LOST begins tonight!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't believe I almost forgot to post about this!

LOST starts again! We will only have 8 of the planned 16 episodes because of the writer's strike...come on work it out people...the writers do deserve what they're asking for!

Anyway...so I've been playing the side games and watching clue videos and all that stuff. I wonder when Sam will be introduced...it's very interesting.

8:00 is the recap episode and 9:00 begins the premiere!!

I can't wait!!!

There will be answers this season...and of course...even more questions.

God I hope the series finale rocks my world...I would hate to have all this build up and suspense and drama only to have the ending suck!

***************************************

UPDATED: Here's a great 'A to Z' guide to remind us why we love LOST...good for a recap and also for the mysteries still left to be solved.

http://television.aol.com/show/lost/113094/tv-show-features/a-to-z-guide

Quiz Fun...

56%

But just in case I didn't...


$3840.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth.

Maybe the zombies are 5 year olds...

24

I just learned this...

This just in...

Don't take Mucinex with Diet Coke.

It has this sort of effect inside your mouth:

Plus it tastes NAXTY!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARSHA!!!

It's my mom-in-law's birthday!!! Happy 39th!

Is anyone shocked by this?

I Scored a 100%!

I would have thought at least PG...

I'm kind of disappointed...

I'm only subscribed to 53 blogs...

62%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Happy Birthday BRIAN DAY!!!

We'll see you tonight!

OH! I mean...

Didn't blow away...

Rain turning to sleet turning to snow. Hail. 70-80 mph straight line winds.

We didn't even lose power...I was surprised. We were waiting to hear broken glass. The wind was so strong the glass in our windows, particularly the sliding door, was bowing. That's the one thing about the location of our house. We have a large field/common area behind it...kind of sandwiched between the two sides of the neighborhood. So there wasn't a whole lot breaking up the wind and it was coming from that direction.

An apartment complex had a lot of damage to it...see the picture. They are trying to determine if it was a tornado...two were reported. Cars were moved and doors blown off their hinges...I'm thinking yes.

Yesterday it reached 54 degrees and then dropped to 8 degrees by this morning...it's 14 now (wind chill of -1) and supposedly supposed to get up to 25. To top it off we are under a 'Winter Weather Watch' for Thursday evening through late morning Friday with potential of 6 inches of snow. Everyone go get your milk, bread, and eggs!!! They're hardly ever right about the amount of snow...I'm thinking we'll get maybe 2.

Hmmmm...

97%ALCOHOLIC

Today...

What's for lunch today (because I know you care oh so much)...

How I feel today...

I woke up at 3:30am and never fell back asleep.

Hence...the diet Coke on the drive, the coffee when I got here, and the diet Coke for lunch...probably more later.

I will still go to the gym!! I just might be in slow-mo.

What I learned today...

(stupid html code for the banner is not working)

How much electricity is my body producing?!?

My Body is Producing 295 Watts!
This is 18% MORE wattage than the average person
I could light up 3 light bulbs
I could power 74 iPods
I could power 1 Xbox 360
3 of me would be needed to keep a refrigerator running

http://www.justsayhi.com/bb/body_battery

Way to go Brent!!!

Brent has all these quiz results on his blog and now I want to take all of them!!!
I will have to do so when I'm not as busy at work.

I am more geeky than Brent...perhaps geekiness and eating your friends are correlated?

54% Geek

More to come...I know I won't be able to stay away from those quizzes!
I want to know how much electricity my body produces and how much my dead body is worth and what my chances are of surviving a zombie apocalypse!!!
http://www.justsayhi.com/bb

Too serious...

"Things were getting way to serious we needed to laugh" -Clairee Belcher, Steel Magnolias

Can you guess the theme? (duh)

Holocaust Memorial Day...

It was yesterday and recognized by many countries across the pond. 63 years ago yesterday Auschwitz was liberated.

