my braces off 12 years ago. Although I didn't stop wearing my retainer until about 5 years ago. I think one of my front teeth isn't as far forward as the rest and it is really irritating me. I keep catching myself pushing it forward with my tongue, like that would really help. It really bothers me when things are uneven. Like if I break one nail, then I file all the rest of them down too so that they are all even, my eyebrows not matching drives me insane and the fact that one side of my nose is bigger than the other kills me. I am rather OCD about certain things. More things than I realized, apparently. I was already aware that I wash my hands rather obsessively. I wash them after I pet any animals, after I let the dog out, before I get a drink, before I wash dishes, after I wash dishes, after any cleaning activity, before I eat, after I eat, sometimes more than once while I am eating, after I put on or touch shoes, after I get out of the shower, but before I put in my contacts. And if I am cooking anything, forget it. It gets absurd. I wash my hands before and after I even stir anything, which seems silly because I'm not even touching the actual food, just the utensil handle. It's no wonder my knuckles get so dry that they sometimes crack and bleed. Wow, this post makes me sounds really manic. I think I will quit while I'm behind by ending with a slightly modified cliche.

Get behind Jesus

Today I found the thing that cracks me up early in the day. I mean, it basically says click here to see the miracle of this dog's butt. Awesome.

Fish 'n Flush has nothing to do with giving your pet a lousy funeral

This weekend was pretty nice. I worked part of the day with my dad on Saturday, but I didn't have to do anything on Sunday, so that was relaxing. I saw The Bourne Ultimatum, which was good despite having a dearth of dialogue. But what really has a dearth of dialogue is Shoot 'Em Up. I enjoyed it because it was completely ridiculous (fortunately that was what it was going for).
Yesterday someone called and needed me to explain some TV stuff for them. Now, I could understand me maybe being the person to ask about television programming, but if I am the person you know who you would go to with questions about televisual devices, that is scary. One day my dad called me and said he had a TV question for me and I was like, uh, have you lost your memory? But no, it was about TV programmes. Anyway, this TV and movie themed post has been spectacularly boring. Sorry.

Something that cracked me up today. Also, on the distributors page-it makes me sad for Canada that there is only one place in the whole country where you can go look at them.

Yay, Winter!

It is totally snowing here right now! I'm sure it won't really stick or amount to anything, but it's still pretty. It's making my car look less ghetto. ;)

Watch out, y'all, she'll chew you up

Since I came dangerously close to talking about politics yesterday, I am now going to bring this blog back to the usual superficial level. I don't know if you watch America's Next Top Model, but in any given week, there is a ninety percent chance that there will be a marathon of it on MTV or VH1. The other day, during a marathon of Cycle 5, in which the judges repeatedly discuss their lack of comprehension of Danielle's speech, I wondered what their problem was. Then I realized that I could understand her clearly only because I, too, am from the south. Although, when I had car trouble this summer and had to call the Alabama Highway Patrol, I actually could not understand the guy who answered the phone. I only caught about four words. It was bad, y'all. ;)

Can I express how thrilled I am that McCain came out on top in New Hampshire yesterday? He and Romney thrashing Huckabee=awesome. And Hillary's surprise win means things are going to be even more interesting than we thought. Here's the thing about my political leanings-not that many people even know what they are. As Shannon told me yesterday, I don't make a lot of declarative statements. I don't like to upset people and people always get all worked up when you don't agree with their political beliefs. But I did go off the other day about voting in general. If you don't vote, you suck. Anyway, I think I'm going to start actually disagreeing with people when I disagree with them, consequences be damned.

Also, I was looking at the classifieds yesterday and there was an ad for a Speed Language Pathologist. Our paper is about as absurd as our local television.

I'm still here...

