I picked up the camera last night to take a couple of pics and found a jittering blob of something in the viewfinder. Of course it had to be my hair, right? So I swept back the annoying bangs I have been trying to grow out and tried again. ACK! Beetles? Box Elder bugs? I turned the camera around to peer at the lens. Nothing. I looked back through the viewfinder. BUGS! Walking around, no less. WTF?! It was a little 3 Stoogey, I'll admit, as I looked at the lens, back through the vf, back at the lens, all the time with a sinking feeling that they were INSIDE the camera. I took off the lens and checked out the mirror, up the vf, everywhere I could see without hurting the camera and still couldn't see them in there unless I looked through the vf. GuTTer MuNKi tried stunning them with the flash, but stunned himself instead, and then me. We shook the camera a little but stopped short of banging it on anything. ;) Repeated shutter use failed to dislodge them, so, not wanting to do any damage, we replaced the lens and gave up for the night, the only product of our efforts being a now filthy vf interior due to a fine covering of moth dust. Obviously the commotion didn't upset the little bastards, because today there are EGGS in the viewfinder! GRRRRRRRR! Camera store, here I come.
And now, Random Spam. . .
I finally got the pieces of our Word Flip game together. It's a lot like Logo's Shut the Box game, but with an added Wheel of Fortune element. Roll the dice (we subbed different dice) and then add, subtract, multiply or divide to flip down a number and reveal a letter or blank space. If you think you know the word, you can guess on your turn. Lots of fun!
Spam #2: if you're a SCA type, a leather lover, or just enjoy buckling swashes, The Inner Bailey is an awesome Mom and Pop biz that makes all kinds of neat goodies like sword belts, frogs and armour. I got belts for the kids for Christmas this year so they have something to hang their swords from, and they rock! Interesting tidbit: these folks did some of the costume pieces for both Beowulf and Grendel and Spamalot.
And spammy-type item #3 is for folks who love to read and write (most Bloggers?): TCM, the service for which I review books, is seeking additional reviewers, especially for ebooks, romance and adult material. Free books, Baby! And, of course, your reviews in print. You'll get emails for available books and can call dibs on whatever appeals to you.
Which leads me to Spam #4: Hungarian Rhapsody by James Derk. I'm currently reading this for review. I'm about halfway through and enjoying it VERY much (especially the Fawlty Towers references.) If you've ever thought about adopting, or are considering it now, I think you'll find it entertaining, insightful, and a little heart-wrenching, with a side of warm-fuzzies.A very Happy New Year to you all. :)
Here it is, the Holy Grail of anti-nausea medicines:
Whal Myung Su Gold, it's called. Liquid gold, as I understand it. We felt good enough to venture in to Ann Arbor today, our target being neighbouring Korean and Indian grocery stores. Mmmm. Both smelled heavenly, but I suspect that we are some of their very few crossover customers. We were fortunate enough to find the magical medicine at the Korean grocery, and promptly bought 6 bottles.
My friend assures me that this stuff is liquid magic, but I'm hoping not to need to test that theory for quite some time as (knock on wood) I'm doing a lot better today. One thing we have learned, my friend and I, is that if you intend to take any sort of Asian medicine, it's best not to read the label. We both faced a bit of a dilemma when we read the label of the pictured product, and learned that one of the ingredients is "myristicae semen." (are you laughing at us now, Jaichan?)