Rob likes to say that I dwell on depressing subjects. But I really think this one is important. A quote above the entrance to the monument in Berlin..."It happened, therefore it can happen again".
It's astounding to me that people were taught that it didn't happen. That's how things happen again...when you don't learn from history. I have a hard time believing something like that could happen...really just that it ever got to the point that it did...millions of people. It took long enough for someone to do something about it.

I'll admit that I am fascinated by the Holocaust. And alone that probably sounds horrible, it's not out of morbid curiosity. But I'll try to explain why. Again...the scale at which the Jews were persecuted...I'm amazed that anyone would follow that kind of hatred. I guess being so open minded I have a hard time grasping that. And I know that it just got to the point of...you do it, you follow or you die. I can understand that too, especially to protect your own family. But I view myself as a 'stand up for what is right' person and am not sure what I would have done in the situation...on either side. It might be, for me, that I still have a difficult time believing something so awful took place and so many let it happen. I must see the pictures, read about it, see the piles of shoes and glasses at the Holocaust Museum to remind myself that it did happen, millions upon millions were wiped off the face of the earth people can be lead/taught to believe horrible things about others without basis, people can be terrible...but also that people can persevere, heroes will be honored and remembered, there is still compassion.
In order to learn from mistakes...to never make them again...we must accept and acknowledge and bring attention to all of the things I mentioned...and never ignore it.

I doubt that there will be another Hitler or genocide on such a massive scale...but prejudice will always exist as long as people are taught to hate. And it's not always direct teaching...but by observance. Children mimic. What are you teaching yours?

Baby Talk...

You should only use baby talk and your baby voice when you're talking to...babies. And I don't even like it much then.

But never...EVER...at work to colleagues in any situation. Period.

Cats Are Weird...

This is my 200th post!!!

It's a cold Saturday in Indiana. At least it's not snowing, but there is a chance. Finally it's above 30 degrees though!I've been on the internet ALL day. It started as just checking my email and the over 50 blogs I subscribe to...thank you Google Reader!I've been subscribed to a couple of blogs devoted to LOST. For those of you that don't know, there is a little 'game' happening concurrent with the series/series premiere. There was a game last year but it was a parallel plot and not directly involved in the show but this one is.

http://www.find815.com/

That's where you'll find the start of it. There's "detective work" involved and lots of videos, clues, etc. One of the blogs posts all of the videos for those that don't want to play the game but be in the know.

Anyway, I had saved some videos to watch at home so I could pay attention. Well, I decided to just play. It brought up some things that I wondered if they were true in the real world. For example...where the island is presumed to be is near where Earhart disappeared...and they listed some other oddities in the area. So I started looking things up on Google and Wikipedia.

Wikipedia...dangerous. Dangerous for people like me that thrive on information. Not necessarily information that we'll ever use or even help us as Trivial Pursuit. We just like information...we're data collectors. And Wikipedia is almost drug like! Because in every entry for one thing if it talks about anything else listed in Wikipedia it has a link to that information. For instance, in the Earhart entry there's links for her husband, her plane, the ship she was supposed to be in contact with and on and on...

I've read about ghost ships (very interesting), freemasons, "the dingo ate my baby" (I never knew the real reference to that), a list of missing persons (I didn't know Glen Miller went missing!), a Japanese murderess, DB Cooper, the divers that were accidentally abandoned and never found - the basis for the movie Open Water, Oskar Schindler...I'm sure there's more but I can't think of them all.

One thing lead to "oh, what was that about?" or "who is that?" and on...and on...

I haven't even finished my LOST game yet.

Would you eat your friends?...

I stumbled upon a quiz that will judge how likely you are to eat your friends if your survival depended on it.

I have a "46% chance I would eat my friends if trapped & starving". Ewwww!

What would you do? Post your results in the comments! :)

http://www.justsayhi.com/bb/view2/eat_buddies

Sick Yesterday...