Despite what this may look like, I am not turning into Mark with regards to blogging. I've just been really busy at work and whatnot. So Christmas was fine, New Year's was fun. I learned that I can do things to hair, just not my own. I even learned to use hot rollers and a flat iron. I know, I used to fix my hair every day, but I did it with a curling iron. So now I know more. But I still can't do anything with mine. I'm thinking about cutting it off again. It's driving me crazy. And all the people I know with short hair look so adorable. So I could cut it and then it wouldn't take as long to dry, but I would have to fix it every day. I'm weighing my options.

Anyway, last week was very exciting, what with the caucuses and all. Super Tuesday is less than a month away. And while we watched the returns, Chuck Norris was very amusing to watch bobbling around behind Huckabee while grinning like an idiot(Chuck Norris being the one who was grinning like an idiot. I think it goes without saying that Huckabee always grins like an idiot. Oops, I just said it.). But we are not going to talk about my political views because then people get all upset. And of course, Stewart and Colbert returned to late night last night, so that was interesting. I was wondering how they were going to pull it off since they are both WGA members and so cannot write even for themselves, but it wasn't bad. It wasn't the same, but since it's an election year, having them back in any form is better than nothing. I like politics, but I also like watching the professionals make fun of politics. Although, since they didn't want to be there, it wasn't the same for more reasons than just the lack of writers. And I'm trying to understand where the line is between preparation and actual writing because some of the bits had obviously been set up ahead of time. If you know, please explain it to me.

Shannon and I never got our washer fixed, so all through the holidays I took my dirty laundry with me wherever I went. Which, since it was me and all, no one even seemed to think was strange. But last night her aunt brought us a new used one that works, so that was really cool. And I received two bills from Atmos for the apartment I haven't lived in in more than two months. So I called and apparently the just turned off the gas over there in my name in December. But they aren't charging me for anything because they went back and listened to the recording they made of my call and I did request that they turn it off back in October. The agent just failed to do so. So I get credit back from Atmos for the credit I already had with them that they had been using to pay that bill and we still got a month and a half of free gas from them since they set up the meter wrong at the new place. Bonus!

I can't believe they taking Warren's wealth!

I totally filled this out several days ago and my title went along with Rachel's but then I forgot to finish it and now it's like a week later. I'm slow...
1. When you're home alone, do you still close the door when you shower? Yes. If I didn't there would be all manner of animals coming in to harass me.

2.Has a friendship ended recently that you wish hadn't? Maybe

3. Do you like your music loud or at a reasonable level? Reasonably loud?

4. Would you rather talk on the phone or chat in person?In person. I hate talking on the phone unless that's the only way I can speak with the peeps. Like Rachel and Dave.

5. If you had one whole day to yourself, what would you do? Watch trashy TV and sleep.

Can you watch scary movies alone? Yes.

6. Is anything bothering you? Lots of things are bothering me.

7.Would you rather stay home all day, or be out and about? Depends on the day.

8. Do you like to keep the peace or be confrontational? Keep the peace. But I have been known to confront when it becomes a necessity.

9. Are you more likely to be with a large group of people or a few close friends? A few close friends.

10. What are your plans for October? Like I know. That's almost a year away.

11. Are you listening to music right now? Only the music on the movie my grandma is watching.

12. What is your ideal profession? I do not know

13. Cutest moment this week? All the moments I saw Zoe and Addie?

14. What are you doing this weekend? I will be traveling to AL to celebrate ten years of marriage with the peeps.

15. What is one fear that you can't seem to overcome? Yeah, I am with you on the bugs, Rach.

16. Are you in a good mood? I guess so.

17. What's stashed under your bed? Nothing.

18. Is there anyone you regret ever meeting? Absolutely.

19. On the opposite sex where do you like them to have piercings? No place.

20. Would you rather have roommate or live alone? I think Shannon and I are doing pretty well as roommates...

21. Do you like to drive? Not especially, but it's really a necessity in the BG.

22. What is your favorite thing to wear? Pajamas!

23. If you found out that you were going to be a parent, what would you do? Wonder how that happened. And then call Rachel.

