happy new year's eve

until a couple weeks ago, i thought a rick roll was a type of sushi. today i successfully rick rolled at least 2 people on the msg bd. that is, 2 people admitted to it. bwah! i am the ruler of the roll!

called my old man this morn at abt 7am to wake him up. no answer. figured he got up & just did not pick up the phone. forgot about calling him back. remembered at around 8:30. called again at 8:30, and was talking along there - "hey hope you're up" blah blah, and i thought i heard some noise in the background and was thinking it must have been noises at work, and then he was like "you sound like YOU need to wake up", and i realized he had been listening to me yabber when i thought it was the answering machine. the noise i heard was the teevee. you could say that was sort of a live rick roll. which is really funnier if you know his true name, which is roll.

new year's eve has so far proved [proven?] to be quite exciting in its own way. vandy won the music city bowl, so that rocks. go 'dores!! and, i came home from work & spontaneously began to clean out the closet. ended up cleaning out the closet, and also every drawer, box, & bag. i was absolutely ruthless & have amassed quite a mass of the giveaway goods. nothing like taking control to start the new year off right. yuh-huh.

oh, and both my old man & mini-me have colds, so i will likely have one by sunday, when i am supposed to go run 12 miles. yipee-ki-yay!

2008 + 2 = 2009

okay, so i didn't clean out my closet. i did make a first pass at it, and i was ruthless. ruthless, i tell ya. time to shape things up around here. probably do the rest of it on friday when everyone else is at work. yipee-ki-yay!

dreamt last night i was at brigadoon riding horses. that's about all i remember about it now. there were more details, but they are all gone gone gone. i do remember the basic feeling i always have in brigadoon dreams - it's a good sort of feeling, but with an underlying knowledge that something is off. partially that is because things are actually out of place. the correct people are there, and the correct basic layout of buildings, but some buildings are too big, some are out of place. the lake is there, but different. the people are usually on target - it's just the buildings that are all wrong. probably b/c the buildings & grounds always meant more to me than the people. hrm. okay, that comes out sort of funny when you say it outloud like that. people are just hard to connect with. out of all the times i have been there, the recent times are far & away the ones where i have made friends. as a kid there, i was not all that interested in the other people. much more interested in the rites & rituals & real estate.

whatevs. difficult to explain effectively. probably b/c human is my second language.

still slogging thru shadowmancer. going to finish it soon. really.

took down all the christmas decor today. it was only up like... um... a week maybe? and, now it is down. it sure is easier to put it up than to break it down. durr to that, eh? the tree did not want to go back into the box this year. it was unexplainably rebellious. nothing scarier than rebellious plastic foliage.

tomorrow evening might be the big closet clean out. i mean it - cleaning it out. stuff is going-going-gone. out, damn clothes, out i say! if you want anything, let me know. you can probably have it. unless i am keeping it - in which case you cannot have it.

they just said on teevee that it is illegal to share rx meds. this is something i did not know. i knew it was stupid, but did not know it was illegal. did you?

hot!! hot!!

this computer is hot-hot. well, not like it will actually sear [sere?] your skin, but quite warm. warmer than my usual machine. b/c mini-me is here, we have 3 working laptops. a top on every lap! it's weird to use a diff machine b/c the keys are all in diff places. we also have a working desktop and 3 partially working laptops. a plethora of computers. one of the partially working ones has no battery. it will work if plugged in, so it is basically stationary. plus, that one has some serious windows issues & needs to be reformatted, and windows or ubuntu installed. the other two have batteries, but both are running win95, so they need updates at the least & new o-s's at the most. they could probably be working, and it might be worth messing with after mini-me leaves & takes her 2 working laptops w/ her.

been looking for a simple, elementary school, student xylophone. do they not play xylophone in elementary school anymore? if they do, where do they get them? i can find silly ones for like $20, and that seems a lot to pay for ones that seem silly and are made of wood. i want a metal one, but not a huge one. there's a big gap between the little silly ones & the ones for marching bands. those run about... oh... $1500 or so. that's right - a xylophone for $1500. cripes! where are the in-between models?