Naturally, the first question that leaps to mind is "what the hell are myristicae?" The second question is, "am I ballsy enough to drink this?" ;) And the third is, "if it makes me feel better, do I even care what's in it?" Yes, in the end it all boils down to that age-old hot tub dilemma. (a dilemma which, incidentally, I have never personally faced.) Of course, discussion of this amongst the moms at TKD made for plenty of banter about what would happen if our husbands found out about this mystical ingredient, and the inevitable "Stomach flu? Well, Honey, you know what to do; it cures nausea. . ." jokes (surprisingly uttered by someone other than myself.)I think the semen is made easier to ignore by the fact that the product is in a professionally packaged little glass bottle, but my friend and I are the morbidly curious type, so she asked her (Korean) husband to look into it for us. He assured us that it is a mistranslation of something meaning "the root or beginning of life" - maybe something like a "rhizome," of which there are quite a few different kinds in this stuff, and until today I was happy to believe that (and afraid to discover otherwise.) But for you, Dear Reader, I have faced my fears and Googled said myristicae semen and -- with no little trepidation, I assure you -- clicked on the first hit. Who knew? ^_^
Conviction:Lying near the toilet, shivering, on the cold bathroom floor and remaining steadfast in the belief that flu shots are not for healthy people. ^_^Optimism: Puking on Christmas Eve, crawling out to make a nest on the living room floor with another sickling and being overcome with a sense of happy comfortability by the sparkling lights on the tree and the snuggly child resting against you.As Phil said, "Well, this isn’t too bad. My left leg is broken, but at least I’m right-legged. That’s pretty fortunate.”Fortune:Having Oscillococciunum on hand.Practice:The only way to remember how to spell Oscillococcinum.Surprise/Mild Interest:The emotion I felt upon receiving the first garden catalog of the season yesterday.Addiction:What happened to me and all the kids upon the activation of their new Webkinz accounts. I love Quizzy's Word Challenge! But it takes "vaginas" and not "penis." Can anyone explain that? It takes "sperm," too. I can't help it if these words leap out at me. And they're not all like that. I think my best word so far is "trawlers" for 49 points. Not too shabby, but I bet Logo could kick my ass. Too bad you can't make words longer than 8 letters. Oh, and I played Cash Cow so much, I dreamed about it. :-/The Sound of Music:What will be filling the house tonight.Have a great evening! ^_^
I have a new addiction. Just what I needed. I may have mentioned before that I really love those sliding square puzzles. (though I like the picture ones better)
Well GuTTer MuNKi has, in his Linuxxy fabulosity, found a new game for me called Atomix in which you build molecules from single atoms that are lying around in a maze-like room. Often there is only one place where you can build the molecule, so you have to figure out where that is first, then get all the pieces there. The catch is that once you select an atom and a direction in which to send it, it will go in that direction until something stops it. Fun game! Here's Potato Thing:1 (2 lb) bag hash browns (thawed)1 pint sour cream8 ounces shedded cheddar cheese1 can cream of chicken soup1 cup margarine or butter (softened)1 cup of chopped onions or 1/2 cup dehydrated onion 1 cup corn flakes or crushed crackers 1/4 cup of melted margarine or butter salt and pepper to your own tastePreheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients except the cornflakes or crackers and the 1/2 stick of melted butter together in a bowl. Grease 9x13 inch pan (you can use cooking spray) and add all ingredients from the bowl to the pan. Just before baking, mix the cornflakes or crackers and the 1/2 stick of melted butter together and then sprinkle on the top. Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees. And now my sister (and the other Getaway Drivers) will sing her song for you.Oh yes, I forget to mention when I first posted. We've been hit with flu. Yay. :-P But we have oscillococcinum and other stuff, so we're doing okay. Today we're doing a movie marathon. So far we've watched SW I and now we're on Epi II. I think The Sound of Music is going to put in an appearance tonight. So far I'm the only one not sick. The Hammer of Doom lurks just above me, I'm sure. ^_^
I've shamelessly lifted this meme from Logo's blog. But I did fill in my own answers. For the most part. ^_^
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
I've rebelled against the machine entirely and made a TON of fabric gift bags. Some I made with drawstrings, some I made like pillowcases and tie with ribbons, some I got from a big bag swap I inspired on Amity's. Last year was the first year we didn't have any paper under the tree last year, and clean up was SO easy! I give gifts in these now, too, and tell the recipient to keep the bag and recycle it. Someone else had the same brilliant idea and took it a step further. I think this is very cool. You may have heard of the dollar bill tracking program, "Where's George?" and the traveling book program, "BookCrossing. Well these cool cats came up with this awesome hybrid of crossing something like that with fabric gift bags. Now how cool is that?