24. Are you talking to anyone while doing this? Nah.

25. When were you the saddest in your whole life? I'm going to have to say my sophomore year of high school. All kinds of hell broke loose at our house that year and everything made me cry. Seeing Dave in band made me cry and seeing Dave's empty chair in band when he didn't show made me cry. It was just bad...

26. Ever had ugly thoughts about someone you love? Well who hasn't?

27. Have you ever made someone so mad that they broke something? I don't think so...

28. You have 3 months left to live, what do you do? Hang out with my peeps as much as possible?

29. You're having a bad day, what's one thing that can make your day better? Hugs. Barring that, ranting.

30. What makes you mad? Bad drivers, stupidity.

31.What do you hate the most about yourself? Yeah, I'm not getting into that right now.

32. Do you remember when you lost your innocence? Yes, I was nine. We are talking about mental innocence, yes?

33. Is there anything you would change about your body if you could? Yeah, I'm not getting into that either.

34. You wake up in an unfamiliar place, what is your first reaction? Try to reorient.

35. Is there anything that you should be doing right now? Probably.

36. Do you hide who you really are to keep your family happy? No, I suck at hiding. Unless I really want to...

37. If there was a way to know when and how you're going to die, would you like to find out? Not particularly.

38. Your phone rings at 4am, who do you expect it to be? Some family member telling me that someone has died.

39. Do you hate anyone? Not usually.

40. Would you ever give your number out over the internet? No.

41. Do you go to school? No.

42. Who are your top friends and why are they there? I don't remember.

43. If you could go back and change one thing from your past, what would it be? I would have to really think about that, because as we all know, I remember everything and there are a lot of things I don't like about it.

44. Do you ever lie to make someone happy? Not really.

45. Do you believe your dreams/nightmares hold truth? Sometimes.

46. Do you think human life is too short? Why or why not? Sometimes it seems that way. But I think we are here for the time God wants us to be. And I wouldn't want to live forever. Ditto

47. What is your worst death you can imagine for yourself? I would have to think about that for a while too and I mostly want to go to bed now. So, no answers.

48. What person are you most afraid of and why? Yeah, don't want to get into that either.

Awesomeness

I went home yesterday and we had received what should have been our first real gas bill. The first bill was just the meter set fee. But this new one was also a meter set fee. We had been waiting for this so we could find out if we should jack our heat down because our heater, stove, and water heater are all gas and we weren't sure how much winter was going to cost us. Also, the stove is being used more than you might think. So I called the gas company and it turns out that they made an error in our favor. When they set up the meter the first time, it wasn't right, so even though we've been using gas for a month and a half, we don't have to pay for that gas because they had to come back out and redo the meter. Bonus!

What kind of soap is in your bathtub? Dove Cucumber and Green Tea. It smells clean. And Shannon uses Oil of Olay.

Do you have any watermelon in your refrigerator? No

What would you change about your living room? Have it not be paneled.

Are the dishes in your dishwasher clean or dirty? Shannon is my dishwasher. The dishes in the sink are dirty

What is in your refrigerator? Milk, Dr. Pepper, fruit, Cherry Kool-Aid, water, turkey, cheese, mayo, yogurt, leftover chicken and rice, sweet tea in a jug, eggs, jelly, mashed potatoes

What is on top of your refrigerator? A little plastic gingerbread man and some red dust. I don't know if you know this, but when you make red Kool-Aid, the fine red dust gets on all the surfaces in the kitchen.

What color or design is on your shower curtain? Pink flowers.

How many plants are in your home? Well none, but I have a plant I need to bring over there. We also have bulbs in the dungeon.

Is your bed made right now? No.

Comet or Soft Scrub? If those are my choices, I guess Soft Scrub.

Is your closet organized? Sort of.

Do you drink out of glass or plastic most of the time at home? Plastic.

Do you have iced tea made in a pitcher right now? Eww. There is some tea in a jug though.