tomorrow, have to go to work. ::sigh:: should be okay.... i mean, should not be too busy or anything. it's just that vacation is so nice, don't you think?

true confessions

i have a sort of office supply fetish. i am not so addicted that i have closets full of office supplies, but i will admit to a couple unopened packages of pens, maybe a thing or two of binder clips, and a cool canvas notebook that's never been used. i also have plenty of office supplies that are opened and partially used. this is where you can really see it played out. it? what is it? why, my very practical, oh so purposeful, magnificatical, collection of supplies.

an index card? what size do you need?
lines? no lines? white, yellow, green, or pink?
need a pen? what sort is the pen that you seek?
marker, gel, ball, or razor fine silky black ink?
i've got yer notebook, copier, sticky pad paper -
yer spirals & legals & nice cotton fiber.
folders - both the manilla & hanging -
folders with flaps & strings for the tying.

okay, so my ode to office supplies is deteriorating like a newspaper in the rain. let's just say i like them. i like the same supply in different colors. i like different supplies in the same color. i like paper & pens & clips & notebooks & calendars & folders & binders & tape & scissors. i like it all. and, in just a little while, we are going to buy some for the new year. yeah!

the moving picture shows

hello, there - it's been a while.
not much. how 'bout you?

last night we went to see marley & me, and of course, it was a sob-fest. my old man, mini-me, and junior were all crying. i held it together for the most part, but that is b/c i have a heart of stone. bwah! it's a good movie. not like the greatest movie ever, but a good, solid movie. jennifer aniston is really a great actress - she keeps it real, whether it's happiness, joy, contentment, exasperation, impatience, anger. any emotion, you feel it with her. owen wilson's good, too... really good, but sometimes his accent gets in the way. the low point in terms of acting was the kids. jeezumpete, they could not deliver a single line in a realistic fashion. it consistently felt like they were reading off cards & crying on cue. i cannot believe they could not find some child actors who can act. their performances were a distraction for me. of course, the dog was the center of the action, but the story was about two people making a life together, the passage of time, the everyday decisions & struggles we all go through trying to make a go of it as a couple. it was a good, solid movie. one important point about this movie is that it is not a movie for kids. there are parts that are funny and would make kids laugh, but overall, it's not really what you'd call a funny movie, and it's definitely not for kids.

when we got home, we happened to catch jerry macguire from nearly the very beginning. my old man & i had never seen it, and mini-me had never seen the whole thing. i didn't realize that it is more a love story than a business story. and, it's not only a love story between two people, but it's a story about love, about loving, about how to open up & feel love. it's about building a life & a family, but not an examination of the entire saga, like marley & me - just an examination of one particular couple getting started building a life & a family. another good, solid movie. cuba gooding's performance was super, and of course, he won the oscar for that, but the kid that played renée zelwiger's son was superior. just absolutely darling and right on target with how kids actually behave. and, one of the nicest things about the whole movie was that renée's eyes were open. not sure what is going on with her squintyness these days. perhaps she needs spectacles. anyhootle - jerry macguire = good movie.

that's all i have for now. if anything else comes up, you'll be the first to know.

monday night blogging

got a few things wrapped. woo-woo! it's been an odd xmash season. my old man's taken a part-time job, so he's busy all the time. haven't been shopping w/ him. still don't have all the stuff i'd like to have for all the folks i'd like to have something for. but, i don't like all the buy-buy-buy. but, i like to give people stuff. it's fun to watch people open stuff. it's just all so confusing. trying now to simply enjoy the fun stuff & let the rest go.

so, football. you know what would be a good idea for these pro teams that play when it's so cold, and they are all complaining about cold footballs being hard to throw & hard to catch? football warmers. like those incubators they put little tiny babies in. except it would not have to be sterile like that.