Hmmm. Memes are supposed to be short and sweet, aren't they. I'll try to cut them shorter from here on.
2. Real tree or artificial?
Fake tree. No shedding, no sap, looks awesome (compared to $50 - $100 Charlie Brown trees) and saves a ton of dough. More rebellion on MuNKi's and my part. We did get a live wreath for the door and it smells yummy.
3. When do you put up the tree?
The day after Thanksgiving.
4. When do you take the tree down?
Usually the day after New Year's. Maybe on New Year's?
5. Do you like eggnog?
Yes, especially from Guernsey (local dairy) and with a splash of Amaretto. Oooh la la!
6. Favorite gift received as a child?
Either my Tiny Tears baby doll (mine looked like the 3rd one down) or my Fisher Price Adventure People Sea Explorer set.
7. Do you have a nativity scene?
Yep - a Bethlehem my mom gave us. I need to bring it up from the basement though. Every year someone loses on ear or a horn or something, thanks mostly to the cats.
8. Hardest person to buy for?
FIL. OMG. He has no hobbies, no loves, no joy. He works or sits in his chair watching "arguing shows" on the telly. Maybe some anti-depressants?
9. Easiest person to buy for?
My kids, though MuNKi was very good and gave me a list this year, too. Also my sis.
10. Mail or email Christmas cards?
Mail. Not very timely. Maybe just-in-timely this year. I've done New Year's ones before, and for the last few years neglected them altogether. I got them out this year, though. Except for 3 for friends whose addresses I can't find. :-/
11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
Can't think of any. Nothing atrocious. Sometimes MIL gives gadgety things that we don't really use or hang onto, bit nothing hideous that I can recall. Unless I'm blocking. . .
12. Favorite Christmas Movie?
Christmas Vacation or The Santa Clause
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
When I see something that I want to give. The bulk of it is in Nov, though. Sometimes when ordering bday stuff for Fishy in Aug I'll add stuff for the kids from the same stores to save shipping and craziness.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
Nope
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
Potato Thing. MMMMMMMMMmmmmmm!
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree?
Colored.
17. Favorite Christmas song?
I just got a bunch of cool ones from Cindra (THANK YOU, CINDRA!) so I'm developing new faves. Right now I think some of the Sarah McLachlan ones. But I also love Harry Connick Jrs Christmas albums and Michael Buble's Christmas stuff. Oh, and I love the Veggie Tales Christmas album. ^_^ ("The 12 Polish Christmas foods I bring to the partyyyyyy. . . ")
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
Home this year. Last year we drove on Christmas and it rocked cuz the roads were empty.
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
I think so. If given paper and pencil.
20. Angel on the tree top or a star?
Nothing. I keep meaning to remedy that. I'm thinking of letting the kids make one like TG has. (2nd pic)
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning?Christmas Eve. Stockings on Christmas morning.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?Crowded stores.
23. Favorite ornament theme or color?Duh. Star Wars. Also Star Trek. Nothing heralds the birth of the Baby Jesus like 15 billion megatrons of destructive laser capability.24. Favorite for Christmas dinner?Anything that's not turkey. I just love Potato Thing. That's all I need, and nothing more. 25. Leave cookies & milk for Santa?We've never actually done the Santa thing with these kids, so no. Besides, rumour has it he's lactose intolerant, and I don't want that happening in my living room. Or near the fireplace, come to think of it.
Someday I will read the weekly rules for HNT. Today is not that day.