If you have a garage, is it cluttered? Don't have one. Only a dungeon.

Curtains or blinds? Both.

How many pillows do you sleep with? There are four on the bed, but I only use two at a time.

Do you sleep with any lights on at night? No. Sometimes I put the TV on sleep timer though. And then I wake up in the middle of the night still wearing my glasses.

How often do you vacuum? Every couple of days.

Standard toothbrush or electric? Standard.

What color is your toothbrush? Pink and white.

Do you have a welcome mat on your front porch? Yes.

What is in your oven right now? Nothing. It would be foolish of me to be baking while I'm not at home.

Is there anything under your bed? No.

Chore you hate doing the most? I do not like doing dishes. I don't mind the pots and pans, it's just the actual dishes that are gross to me.

What retro items are in your home? My kitchen table and chairs (thanks, Balls!), our stove, a cookie jar shaped like a mushroom, some of Shannon's dishes, a pitcher and glass set and probably some other stuff.

Do you have a separate room that you use as an office? We don't do office things at home.

How many mirrors are in your home? Thirteen. But many of them are just small and decorative.

What color are your walls? Some of them are paneled and some of them are white.

Do you keep any kind of protection weapons in your home? Kazoo barks like crazy when people he doesn't know come to the door.

What does your home smell like right now? Like a house?

Favorite candle scent? I like ones that smell like clean laundry or the kind from K-mart that smell like tuberose or the ones from Wal-mart that smell like honeysuckle. Ones that smell good.

What kind of pickles (if any) are in your refrigerator right now? No pickles.

Ever been on your roof? No, it's very slanted so that would be difficult.

Do you have a stereo? Yes.

How many house phones? None.

Do you have a housekeeper? Nope.

What style do you decorate in? Cheap and pretty?

Is there a smoke detector in your house? Two, but I recently checked and they have no batteries. So we should get on that.

In case of fire, what are the items in your house which you'd grab if you could make only one trip? Shannon, since she would sleep right through a fire, my purse, the animals?

I am ridiculously old and tired today

I'm no Rachel, so my Christmas shopping is not quite finished. But it's close. Anyway, last week I was speaking to Mark and asked him what he wanted for Christmas. He was really not at all helpful, but that's alright because later that day I remembered that I had ordered and received Mark's Christmas present three months ago. I got so far ahead of myself on that one that I completely forgot. So one less left. I just noticed that I seem to be a fan of ellipses. And I just suddenly got so tired that my head started tipping forward. Wow. I am very sleepy. I think it's probably because I took a nap yesterday and thus had difficulty sleeping last night. Shannon wanted to watch The Matrix because it happened to be on and while I haven't seen the first one in a while, I have seen it more than once. So...the nap happened. And because of that I missed the awesome part with all the shooting.

Christmas songs...

So I totally did not do that Christmas thing everyone else did, but I was thinking about what my favorite Christmas song might be. I think I'm going to have to go with Mark on Angels We Have Heard on High. Or maybe Go Tell It On the Mountain. But we only ever sing the chorus of that one. And I too, like Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella and Lo How A Rose E'er Blooming, but we really never sing those at my church. And another one I love is In the Bleak Midwinter, but I'm pretty sure the last time I heard that one sung was about ten years ago. Sad, because it's a good song. I jacked some Christmas cds from my parents' house, but I don't think Bring a Torch or In the Bleak Midwinter are on any of them. The frosty wind made my house moan the other night. I do love to be able to lie in bed and be cozy and listen to wind or rain.

Ta-dah! Now featuring the Paneled Palace!

These three are of the front room. Very exciting stuff, I know. This one has our non-functional fireplace in it. Fuzzy tail likes to use the bricks as a scratching post. I don't have a problem with this. Even though the actual scratching post is right next to it (pictured-scratching post with skinny tail sitting on it).

This is the living room. Where we watch tv and complain about things. I lead a thrilling life.

Here is our lovely bathroom. We like pink and purple, did you know?