a local church was on the news b/c they have a nativity scene out, and the baby jesus was stolen. apparently, this is happening across the country. rampant baby jesus stealing. some churches have put gps devices in their nativity scene pieces. that's wack. i mean, it's bad enough that religious pieces are getting stolen, but it's messed up that anything on private property is getting stolen or vandalized. why can't we just leave each others' stuff alone?

no time for posting.

must wrap gifts. hee hee!! or, should i say, ho ho ho!!!!

wind windy winder wand wandy wander

so we were at a funeral today [abbr for funeral = fun]. the preacher told this story about a lambie that ran off from the flock. the shepherd found the lambie, and brought it back to the flock, and broke its leg. yikes! then, the shepherd patted the lambie & cuddled the lambie & made the lambie feel all safe again. apparently, the shepherd needed to teach the lambie to stay wiht the flock. uh... abuse much? and, is that really an appropriate story for a fun?

currently watcing the titans off the tivostash - playing the steelers. right now, it's 10-7 tennessee, with one min to go in the first half. odd that the game is already over in real life. hines ward, a receiver who plays for the steelers, always comes up smiling, no matter what. catch? smile. drop? smile. hit hard? smile. td? smile. he is like a grinning buddah. a grinning, football playing, buddah. also playing for the steelers, troy polamalu - the man with too much hair. seriously - it is one thing to have dreds or something or slightly longish hair, but he's got hair like all down his back and not dredded - just all bushy. it doesn't look good, and what i really cannot believe is that he opponents don't grab a big handful of it & pull him down.

besides the fun & the game - today's activities included an 8.5 mile run in very cold & windy conditions. why? b/c i am a hoss. uh-huh.

in the news

oprah's dieting again, and for some reason, this is considered newsworthy. let's investigate. since 1997, oprah has gained 40 lbs and now weighs 200. this weight gain is credited to a defective thyroid system. somewhere around 50 million americans are reported to suffer from thyroid malfunctions, but less than half this number are diagnosed. [how do we know the remaining 25+ million are suffering from thyroid disorders, if they are undiagnosed??] so, it's newsworthy b/c oprah has something millions of americans have, and it's a handy excuse for weight gain. it is an excuse, yes, but not really a valid one. not in this day & age, in this country - b/c it is treatable. folks with thyroid issues do not "need" to weigh hundreds of pounds. and, here's the thing about oprah - she is mega-rich. she can afford personal chefs, trainers, nutritionists, doctors, any sort of help & assistance & advice. she has no excuse for being in an unhealthy condition and actually has a responsibility to provide information to her viewers & fans about achieving & remaining in a healthy condition.

you've heard about the illinois governor, right? rod blagojevich was trying to sell obama's former senate seat. when a senate seat becomes unfilled during the senator's term - for any reason such as death or in the case of barack obama, the senator gets a better offer - the governor of that state has the responsibility of naming someone to fill the seat. so, ol' rod was trying to sell the seat off to the highest bidder. his own voice was captured on tape saying in his own rather vulgar words that he was looking to sell the seat. now, he is saying he is not guilty. it is unclear how he will prove his non-guilt, since his guilt is on tape like that. consider me to be rolling my eyes here. rod says -- "I'm here to tell you right off the bat, I am not guilty of any criminal wrongdoing, that I intend to stay on the job, and that I will fight this thing every step of the way." uh-huh... riiiight. and, so i searched for a picture to go with this paragraph, and this picture i am found was labeled small_rod. small rod. heh heh.

oh, here's a tidbit of news i know you will find difficult to believe: there's plenty of oil in the world. yeah, you heard me. plenty. well, then - where is it? - you ask. i will tell you. it is on tankers in the ocean, waiting on the price to go up. uh-huh. the oil companies are creating demand by shortening supply. the head of the world bank in russia says that low oil prices are as bad for the world economy as high oil prices. i can see his point - specifically: low oil prices are bad for the economy of russia, a country rich in oil. not so sure that low oil prices are bad for us in this country, but okay... world economy... i can see that maybe there's an issue with low prices. looks like in this, as in all things, moderation is the way to go.