I was going to do a boo boo HNT with one or four of my sparring bruises, but my feet are too sore to dink around with taking more pics and stuff, so it's a boobie HNT instead. Featuring (once more) Cindra's lovely scarf!! I think maybe I didn't distort it quite enough. Complaints may be lodged directly in the comments box.I guess maybe I should have called it Rudolph HNT. Or -- ah! What's that movie where the chick's boobs light up and hum? Probably a Mel Brooks film. The tops of my feet are sore. (from kicking someone) And I felt slow at sparring tonight. How sucky. I hate feeling like I haven't done my best. Poo.On the other hand, the stuffed cookies I made from my Grandma's recipe (in an ancient cookbook) were a hit tonight, and I have a request to bring in a large platter of them tomorrow night. ^_^
Time to subject you to my inner ad exec. Hooray! One of the favourite parts of my favourite advertising class was the bit where we'd bring in an ad every week and say what we liked or disliked about it. Feel free to play.
First The Bad with a capital B. I know this is a crappy picture, but hey, it's a crappy ad, so who cares?
Help me figure out what's going on here. The little "Kodak" in the corner tells us that we're supposed to be having feelings about either a camera or some film. Given that film cameras are nearly a thing of the past, I'm going to go with the camera option. Next, the text. OK, not bad - sorta catchy. We all have a Great Aunt Maud or a MIL who insists on giving us a size 38 XXXXXL, so OK. This one, apparently, is for men who don't understand sizing or don't care to ask, judging by Mr. Man there. I can still hang with that; whatever. Now check out the chick's face. What's the deal? I'd say it's safe to say that she's not a Happy Camper. Trepidatious, maybe? Pissed? Not happy, at any rate. Is her sweater supposed to be too big? (see strappy thing barely showing under her hair) Or is that just the style? Is he supposed to have put something way too small into that little box? I mean, the box is about the right size for a camera, but if this is a camera ad, she should be happy about receiving a camera, right? So I'm thinking it's not a camera. I don't get it.
This is a magazine ad. When you flip through a magazine, you're not sitting down to engross yourself in something deep. You're looking at something that's mostly fluff with short little articles that you can get through while the water is boiling for pasta, or you're standing by to wipe a kid's bottom after they poop -- a situation where you have a few moments to read, but not enough for anything real. In light of this, the ads should be something easily grasped in a few seconds (or less) and make a statement with strong visuals and very little text. In other words, it's not a game of "What's wrong with this picture?" No one's going to take that kind of time. Unless they're planning to ridicule your ad in a blog post.
This is a sucky ad.
Here's a much better one (though my photo of it is still crap) :
Look at that. It takes no time -- zero point five seconds maybe -- to figure out what we're supposed to know. Dry hands. REALLY dry hands. Therefore this must be a fix for that. You don't even have to read the text to figure it out. Now, if you suffer from dry hands, you will probably stop to read the text since you've already figured out that this is supposed to help you, so it's OK that there's a little more text than you can take in at a glance. The white bottle is a little unobtrusive, though, and the brand name didn't stick in my head. The brand should always stick in your head if it's a good ad, so this could be helped by perhaps adding the Dove name in the lower right hand corner - the place where your eye is going to stop as you glance over this page. Other than that, good ad.And, finally, we come to the Not So Ugly Ad
It's certainly eye-catching, isn't it? And even though it's in French, you get the point. And the brand name - Le Coq Sportif - well, that will certainly stick, given the subject matter. For me, anyway. I might even frame this one and hang it up in my bedroom. OK, maybe not.Tell me about your good, bad and (not so) uglies. Better yet, post about them. ^_^