Yep, I called in.
Individually the symptoms I was feeling weren't bad, but all together the headache, stomachache, and body aches added up to feeling like poo. So I slept until 10...hard. Woke up still feeling a little poo-ish. So I spent the rest of the day on the couch watching Spike, Animal Planet, and the Discovery Channel. I did accomplish a few things...I did dishes and read a little more about my camera.
I don't know what the deal was but I feel fine today.


I was sad to hear about Heath Ledger. Normally I don't really care about celebrities and what they do and all that. But he seemed like a down to earth guy...and now people are telling their stories about him...like he stopped to help a guy change a tire, stopped a woman in the mall to ask if she was okay because she looked pale...etc. It seems like the world really lost something. So far the autopsy is inconclusive, it will take up to two weeks to determine the cause of death...if they can. I just hope it wasn't suicide. I sincerely hope it was medical or accidental. He has a 2 year old daughter too, that's sad.


Anyway, it's always weird to watch a new movie knowing an actor is now dead. But I am looking forward to Dark Knight.


I haven't watched last night's American Idol yet so I can't make fun of anyone today...perhaps tomorrow.
I've actually got a lot of work to do today...

The weekend...ebay & movies...

I'm back on ebay...I've discovered it's use for photography items! I got a wide angle lens for $25 (including shipping) and am trying to get the zoom (70-300mm) lens that I really want for less than $90. For $125 I can get it on Amazon brand new.
So I spent part of the weekend ebay watching & bidding.

I also spent some time with my new camera and the 'field guide' for it.


We finally put all the Christmas decorations away...like away away...in the attic. And the living room is livable again. I washed dishes. Rob took his car in to put new brakes on cuz he stripped a bolt. And the rest of the time was devoted to a Harry Potter movie marathon and finally watching the 3rd Pirates of the Caribbean movie. I have to say...I understand why people didn't like it as much. It moves pretty fast, has all kinds of complex plots, and some of the ending is heartbreaking.
There are sad endings I can handle and some that I just plain hate. City of Angels...I strongly despise that movie and will never watch it again. But Steel Magnolias...love it and still cry every time. I think I just hate the 'lost love' kind of theme. I know how miserable I would feel if I lost mine. I can't think of any other sad movie examples...Bridges of Madison County I guess. And that's kind of a lost love one but I don't loathe it. But I also don't necessarily have a desire to watch it again. Pay It Forward...SOOOOO sad...but I love that one too.
Anyway...

We were going to go see National Treasure 2 (we have free tickets) but just never felt like going. We really only left the house to get food and for the car thing. We were total lazy bums...and it felt awesome!

Another Manning in the Superbowl...

Way to go Giants!!!

Holy crap was that meant to be or what?!?!

Overtime w/ the Packers w/ possession of the ball first...interception...looooong field goal attempt (longest of the game) and he missed the last two he attempted?!?!?

Yea, sorry cheeseheads...but the Giants were obviously supposed to go this year. But if you're going to lose...wouldn't you rather lose a well-fought game?

GO GIANTS!!!

Just beat the Patriots...they need the lesson in humility...the coach in particular!

Win a Wedding Photographer!

One of my favorite photographers that I stalk is holding a contest to win her to photograph your wedding for FREE!

Ann Ruthman is paying it forward by giving away complete wedding day coverage to a lucky couple that 'dares to be different'!

If you are getting married between October 2008 & April 2009 and are a creative couple, give it a whirl! She's awesome, I love her photos!

If only she had done this about a year ago!!! (But I'm completely happy with the job Shawna did!!!)

So check it out and good luck!!!

American Idol is Back...

YAY! This is my favorite part of the whole process...seeing the awful people that actually think they're good! Yes, I know that they're put on there on purpose...I mean, all the people audition for a panel before even getting the OK to be put through to 'the three'. So of course they're there for America to make fun of. And I know that some just want to get on TV so they are completely outrageous in some form or another.

First, there's this guy...