washed my watch band. really looking forward to putting it on again, all sweet smelling & fabulous.

wondering why my watch band smells like pee.

i did not pee on my watch band.

i have not picked up my book in a few days. odd. must not like it that much, eh? hrm. i think i liked it enough to finish it, but on the other hand, i don't feel like reading it.

purchased a few gifts today. for that mid-winter celebration of gift-giving in which we all participate. you know how we say christmas is for the children and by that we mean that we want to shower them with gifts? and then we lament the commercialism? who do we have to blame for that?

just watched the numa numa video. yes, i am like 4 years behind the times. whatevs, people! listed in the related videos list was a vid called breast feeding toddlers. oh, my. that is just scary. scary that there are toddlers breast feeding [wean 'em when they can walk!] -- and scary that someone has not only videoed one of them... say... his own kid... but scaryscary that someone has put together a compilation of these kids. can you see it? mommy, i'm thirsty.... ew. ew. ew.

did you know that pepto bismol can turn your poop black? that is, if you ingest the pepto. like, if you poured pepto in the toidey bowl, it would probably just turn everything pink. but, if you drink it, you might poop black poops. that is what i learned today.

doesn't get much stupider

did you hear about those folks in pennsylvania who named their son adolf hitler & one of their daughters aryan nation? yeah. what kind of idiots do that? oh, and their other daughter? they named her hinler. um... yeah... nothing worse than white supremacists who cannot spell. it's himmler, you doofuses. the daughters have other names - JoyceLynn Aryan Nation and Honszlynn Hinler Jeannie. they did not give their son another, like, normal name. if you can call the name honszlynn normal. yikes.

i already told mini-me the story, so somebody else better read it, or it was a total waste of time typing it out.

so i was running along today, basically minding my own business, came to an intersection. waited for the light to change. confirmed no oncoming traffic. took off across the intersection when lo & behold, a car passes in front of me. what? huh? did i misread the light? momentary panic while i assess the situation. hrm. i am indeed crossing with the light, so what is this guy up to? i give the unruly crosser the universal wtf gesture - the oversized shrug. i yell - what the hell are you doing, man??. he is thru the intersection by this point. he stops his car, gets out, turns around, and yells - so i ran a fuckin' red light - what are you gonna fuckin' do about it, bitch! uh... what? i mean, jeezumpete, massive gargantuan fail. so, i give him the oversized shrug again, with the sort of italian hand waving emphasis, with no yelling. he yells something similar to what he yelled before, throwing in dyke for special emphasis. i am still somewhat taken by surprise & really cannot come up with a more inventive comeback than more silent ubershrugs with italian emphasis. he returns to his car, gets in, sits behind the wheel, shoots me a bird, and drives off. i am still with the wtf attitude, pretty much standing in the middle of the road. i gather myself together & carry on, rather bursting with adrenaline. i actually saw the guy on the next block, with a companion in the car. seriously, wtf was up w/ him?

envision banana bread

today was the department xmash luncheon, and i must say i forgot every lesson from the hobo. i mean, he would have been pleased with any sort of lunch, and i was not exactly appreciative. well, i mean, i was appreciative that someone was buying my lunch & all that, but really, i would rather be left alone. small talk - bleh. oh, plus - there was laser tag. again, what is my damage, really. i mean, there is nothing wrong with laser tag, and it is potentially quite fun, but jeezumpete, being forced into a fun activity sort of sucks the ol' fun right out. perhaps this is incomprehensible to you.

so, anyway. made some banana bread today & added peanut butter like mini-me does it. this is elvis bread - the real elvis, not my elvis. the real elvis loved peanut butter & banana sammiches. so, wah-lah - this peanut butter & banana bread is elvis bread. made 2 loaves, which are kind half loaves. but, they are naturally half, and not like cut in half, if you see what i mean. just smaller than normal. so, they appear to be whole. ish. wholeish. and, so - the point here is that one is for me all me all me all me. the other is going to work to sit beside the coffee pot and greet my coworkers. b/c i am all about the food greeting. just don't talk to me. gaaaa.