I have never lived in another state where I've seen this. Here are the states in which I've lived in chronological order, and omitting the Hong Kong period:CAINWICAWIMIYes, I know. I keep going back to some of them. On to the point.I now live in MI. I have never lived in another state that allows people to STAND IN THE MIDDLE OF A FRICKING INTERSECTION --I'm sorry, I'll stop shouting-- that allows people with bright vests to stand in the middle of busy intersections with buckets bearing slogans like "Give the Gift of Life," (maybe an organ for you, Dear, when you are SMASHED TO SMITHEREENS - ahem, excuse me - when you are destroyed by oncoming traffic as you stand there in your stupid "dayglo" vest panhandling for the poor) or "Help Katrina Victims" or, most ironically "Help Retarded Children."These people freak me out because: A) I really think I'd rather not smash one flat. Mostly for insurance reasons. (then again, this is a no-fault state. . .)B) It's awfully damn pushy (don't you think?) to sidle up to someone's car when they're sitting at the intersection watching for the light to change and expect them to fork over money just because you're peering in through their windscreen.Ah well. So it goes.I'm scheduled to give blood on Jan 8th. This is cool becauseA) It's the first time in forever that the opportunity has shoved itself in my face when I wasn't nursingB) I'm O Negative with large veins and they're going to have an orgasm or 3 over meC) I have too much blood. D) It was my dad's birthday, so what better day to give life in remembrance of him? :)In other good news, my stepson and his friend made it to my IL's just fine. All is well. FIL is even in a good mood, which is rather shocking, LOL!In less good news, MuNKi is off (no not THAT part! I love my MuNKi!) and I was warning him about driving in the library and PO parking lots at midday due to the large # of blind old bats who frequent those establishments. No sooner had I uttered these words of wisdom, than MuNKi himself witnessed an old biddy backing straight into the car in front of him. She had walked PAST it to get to her car, and then proceeded to back straight into it! OY!
It's been around for years, so maybe you've seen it. It's very cool. To a geek like me, anyway.You'll have to C&P because linking can take you to the wrong stinking one!!http://beeks.eu/swf/handclock.swf
My laptop has been commandeered lately by a certain 11 year old who is writing a book of her own. Add to that the birthday and Christmas festivities and the reading of actual books and, well, there's not a lot of blogging going on.I'm sore today from, of all things, dodgeball. The TKD Christmas party was Friday night and it consists of eating and awards presentation, followed by hours of dodgeball. What a blast (literally!) If you haven't played dodgeball in a long time, I suggest you find a group of willing participants (if you can't, just start throwing a ball at people and they'll be willing to fire it back at you soon enough ^_^ ) and give it a go.In lieu of a real post, you now get my Christmas letter. Feel free to add suggestions as I haven't actually sent them out yet. ^_^
Surprise, surprise!! It's a letter from us!!
I'm breaking my holiday tradition of completely letting the Christmas cards slide. At least that's what I tell myself. We'll see if these actually make it into stamped, addressed envelopes. And out the door.You'll notice that there are 2 different pictures of the kids in here. This is mostly because, as adorable as my children are, I didn't need 30-some copies of the same picture from 2002 in an envelope for the rest of eternity. But could I bring myself to throw them away? Ha! So I'm telling myself (and you) that I'm enclosing them in this year's cards as a nifty new “look how they've grown” trend. And by “trend” I mean “one-time-good-deal.”Many of you are aware that we've landed in Michigan, and we seem to be here to stay for at least some time to come. We're far enough from downtown Detroit to be well out of the scary zone, but close enough to enjoy fun things like being able to go see Les Mis at the Fisher Theatre, and checking out the Detroit Institute of Art. And Ann Arbor is right nearby when we need a good dose of surrealism.(TKD rundown that would be old news to you all went here)And now we've come to the part where I should launch into some sort of detailed description of everyone's personal highs (and lows?) but I can't bring myself to do that to you, so here's a short summary instead.GuTTer MuNKi has become a great chef, meaning A) I rarely have anything to do with cooking dinner anymore (except as sous chef) and B) a whole new field of gift-giving has been opened up to me. Hooray! Because I'm crap at buying computer stuff. (Can you say “crap” in a Christmas letter? Well, I just did. I hope it doesn't detract from your Christmas experience.) He also builds cool Linux computers at home.I am continuing to write when I make time. More and more I find myself sliding down the slippery slope of Blogging, which means I haven't done as much “real” writing as I intend to, but at least I'm exercising my writing muscles, as it were. I also take a lot of pictures.Mollusc (11) is VERY into art and fantasy and is always reading, writing or drawing (when not pressed into TKD classes.) She could care less about fashion unless it's something to do with dragons or gryffins. She loves mountain climbing, surfing and fire-walking, provided they are done by someone else while she is reading a book. She is a staunch advocate of the death penalty for the misuse of apostrophes. Sluggie (9) is Miss Physical, loves sparring, and is starting to