Here is the door to the bathroom in our little hallway.
This is our hardworking floor unit. I couldn't get a picture of the flame in the middle without getting my shoes in the picture. Oh well.
This is Kazoo, wearing a sweater that is a little too big, so he wouldn't get up until we took it off of him. He's very particular.
This is fuzzy tail. She was walking by. Skinny tail was hiding under the table. No photos today, please.
And this is our brass monkey who lives on the stove. He is really made of brass. And makes me start singing that song.

Any questions, comments, snide remarks?

Family House

We got a new refrigerator whatever day the other one broke, but I'm a little sad because it's not Harvest Gold like our old one. I mean, it keeps our food cold, so yay. But it's just off-white. That just ruins the 70s theme we had going in the kitchen, what with the old refrigerator and my (Dave and Rachel's) kitchen table and chairs and Shannon's grandma's cookie jar that looks like a mushroom and the cool orange pitcher and glasses that we use only for decorative purposes. Ok, I just googled harvest gold appliances and could only come up with an old advertisement for a stove. That makes me sad that I didn't take a picture of the fridge so I could put it out there. And as far as 70s decor goes, who could forget the paneling once they've seen it? Oh, Rachel, you had posed the question-paneling or panelling. It is either or both. I hate words like that because then neither looks correct. Worshipping or worshiping? Traveling or travelling? Urgh. I like to deal in absolutes.
Anyway, I took some pictures of the main rooms. Shannon's mom and stepdad came last weekend and put up curtains for us. I forgot to take a picture of the kitchen. Maybe after we get curtains in there. I'm going to go somewhere later and load the pictures into a puter so I can post them in case you care. No pictures of my room though. It's very bland so far. I did take a picture of Kazoo wearing a silly sweater and whichever cat was wandering past me at the time. Shannon had me about ready to change their names to nice one and mean one, but then the mean one started being nice to Shannon again, so now she's skinny tail. And the other one is fuzzy tail. By the way, mean one/skinny tail was never mean to me. But fuzzy tail stopped coming out of my room earlier this week and I was getting worried. It seemed as though she was scared of something, but I don't have a clue what. She started coming out again yesterday, so I guess she got over it. It was just strange.

Arrr, ye scurvy dogs!

My Thanksgiving was kind of depressing. What with the funeral on Sunday and my grandma telling me in detail all about the wreck that killed my grandfather and all the discussion of my aunt Rachel's terminal illness. Although I learned that my grandma has a ridiculously good memory. Not just about terrible things in recent years, but also things from her own childhood. It's pretty impressive.

The trip to Pensacola was long. We decided not to stop Saturday night, so we got there about 2:30 am. And the we got back to BG about 1:00 am last night. I overslept a bit this morning and I have the beginnings of a migraine. I went home at lunch and Shannon told me our refrigerator was broken. Apparently instead of blowing cold air, it now blows hot air on our food. Awesome. Add to that our washer refusing to drain so that it has some really gross water in it now that smells like butt. Our landlord has to fix the refrigerator, but it's not his washer, so it's not his problem.

Enough whining for today. An awesome thing happened on the trip. Before I left, I was at my parents' house because they wanted me to come help them decorate for Christmas. My mom asked me if I had any cash for the trip, which, no. I don't generally carry cash other than a few dollars in quarters. My dad gave me a few gold dollar coins to take because they thought I should have dollars. We stopped to eat along the way and I handed the cashier five dollar coins. He looked at me and said, "You're kidding, right?" I was like, no, those are totally real money. And then my friends were like, don't you see, she's a pirate and so she's paying with gold doubloons (I happened to be wearing a t-shirt with a Jolly Roger on it)! The kid behind the counter was not as amused as we were. And then he kept wandering around eavesdropping on us while we ate. Apparently we were exceedingly entertaining. I'm a pirate!

Happy Thanksgiving!