of fig newtons & the hobo

across the alley from my office building is a small market that sells snacks, ice cream, cokes, and deli sandwiches. one of the most important things they sell is fig newtons, and today, the newtons were calling me.

i peeked outside & saw that it was not raining, so i headed for the back door - the quickest way across the alley. this back door is in an alcove, and in this alcove was a man, sheltering his burning cigarette from the wind while keeping one hand on his junk-laden cart. i said, hello and excuse me as i tried to get past him without bumping his cart. not that his cart was particularly dirty or wet, but i am sort of leery because you never know with these people. "these" people... hm.... i generally use the term "hobo" because it is quaint & nostalgic, but there is really nothing quaint or nostalgic about living out of a metal cart. you never know how someone might react to your jostling of his what is essentially his home. but, this man was quite peaceful & reserved. he said hello and went back to his cigarette.

while i was at the market, along with my fig newtons, i picked up some of my favorite snack crackers - the orange ones with peanut butter - and a liter bottle of water. i thought if he were there when i came back by, i would give the hobo a snack. he was there, and i did give him the meager food & water, and he said thank you & have a merry christmas. i wished i had gotten more, but at the same time, i do not know the protocol of the streets and do not know how much is too much. he was not bleary eyed or staggering - he appeared to be sober, to be a man simply down on his luck, perhaps for quite a while.

i am inordinatly proud of having accomplished the stellar feat of bringing this hobo some snack crackers & water. i wonder what it must be like to have to rely on the kindness of overly-proud strangers, as they deign to hand you something less than they would consider a small meal.

people out doing stuff

did i tell you that the other night, this guy on horseback went riding past on the highway in front of our house? it was weirdish. my old man noticed there was a line of cars, so we got up to see what was going on, and they were all going slow because they were behind this guy on horseback who was leading a pack horse. sort of surreal looking. we'd been wondering who it was or what was going on, so i finally googled around a bit and found there is a whole society of folks that do what is called "long riding". they ride horseback for thousands of miles a pop. you can't even be in the long riders guild unless you have ridden at least one 1000-mile ride. wow, huh? i mean, who knew this was even going on, much less that there was a club - they do call it a guild - dedicated to the practice. people are doing all sorts of things, aren't they?

speaking of dedicated to the practice -- i am now in acquaintance of people who run long distances. one guy is disappointed today with his 41 mile run b/c he had planned to run an additional 15. yah. right. see what i mean? people are out there doing all sorts of things.

my accomplishment for the day is that i have balanced the checkbook. woohootle! my disappointment is that i neglected to insure that the titans game was tivoing, so we missed the 1st qtr. failure abounds! alas, alack! zut alors!

timing

got up this morning & didn't feel like going for a run. felt vaguely guilty, but just didn't feel like going. so, i did not. went on some errands with mini-me, and when we got home, i did feel like going for a run. so, i did. and, it was fantabulous. just goes to show you that it pays off to wait until the time is right.

while i was running, my garmin froze up. i was nearly done - 4.34/5.00 miles. so, i could figure out the rest of the mileage and the pace. i reset it, and it seems okay, but it was still quite frustrating. i have asked santa to bring me a new one. don't let me down, santa!

i am going to make some coffee now.

is grissom really leaving csi?

there is an office holiday party. it was billed as "going out to lunch" but turns out it's a bait & switch - we are going to play laser tag. not that i have anything against laser tag, per se, but i definitely have something against the bait & switch. i wish i had found out, but no one knew that i knew, b/c i would have worn totally inappropriate clothing and been like oh, well - guess i cannot play. but, i do know, so now i have to come up with another excuse b/c i will not be baited & switched upon without a fight. b/c that is just how i am.