He totally thought he had it going on and was completely awful. It was like listening to someone try to sing for the very first time ever. And that motion you see him doing in the picture? He did that for about every other syllable he "sang". It sounded more like a chant actually...no, not even that.

Then mister "my specialty is singin' low"...

No your specialty is making some sort of low noise. Yes, he hit the way low notes...but it didn't even sound like he was singing words. "Let my people go" sounded something like "le maaaaa beeeeebo oooooooh". Hideous.

And then we have the people that just try to damn hard...

Trying to look alternative, cool, different...and failing. It just looks like you tried to damn hard to be 'unique'.

My first reaction was "huh?". Trying to damn hard to stand out. And succeeding in just being made fun of.

Then you have these people...

The costumers. All this says to me is "Hi, I want to be noticed and remembered and on TV but I don't have a single ounce of talent." I hate the costumers. Trying to damn hard to be on TV.

And then there's the psycho freaks...

She was well, actually not bad...for a 60's or 70's singer. Oh she would have fit right in for that era. She sounded just like Grace Slick from Jefferson Airplane. The judges were actually pretty kind to her. They said that she wasn't right for American Idol but would be great as a 60's or 70's cover band. She was cordial with them and thanked them for their time and left. As soon as she hit the door...train wreck. She flipped out! Saying f*** you Simon! And giving the finger to the camera over and over and over again. Then she went on some rant about how she'll make it and they'll be sorry...and half of it just didn't even make sense. Honestly I thought maybe she forgot to take her meds.

And this picture doesn't show it very well but she had glitter ALL over her face (literally) and in HIGH concentration on her eyelids. I bet she was digging glitter out of her eyes for weeks.

OH!!! And after she left they went back to the judges room and Simon is asking the off camera people "she looks like that guy...who was it that played the Green Goblin in Spiderman?" "Willem Dafoe" and OH MY GOD she does!!!

And then there's the occasional bad singer that just breaks your heart...

She was not a good singer, but she made you wish that she was! She was absolutely sincere and really started to cry when they rejected her. And not the kind of pity me cry either, it was sincere heartbreak. Paula and Randy hugged her and all of them went out to the hall with her and met her family. Ohhhh. I teared up.

I tend to lose interest after they have their 16, although last year I went all the way through. I loved Melinda Dolittle!!! We'll see if I stick with it this year.

And that's my Idol wrap up!!

He or She?

I got a Spiegel catalog in the mail one day and this person was on the cover.

Rob said "that's a guy!"

And now I'm seeing this person's face as ads on other websites, I see him/her everywhere! It's in the face.

Opinions?

Irritating...

When your skinny ass friends complain about their bodies.
Just don't say anything like that in front of me. Seriously.
When you have 30 pounds or more to lose then you can complain. Otherwise appreciate what you have, others would trade you in a second.

Mourning in Indy...

Our Colts lost the game. They just couldn't seem to get it together. But as even they said...the Chargers played a better game. That's just how it is sometimes. We're still blue though.
However...I doubt any Colts fan will be routing against the Chargers next week...as they play our arch-nemesis...The Patriots.


So...go Chargers and go Giants! (For some reason I hate the Packers too...I don't even have a good reason why)

And God I hope Dungy doesn't retire!!!

Hilarity...

I found these while perusing the online world today waiting for my drawing to update at work. (Yes...it took that long)

Clever...

Why trampolines are dangerous...

Multi-tasking...

So that's how Brent gets practice in!!!

You're dog is too small if...

Dropping off or picking up? Hmmmm...

Blatant disregard!...I love it!

the bird and this dude are pals...

Cats aren't dumb...

The best tailgating innovation EVER...

The best BBQ EVER...

The best way to keep your beer cold during/after a blizzard...(important in Indiana!)...

The best desk EVER...

The best stroller EVER...

See...everyone loves Harry Potter...

You Should Be In Pictures...

Or taking them!

Shawna snapped this one of me at that wedding I helped with.