get into art. She is the fashionista in the house. Her superpower is producing fabulous outfits from unlikely sources and creating amazing hairstyles using very few accessories -- arts which she often practices on The Prawn. She can outrun all of the boys who chase her.Fishy (7) is Mr. Bionicle aka Mr. Lego aka “Eatfoodman.” If you can imagine it, he can build it. If you cook it, he will eat it. Sometimes he will attempt to eat it before you cook it. Keep your hands and feet well clear! He loves Garfield and Calvin and Hobbes and he will gladly regale you with one of his self-published (aka pencil drawn) “Adventures of Stick Guy” action books.The Prawn (5) is blossoming as a martial artist and has a great memory for blocking sets and forms. Her hobbies include drawing; cooking and selling plastic/wooden food; being a princess; and getting married. She recently received the Nobel Peace Prize for rapid shoe-tying in the face of adversity.Oh, and we have a new kitty. Well, new as of a year ago. Her name is Trillian and she has 24 toes, bringing the grand total of kitty toes in our household to a whopping 72. Do the math if you like. Or not. (the rest are not genetic mutants – at least not in the toe department)That's probably more than enough information. Now let's see if these actually make it out.
Brightest Blessings to you all, and a very Happy Hannukah, Christmas, Inti Raymi, Solstice, Yule, Kwaanza, Daeborum and Dong Zhi. Hallelujah, pass the Tylenol™!
5 years ago tonight, I was hiding in the closet, weeping, feeling like my belly would burst open right down one of my racing stripes, and praying that the parasite within would emerge. (sorry, Slade, not trying to scare you) Honestly, by my 4th child, I really expected to go EARLY and not 2 weeks late. The next day I was scheduled for a non-stress test to make sure that Baby was ok, and I was afraid that instead of the homebirth we'd planned, I was going to have to have yet another hospital birth, and, worse yet, an induction. Weirdly enough, while gibbering in there, I got this mental image of a calendar square with a 14 all lit up, and I knew that my baby was coming the next day and that she would be a girl. (We never used the U/S to find out early.) Clearly, I had finally gone 'round the bend. But it was true. The next morning at 10:03 am, after about 4.5 hours of labour, The Prawn made her grand entrance to the outside world, emerging between the fireplace and the Christmas tree. And the day after that, the other 3 broke out with Hand Foot and Mouth disease and MuNKi had to go back to the Flightline. O_oNeedless to say, this is a better year. Tomorrow is supposed to be gorgeous (sunny and near 50), so hopefully we'll do something outside. Maybe I'll even have time to blog about it. Eventually.In the meantime, the world just became a little more orgasmic.PS Happy Birthday, Mama! (yep -- Prawnie missed it by one day)
Yesterday we went up to Selfridge for a BX/PX and Commissary run. I love being back on base. I love the way the security dude says "Thank you Master Sergeant" after checking MuNKi's ID, allowing us to roll onward into a different world. I love the feeling of safety, of not having to worry about whether someone's going to vandalize our car simply because we have a DoD decal. I love the airplanes, the people, the way that everyone is so courteous. I love the esprit de corps and the feeling of belonging. I love that private little world, fenced off and guarded from the craziness outside, and I love being able to launch my boy into the bathroom without worrying that he'll be attacked by some random maniac.I love the prices at the commissary, the BX/PX and the Class Six store. ^_^I have to say that I also love that MuNKi is retired, and that I no longer have to worry about him being sent who-knows-where. And although I miss the good part about working on airplanes and being on the flightline -- standing at the end of the runway with nothing but 2 other crewmembers and the sound of the blowing wind, watching the snow snakes slither across the pavement and seeing the planes come looming out of the blowing snow like ghosts, or feeling the hot blast of the engine's air as a plane taxis out of my spot after preflight -- I don't miss the blasting icy wind in my face freezing my cheeks and blowing the tears out of my stinging eyes as I wait for a plane to arrive for postflight inspection, or trying to get one of the unwieldy gas-powered heaters fired up so I can thaw the hinges on a frozen ladder door and close it so the plane can take off. I don't miss banging on a big wrench with my frozen hand, trying to loosen the lug nut on a sway brace, or those mind-numbingly boring social-whatever classes. And I am thankful to all those who do these things now; for what they go through physically and mentally, for the many sacrifices they make from monetary ones to time with family to, for some, their lives.Thank you.