::sigh:: i really don't like all this razzle dazzle around christmas. on the one hand, it's a simple holy day and should be celebrated with worship & respect, not with commercialism. on the other hand, it is not the most important event on the christian calendar - yet it is treated as such. have we covered this ground?

it snowed some around here today, and that is all wintery & celebratey, but people around here just lose their freakin' minds when it snows. they drive like absolute eejits and do all sorts of bizarre manuevers they would never do if it were clear. running red lights, pulling in front of other drivers, making left turns across lanes & lanes of traffic. someone drove off the road out front of the house, and traffic backed up for about a quarter mile. so, what did folks do? honk at each other. um... really? you are honking at each other? do you think that people just stopped in the road for no reason, and by honking, you will move them along? bizarre.

learned something today -- the ideal shape for a symphony hall is a shoebox shape - a long narrow rectangle. visited a symphony hall designed in this very shape, and it looked like an ancient cathedral. large, high-ceilinged hall with seats in rows on the floor, boxes up on the walls, huge pipe organ in the front. perhaps the ancient cathedrals were built in that shape on purpose. go figure.

books 2008

currently:
shadowmancer
[g.p. taylor]

completed:
the appeal
[john grisham]
pendragon #1: the merchant of death
[dj machale]
home another way
[christa parrish]
what is mine
[anne holt]
the girl who stopped swimming
[joshilyn jackson]
king of lies
[john hart]
queste
[angie sage]
physik
[angie sage]
flyte
[angie sage]
magyk
[angie sage]
inkheart
[cornelia funke]
bones to ashes
[kathy reichs]
touchstone
[laurie r. king]
irish tiger
[andrew greeley]
the bishop at the lake
[andrew greeley]
break no bones
[kathy reichs]
cross bones
[kathy reichs]
fatal voyage
[kathy reichs]
monday mourning
[kathy reichs]
bare bones
[kathy reichs]
grave secrets
[kathy reichs]
cause celeb
[helen fielding]
death du jour
[kathy reichs]
déjà dead
[kathy reichs]
playing for pizza
[john grisham]
the big over easy
[jasper fford]
the life all around me by ellen foster
[kaye gibbons]
the name of the wind
[patrick rothfuss]
eat, pray, love
[elizabeth gilbert]

if it were wednesday, it would not be tuesday.

heard this band called blitzen trapper on chuck last night & liked it. i can hear you thinking -- it's not like you ever purchase cds anymore! -- but maybe i will surprise you. blitzen trapper & the flobots. that is who i would get were i getting.

for some reason unbeknownst to me, my teeth hurt sometimes when i eat - not every time, just sometimes. the entire set uppers & lowers on the left side middle. so, it's not like a cavity. it's more like a mouth ache. maybe a sinus thing, but only happens when i eat. maybe my jaw is broken. that's probably it, eh?

itunes sends me emails all the time, and i get all excited, and then it is just junk from itunes. it's worse than actual spam b/c it comes into the email inbox like real email b/c it passes the filter. but, then, it is not realreal email, it is just itunes blather.

did you ever play a game called "go to the head of the class"? i wonder if they still make that. it was sort of like trivial pursuit, before t-p existed. the questions were not exactly trivia, but more like school questions. probably more like on are you smarter than a 5th grader? -- spelling, math, geography, stuff like that. we used to play it, back in the day. it was quite a blast. i think i shall look for that in the stores this holiday season.

one. more. step.

darkness pressed against the jaundiced halo leaking from her dying torch. if not for the pull of gravity, the light may not have reached the ground - instead floating away, dispersing like so many motes of dust in a hayloft. but gravity pulled, and tepid light meandered to the ground, rather disinterested in its job. she sharply shook her torch, willing bulb & batteries to cling to existence. the apathetic instrument deigned to remain conscious but seemed loathe to commit to an agenda. the darkness pressed harder, leaning into the weakly glowing circle, confining her steps to a shuffle, shackling her ankles as surely as chains. one more step. one. more. step. the air was alive with frost, yet she felt sweat rivuling through her hair & down her back, pooling above her silver belt. one. more. step. her praying breath froze as it left her pleading lips - whatever powers there be to protect me, you know me by my absence from your altars, yet tonight i beseech you for your shield of protection. be with me now. be with me. one. more. step.