She is selling me one of her cameras. It's the Nikon D50...it was her first and now it will be my first.
She's excited because she wanted it to 'go to a good home'. And she knows that I'll take care of it! Now I just need to get the 70-300mm zoom lens and a good flash (and a camera bag and a strap...). I got spoiled using all of her equipment. I'm looking to pick up the stuff used...Amazon (as always) is looking good for that.

I got two photography books for Christmas and I can't wait to play!

Rain Anyone?

So it's been raining all day and a lot of snow around Indiana has melted and the ground is still frozen. What does that all add up to?

The Tippecanoe River has swelled over its banks. The worst of it is around White County and a couple of surrounding counties. (This is just north of Purdue for those that need a reference)

A few deaths have been attributed to the flooding and a LOT of people have been evacuated from their homes.

And the rain won't stop until later tonight.

Northern Indiana isn't being spared either although it's not to the extent of the previously mentioned. My parents had around 14 inches of snow melt in about 2 days and it's also raining there. The Elkhart River is also now flowing into my parents' backyard. Although, this usually happens a couple times a year...I imagine it's probably a little more than usual...and at a stranger time than usual.

Anyway all this rain & gloominess just makes me want to curl up on the couch with a comfy blanket and veg. Plus the temperature will just be dropping & dropping from here on out. No more spring in January. And probably snow again by next week.

Joy.

Yep I'm ready for the real spring.

Anyway...

Here's what made me laugh today...

Spring for a Day...

Yep, that's Indiana for you. It's January 7th and we've broken the record high temperature. It's 66 degrees right now (2:48pm).

Five days ago the high was 13. Tomorrow's high is 56 with thunderstorms and in 2 days we're back in the mid 40's and in 4 days we're back to the mid 30's.

And yesterday in Elkhart (& driving back to Indy) we were treated to snow fog. It was like the snow was steaming...it looked something like this...

The Christmas Party...

I think this is year 4 for this gathering. We figure out a date that all six of us and hopefully the spouses and maybe the kids (there are 2 now) can get together. It's quite a feat finding a day and time around the holidays for this to happen with all of us. It's a requirement that everyone can make it. At least for now...who knows how long we'll be able to keep that going...I'm sure eventually once we are all married and we all have kids...that may become difficult to impossible. Until then...

Last year I had an hors d'ouevre party and we all loved it. It puts less pressure on everyone to come up with a main dish and/or side dish and make it...we're all the 'make it' type people rather than 'buy it'.

Here is our spread...

"Devil's Candy Bites" (Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts) & Chipotle Shrimp Cups

Meatballs made with my own sauce recipe (involving pepper jelly)

And the table...Ranchy Chex Mix, Mixed Nuts, Chocolate Covered Pretzels, a box of chocolates (you know, the ones life is like), more Chipotle Shrimp Cups, 2 pots of the SAME cheese dip (and neither new what the other was bringing), and Pepper Mint Dip...not to be confused with Peppermint...this is peppers and mint. It was good!

The bar...

And here's (part of) the crowd...

A Few Pics...

From Gary & Michelle's wedding...

A detail shot...

I know this next one is "fuzzy" but I wanted to capture movement. This kid was absolutely tearing up that dance floor. He really had some serious moves.

Our Christmas tree...all decked out with my grandmother's ornaments.

These are a few of my favorite things...

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens...

OH sorry, I forgot I'm not a twirling singing wanna-be nun on a mountain.

Ok for real...these really are a few of my favorite things. (Great...now that song is in my head)

These are things that I would be sad without...the list will be long.

But it's fun to come up with this list and I'd love to see a few of my readers do it too!

Brent? Rob? Laura? Pete?

These are my favorite shoes at the moment. Skechers. Oh so comfy and I can get away with wearing them at work!

How do I love thee? Hook up an IV.

Nonfat, no water, chai latte. My other IV.

I love the Sonoma Valley. It gives us great wine, is gorgeous, is where we honeymooned and I just love it there.