My computer at work was acting weird Monday, so our computer dude came and took it away. Turns out my harddrive was shot. So I got another new used computer Tuesday afternoon. At least he updated my Office so I can use all the applications on our bookkeeping program. Yay.

So the thing is, I love buying people presents and I get all excited about the holidays, but spending so much time with my family gives me migraines. I have been having a lot of trouble with them lately. And I love my family, but they stress me out. I went to Birmingham with my parents over the weekend because, hey, free ride. My dad doesn't like the way music sounds on the speakers in his van, so we listened to talk radio. And I discovered that although I may be very conservative compared to some of my friends, I am extremely liberal compared to all the people in my family over 40. I can't win.

Some things I am thankful for-

A gas stove. I had never used one before, but they heat your food up so quickly.

A floor unit heater. I discovered the best part about this last week when it was actually cold outside and I wore a sweater dress to work (I also really love that dress). I went home and let the dog out and then stood over the grate for a minute and it warmed up my legs immediately.

Tights. I love cold weather because then you get to wear tights. I love tights.

DVR. The most incredible device ever. Except I saw this thing on GMA that is kind of like an ipod, but for books. That seemed really awesome. I have spent every trip I've taken since I could read dragging tons of books around with me on trips. That thing seems so much more efficient. But I digress.

My family and friends, of course. I found out just how great most of them are when I was sick.

Being able to eat regular food again! I feel much, much better. I was even going to go to the gym yesterday, but then Shannon and I both got sidetracked.

The worst part about holidays (other than the migraines) is all the traveling. It won't be so bad this year because we're just going to Owensboro after work today and then leaving there for Louisville Friday and coming home Friday night. But I think I am going to Pensacola Saturday. I think we're going to stop at the halfway point in Birmingham on Saturday night because we're not leaving until about 5 since one girl has to work Saturday. And then we will get up and head on to Pensacola, go to a funeral and then come straight home because most of us have to work Monday morning. My friend Kristine's mom died on Sunday and the funeral is this Sunday afternoon. Please pray for Kristine and her family.

Random

Rules:

1- Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.

2- Share 7 random and or weird things about yourself.

3- Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.

4- Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.



1. I keep crying when I read about the writers strike. It's just so awesome how much support they are getting from their showrunners and actors and higher-ups. Conversely, the way they are being treated by the AMPTP is egregious.

2. I am really excited to be living with Shannon again because she is the only close friend I've ever had who wears the same size shoe as I do. And she has some really cute shoes.

3. I went to Europe for two weeks when I was sixteen.

4. I love to read and will read pretty much anything anyone gives to me. Except Cold Mountain-I've started that book three times because it was supposed ot be good. But each time I was so incredibly bored that I couldn't even get into it.

5. The sheets I want really badly are $160, so I won't be getting them anytime soon.

6. I prefer dogs that don't try to lick people all the time. That's the part about dogs that makes me wash my hands frequently when I'm around them.

7. You wouldn't know it from the way I write here, because I suck at writing, but I kicked both my brothers' butts as far as vocaulary levels on the Free Rice thing.



Tagging: I'm not going to tag anyone, because anyone I might've tagged has already done this or wouldn't do it anyway. Except I could tag Christina. Whatever.

Word Nerd

I've been doing this thing called Free Rice for like 10 minutes now and I can't stop. Which, as far as addictions go, is fairly benign. It's charitable and sort of educational. Like, why do I know the word nadir? Where did I learn it and why do I never use it? It's reminding me of all sorts of words that I don't use. No wonder I feel like I'm losing my words sometimes. I probably am. Also, is this just me, or does anyone else associate bloviating with blogs? And I mean in a free association kind of way, not like I think that's what it means. Cause I know it doesn't. I guess people often bloviate on blogs. I might be leaning toward bloviating right now. My bad. Anyway, you should do the free rice vocab game. It's fun if you're a huge nerd like me. Just don't cheat. That's no fun. And I'll punch you in the neck if you cheat. Also, some of the words are medically related, so you would probably be awesome at it, Rachel.

name that film!