sunday the 7th

watched the titans/browns game today, and i would have to say the browns coaching has a lot to do with their record. there was a chance today for the browns to go for it on 4th & very short, they did not. there was a chance to go for a t-d on 4th down, and they kicked the field goal instead. they called 2 back-to-back time outs on defense, and that's a penalty. the refs did not throw the flag on that - i guess b/c it was less than 2 mins to go, and the titans were ahead by 19. but, still, shouldn't you throw the flag? so, bottom line - titans win & clench the afc south. yay!

spent most of the day fiddling with the computer while doing other stuff like baking banana bread. ended up backing out the sp3 b/c it's been nothing but trouble since then. the sp had something specific to do with the firewall & the wireless access, and that has been the trouble, so i hope that the upgrade backed out completely.

the new book - shadowmancer is still holding in as pretty good. plot is unique & exciting. characters are developing some depth. only on page 75, so i'll let you know more later about how it holds together.

saturday in a nutshell

started a new book - shadowmancer by g.p. taylor. have only read a few pages, but so far so good. will let you know more later. had mexican supper w/ speedy. yay mexican! yay speedy! one day we shall run again instead of eating, but eating is necessary, right? right. did a load of laundry today, and went to the liberry. stopped at the grocery on the way home & got a few things, but forgot toilet paper. we are very nearly out, so i'll be heading to get that tomorrow. something's wrong with the computer, and i think it has to do with the xp upgrade. not really very happy with mircrosoft right now. it's reacting like a virus, but all signs point to the upgrade. stoopids. oh, and i had a nap today. it was super!

blueberry pancakes!

my old man is taking a class and had a test tonight. we did the test together b/c the way the class works, there's no time to read the book before you take the test, but you're allowed to have the book open. took 3.5 hrs to find all the answers in the book, but the work payed off - we scored a 98. yay us!

after we took the test, we went to cracker barrel and had pancakes. yay us!

finished reading the appeal by john grisham. if you think you will read it, you might not want to read my review. it was typical grisham, with the exception that the bad guy won in the end. that was a surprise. kept excepting the grisham twist where the small guy sticks it to the man. didn't happen. grisham is good at pacing and providing suspense. his characters aren't extremely well rounded - most of them are sort of flat. the main characters have some depth, but the main-main character is the plot, with the people in supporting roles. grisham does a stellar job of reminding us who the characters are as they rush through the scenery, so you don't get lost in the story. one of the shortcomings, though, is the way grisham wraps things up. he goes along for hundreds of pages developing a plot, and wraps it all up in usually less than 10 pgs. it's his modus operandi - you can bet that a grisham plot will bob & weave, punch & feint, float like a butterfly & sting like a bee - it will become complex and rush madly to the edge of convoluted where it will suddenly stop short as if it hit a wall, neatly wrap up all the ends, and come to a close. the wrap up is weakly satisfying, but something about the speed with which it happens leaves something to be desired.

tomorrow -- to the liberry we go!!

hrm.

this morning, i looked at the calendar/clock combination in igoogle, and it said dec 4 with the 4 really big on a line by itself right beside the clock. the clock was pointing to 8 o'clock. i did a double take b/c i thought the clock was on 4 o'clock. i dyslexically read the analog clock under the influence of the date. i knew right then, it was going to be a great day. hrm.

for unknown reasons, we are watching a show called redemption song. it is a singing contest for, like... fallen girls or something. i don't know what the redemption part is about. anyhootle - the point is that during the singing part, this one girl kept moving the mic away from her mouth. and, guess what? she was eliminated. renews my faith in the judges of... um... of... of amateurish singing shows on obscure satellite channels. hrm.

at vitamin shoppe, we have earned 866 points. with another 144 pts, we would reach 1000. for 866 pts, we will receive $25 store credit. for 1000 pts, we will receive $50. some items are on double points right now, so we need to spend $75 or so on the proper branded items to earn the necessary points. we use the stuff. we could purchase items for junior's xmas gifts. we could simply purchase more vitamins. there are options that are valid. it is not like we will not use what we purchase. usually, i would not advise spending money to get money, but we cannot roll over our pts to next year. it is not as simple as one might believe. hrm.