Pizza...more specifically pizza from Columbo's in Elkhart, IN.

I have other pizza loves...but this one wins for today.

Hot Box Pizza's Breadstix - garlicky, slightly salty goodness dipped in cheese sauce.

Bacon-Wrapped Water Chestnuts - the best hors d'ouevre EVER!

I've renamed them "Devil's Candy Bites"

The paranormal. I believe in ghosts, spirits, psychic phenomena, and other strangeness.

I have my own stories, but that's for another time.

Fresh garlic & my garlic press...soooo much better than garlic powder!!!

LOST!!! It starts again soon!!!

Mom, you can't skip episodes...that's how you get...well, lost.

Ghost Hunters on Sci-Fi! I like Ghost Hunters because they go into an investigation trying to disprove the claims and approach it scientifically. They don't let their minds play tricks on them and get all worked up like those lame dudes on 'Most Haunted' on the Travel Channel.

All things Harry Potter. Thank you JK Rowling! (That's Jo to the Potterheads)

Brie Cheese on French Bread rounds.

Dubliner Cheese...my all-time favorite & I'm craving it right now.

My favorite Zinfandel wine is by Cline.

This may seem silly but I love sock monkeys. I especially love the miniature one my mom's cousin made me. It's uber-cute and sits on my desk at work so I can look at it all day. No it's not the one pictured, it's WAY cuter.

Star Wars...'nuf said.

4 years...

Wow, I had forgotten until it was sent in a company email today. The 1st marked my 4 year anniversary at Carson Design Associates. (And a bump to 4 weeks of vacation!)

"I'm a big kid now"

Heat Wave!

It's now 10 degrees!!

I hate winter...

It's 8 degrees here with a wind chill of -7. But this is Indiana...in 4 days the high is 54 degrees.

I just hate the bitter cold, hate the snow (after Christmas I'm over it), hate the ice, hate the darkness, and hate the way all those things put together make me feel. With the depression sometimes I start to think irrationally and worry about things that I know logically I shouldn't but can't help but have that panicky feeling. I'm glad I'm on my happy pills. I'm sure it would be worse if I didn't have them.

So this morning started off just wonderfully...with a flat tire. Luckily it didn't happen (or at least affect us) until we were pulling onto the street for my work so we made it to the parking lot. Of course at that time the temperature was 4 degrees with a wind chill of -15. Poor Rob, I watched him from our break room to make sure it was going all right. He said it was probably the fastest he's ever changed a tire. He took it straight to Firestone and had a coworker come get him.

Then later we're trying to decide where to go for lunch, then it dawns on me. I asked in an email "uh...will you have your car?". DOH! Plan B. I walk to McAlister's Deli (always the backup...it's just across the small parking lot). I had eaten there on Monday too (and it will be a while before I have the nacho basket again...). So I'm munching on a meatloaf sandwich and mac & cheese. The mac & cheese is a new addition to their available sides and I must say it's fabulous. Good comfort food on this nasty day.

We'll be heading to Elkhart this weekend so we're not even kidding ourselves with trying to start our 'fitness program' until next week. Ugh, I hate the gym after the New Year. It almost makes me want to wait until March...almost. But I feel gross so it's time to go. And I'm looking forward to it actually. I want to lose 30 pounds. But I'm not as concerned with the scale as I am how I look & feel & how my clothes fit. As I discovered the last time I lost 'weight'...I lost WAY more inches than pounds. I have one of those bodies that converts fat into muscle "quickly" so I don't really see that drop in pounds as much as some other people do. But I looked better (which in turn made me feel better).

I'm not going to kid myself by saying "I just want to feel better" either...no, I want to look better. I don't like the way I look. Period. I can admit that.

(There is power in acceptance!)

And now...because I like to post a picture (any picture) with my entries...here are a few funnies.

Brent, I know you don't get the 'language'...but their still funny. (Cats don't have good grammar skillz)