Tomorrow is co-op day.
♪ Way-hey-hey it's [not] an ordinary day and it's all your state of mind. . . ♪ I love the co-op. It's filled with fascinating things that cost less (usually) than you'd expect and are good for you. Last time I got some uber cute little "delicate squash" which were delicious. I kept some seeds to plant in the Spring. We'll see what happens.I'm fascinated by ECOFriendly cleansers. Don't ask me why. I'm always convinced that each one will be better than the last, and I have to admit that they all smell lovely and make me feel better about actually cleaning things. I am especially drawn to the uber expensive ones (like $10 a bottle) which you then dilute with a drastic amount of water (1/4 t cleanser to 16 oz water) because then you can tell yourself that they are really quite affordable. Even though you did drop $10 on one bottle. I really ogled them a lot last time. I think I'm going to buy one tomorrow.Of course, I already have Trader Joe's Zen Cleaning spray, and Mrs. Meyers (delectable) all purpose lavender cleaning solution (one of those dilutable things), so why do I need Shaklee's everything cleanser or ECOver's toilet cleaner? I don't know. I just need them. I know that they will be the magic pill that makes my home sparkle like that of someone who actually gives a damn about cleaning.I'm also psyched because my new undewear was great for class and sparring. And also not ugly. This is really quite something, believe me.
Today's goo spawned 16 starters, tomorrow's will spawn 16 more. Today's loaf count is 8, and tomorrow's will be 8 more. I'm up to my ears in goo. Please, someone help me.Cindra, an evil bag of goo escaped containment and as you read these words is winging its way toward your domicile. Be afraid. Be very afraid.I am exhausted. That is all.
Have you ever known anyone with an Obsession? Have you had one of your own? For a while I was obsessed with POTO:
Well, OK, I still am.
Some people might think I'm obsessed with this guy:
And this film:
I'm also obsessed with -- or at least addicted to -- reading (blogs and books), writing, music, men who smell nice, men in tuxes, men who write while wearing tuxes, men with the word MuNKi in their name, men with accents, men -- well, let's face it; men in general are quite lovely aren't they?
George Lucas is clearly obsessed with the clitoris:
(Is it not sad that I had to point this out to GuTTer MuNKi*? He was clearly off his game when we watched.)As far as musical obsession goes, when I get a new CD, I tend to play it over, and over and over and over again - kind of like a kid with a new movie. Right now that CD is Sam's Town, by The Killers, but soon - very soon, it's going to be this one:
(yes, it's clicky)
That's right, my VERY talented and lovely sister, along with the equally talented and lovely Elizabeth and (more debonaire than lovely) Paul have FINALLY gotten CD#3 off to press or whatever it's called, and it will be available in time for Christmas. There's a lot of love and a lot of work in this album, so make sure you buy 50 copies and give them to all of your friends for Christmas. And for those of you lucky enough to live in the Boston area, yes, they will be flying to Boston to do the Christmas gig again this year.*Surprised? You shouldn't be; he's the hand.
Monday, Monday, Monday!
Mondays we have 2 morning TKD classes and then we are freeeeeeeee for the rest of the day. Woo hoo! Today, I made fleece socks for Mollusc (as requested) and then a bag for Fishy for his schoolwork.