3! 3! 3! 3! let's sing a song of 3! how many is 3?

if you want to know how many is 3 - google "baker #3 sesame street". i do not do links here.

today is wednesday the 3rd of december. 3rd day of the week, 3rd day of the month. i like it when the day is the same number as the date. makes it easier to remember. wednesday? must be the 3rd. the 3rd? must be wednesday. works superly until the 8th when it all breaks down and falls miserably into a puddle.

today's topic: spittle

to hell with ethics. i am going to start spitting on rude people. fight fire with fire, i say. buncha wankers! cutting in line, talking on mobiles, blocking the shelves & aisles & doorways, parking across 2 spaces. oblivious to the world around them.

the other day after shopping at publix, i walked outside to wait on the sidewalk for my old man to pull the car around. it was raining, so i was under the awning. while i was waiting - clearly commanding a section of the loading zone - some wanker pulled up right in front of me, parked his car, and left it. that's right - left it there, blocking the loading zone. and, of all the loading zone places to block, he has to block the bit of loading zone on which i assuredly had dibs! i gave him the stink eye, but he averted his glance. he was lurking around the door to publix, clearly waiting on someone who had not already reached the out-of-doors like me. so, when my old man pulled up a bit down the way, i made a big show of how i was moving from my spot to this other spot in order to load my groceries in the car. b/c wankerman needed to see i was majorly inconvenienced. me & my old man loaded the groceries into the car, and i got in. my old man pushed the cart back to the store right by the wankerguy, who was still standing there waiting on his shopper & could clearly have waited to pull his car up until we were done loading. after we were all settled in the car, we both turned & gave him the stink eye, and he saw us. i know he did b/c he looked right into my stinky eye. i think it scared him down deep in his wanky little soul.

yeah, yeah. christmas time. joy & good cheer. clothe the hungry - feed the nekkid. whatever, people! you just bloody well better clear out of my freakin' way, or i will spit on you!

happy new month!

the new dedication to philosophical, historical, social, ethical, or otherwise sage & erudite issues starts now. whadda ya got? i got nothing. okay, on to the drivel.

office kitchenette rule #832: oatmeal is a breakfast food and should not be cooked after highnoon except in cases of dire emergency such as someone holding a gun to your head. and, if someone is holding a gun to your head forcing you to cook oatmeal in the workplace, it's time to get a new gig.

valediction is a farewell speech. valedictorian is one who delivers a farewell speech. sounds simple enough, does it not? however, a quick perusal of dictionary.com provides 4 defs, 2 of which have an interesting nuance. the first says a valedictorian is the one who delivers the speech at graduation - usually the one with the best grades. the other says a valedictorian is one who has the best grades - usually the one who delivers the speech at graduation. according to the purest meaning of the word, it is NOT one with the highest rank - it is the one who delivers the speech, despite his or her rank. see the nuance? i knewanced you would.

today, it snowed. not here so much as other places. such at santa's workshop.

speaking of snow, what about ol' plaxico burress? he had a handgun in his pants and was out at the club. he does not have a concealed handgun permit. his pal pierce said - yo, plax, man... is that your gun, or you just happy to see me? b/c ol' plax's gun was showing, dontcha know. so, plax goes to reposition his weapon, and shoots himself in the leg. now, he is up on weapons charges b/c it is difficult to deny you have a gun in your pants when you shoot yourself in the leg. a couple of tips if you are packing in your pants - be sure the safety is on & do not under any circumstances reposition your weapon by grasping it by the trigger. clearly, plax was not the validictorian of his class.