Whilst on my lunch break, I was watching TV and several questions occurred to me. How hard would it be to load a shotgun while driving a semi? I know nothing about guns, except for cap and bb guns. It seems like it would be difficult. If you are standing behind a car and people on the other side of said car start shooting at you, why would you not duck behind the car? Wouldn't it be extremely difficult to hold on to the top of a speeding car as it ran off the road? Not to mention how prohibitively difficult it would be to jump from a speeding car onto a speeding semi and then not fall off the semi. Also, how likely is it that you could drive straight while taking over both the pedals and the wheel while speeding? And if you can guess what movie I was watching on TV from these questions, then you too watch terrible movies. What is even worse it that I had even seen this movie before, so I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was a bad movie. And I watched the last hour of it anyway. What does that say about me?

Anyway, other than refusing to suspend my disbelief to enjoy the magic of movies, I am doing pretty well. I feel so much better. Yesterday I felt so much better that I finally made my bed at the Paneled Palace and started staying there. I even managed to sleep reasonably well. I had not been sleeping well because I could only lay on my back and I do not generally sleep on my back. Last night I managed to sleep for a while on one side. Fabulous! Now I can lie on my side! Drinks all around! I swear I am not taking any medication. Just excited about that development.

This is something I never thought I would say, but I am getting seriously tired of eating chicken and spaghetti. Not together. My diet is seriously limited right now and apparently both my parents (who've been feeding me all week) and myself can think of nothing else that's very low fat that I can eat. Strangely, you are not supposed to eat leafy greens or fresh fruit when you have gallbladder issues. So I've been eating a lot of jello. Last time I ate this much jello, I had just had my tonsils out. Fortunately, I feel better now than I did when that happened. Anyway, I am wishing that I could think of something good to eat. Also, I am wishing that I had taken a picture of my left arm earlier this week when it was totally purple in the crook of my elbow. And also a perfectly round spot on my mid forearm. They took my blood five times between noon Friday and 5 o'clock Saturday morning. It was really pretty. I also have this strange, yellow bruise creeping in from where my IV was on my right (mid) forearm all the way to my elbow. That elbow is still tender and sore when I move it. So, really looking forward to Monday, when I get a new IV. Anyway, then I would be able to gross you out.

I need a thesaurus...anon!

Not to make this a love letter to all the awesome people I know, but I know a lot of awesome people! I'm having my gallbladder out on Monday and I should be fine within a few days. Hopefully I will not have any issues this time. I had to stay in the hospital overnight Friday after the ERCP because I was having severe pain when I woke up. It was less than fun, but I'm fine and hopefully nothing unexpected will happen with the laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Today was my first day back at work since last Wednesday. I have to say, it wasn't bad, but I am exhausted. Work has been really nice and they all keep offering to help and seeing if I'm ok. Which, yay, I am. Just tired.

Shannon and Jack and Shannon's family awesomely moved all of my belongings to the new place over the weekend. We moved my felines over Monday night. They are still kind of freaked out, but adjusting to the paneled palace and to Kazoo (Shannon's dog). Now I just need to unpack. Rachel (and Dave) sent me some really pretty pink flowers and my mom doesn't want me to leave before the last Stargazer lily blooms. I'm going to stay with them again for a day or two after surgery, but I plan to unpack this weekend so I can really stay at the paneled palace. Does that need capitalization? I feel like maybe it does. I shall ruminate on this. Paneled Palace or paneled palace? Choose your own adventure, mateys. I will post pictures after I unpack my room. The main rooms are unpacked and Shannon's mom is making us curtains. Lots of curtains. We have many, many windows. Including one in the shower, which needs a curtain posthaste. It is not one of those weird windows you can't actually see out of that my grandparents have in their bathrooms. It's a real window. Anyway, all you awesome people out there know who you are. You are still awesome.