We have been carting everything around in one stinking bag, and it's getting riddikulus, so I plan to make everyone their own project bag and pack it with the week's work so I can stay on top of what I want them to do for the week and they can have it all in one place. More bag S&Ss to come, I'm sure.
The heat at the dojang was broken today and I got a call tonight that there will be no morning classes tomorrow, so Crazy Tuesday won't be quite so crazy as usual. Also woo hoo!
And now, join us for (some of) the evening's festivities. The fire is built:
The lights are down low, and there is a certain glow in the air:
Emmett is sucking heat by the fire.
As is The Slug.
The movie begins. Some ways into it, the kids discover a new way to watch:
Something's coming!
Oh, the suspense!
Have you guessed the film yet?
The Nigerian Death Panther comes to help GuTTer MuNKi relax.
Watch out, for that one; he's the kiss of death. Or sleep, anyway. He has this way of meatloafing on you in a manner that is certain to send you to dreamland.
Needless to say, I was forced to pester MuNKi to ensure his non-somnolence for the hours yet to come.Have a lovely evening. :)
Because this is too stinkin' funny no matter how you feel about Rumsfeld. That Mr. Ferguson is one funny dude. He used to be Drew Carey's English boss, but now he's Scottish. And no longer evil.
Thursday has been slightly crazier than Crazy Tuesday and my brain has shut down, so here are a few pics in lieu of a few thousand words.
The Annie Leibovitz exhibit was very cool. I think I liked the stories she told even better than the pictures. Well, the pics were certainly enhanced by the stories, anyway. The membership lady was super nice and let all 6 of us in for free. We were supposed to get 4 free tix and pay 1, and Prawn would be free, but she said if Fishy didn't mind being 5 for the day, he could go in with no charge. It was also a no camera zone, but the very nice lady at the desk said she trusted that I had read the sign and would obey. You can't guess how many times I found myself preparing to hoist the camera to take photos before remembering. Plah.
DIA exterior of course
A bit reminiscent of that torture scene in Casino Royale. . .
More torture. Poor Apollo. Though not bad for 1st century.
Equal time for the sexes. Aphrodite has seen better days as well.
The Diego Rivera murals. I showed part of one last time. This time I got more.
"Cells smothered by poison gas." Yum yum!
Grail, anyone?
I think this one is just cool. That lit-up part is actually recessed.
Our first time in France. ;) This chapel used to be in a (castle?) tower in France. It's now in the DIA. Go figure.
Different lighting = different details. (and new poses by the kidlets)
This detail (shot straight up in the chapel) wasn't even visible in the available lighting. I was pretty surprised to see what the flash revealed. Cool!
It still amazes me to see a real Rembrandt. I suck at capturing it on film.
Still my fave staute. I love the look on her face - so real - the proud and doting mother. :)
On the way out, the 3 girls and I nearly trampled this man. I'm pretty sure he was wearing the same tie. If he hadn't been actively chatting up some other women as he walked, I would've complimented him on his museum, but alas.
Action Boy! (crappy pic)
Why does my mother always take blurry pictures of me? Could it be because I'm always in motion?
How to really freak out your kids - point out the missing bits of ceiling in the carpark. Instant panic!!!
The drive home never fails to fascinate me -- Woodward Avenue and the Davison in particular.
The Granwood seems to be the place where we always realise we've hosed up and need to make another turn. (I posted the front last time - you could see that it really used to be something in its day.)
That's a peach, Hon.
"Good Shooting"
"Shitty Shooting" (Detective Paul Smecker, Boondock Saints)
It's for sale. LMK if you're interested and I can email you the phone number.
Yes, ANOTHER quality job by Upright Wrecking. . .
I know you will be as gratified as I was to find that, yes, they DO ship worldwide. And FYI, "Livernois" Ave is pronounced "LIVER-noyz." *cackle cackle*
Lotsa roadses
And that's all she wrote.
