Out Of The Oven

Whew!  What a relief- we in the Northeast USA are finally out of the heatwave.  I never remember being in heat like that here- it was like living in a convection oven.  99 degrees at 11pm at night- ugh.  I'm very glad to be back to 90 degrees and humid during the day, 70s and muggy overnight. 

There's nothing like extreme heat to suck the energy out of a person-I'm sitting here looking at a house that needs lots of catching up on the chores!  I suppose I'm not the only one behind on the blogging during the summer- I'll have to catch up on that too.

Next house, I want central air. ;)

Where Is Caylee's Justice?

In case you live under a rock and haven't heard, the Caylee Anthony murder trial verdict is in and it's Not Guilty.

My reaction is pretty much like everyone else's on this one- WTF????  Now I understand that the prosecution didn't give a definitive cause of death, still- WTF?  The kid didn't tie herself up in duct tape.  Nor did she put herself in a bag and dump herself in the woods.  Somebody did all that TO her, and I'm betting it's the same somebody who went out partying for a month while the Caylee was "missing".

True, being a tramp and a mega-liar doesn't automatically make one a murderer.  But not telling anyone that your kid (whom you claim to love) is missing for a month?  And she didn't come out and say anything of her own accord, either- it was the child's grandmother who made the call to 911.  Only then did Casey admit that she hadn't seen her child for 31 days.  Now me, if a had a pet missing for even one day, there'd be flyers all over the neighborhood and all the shelters would've been called.  And here's a mother that didn't report her child missing till she was forced to.  If Cindy Anthony hadn't called 911 to report Caylee missing, it's entirely possible (given this young mother's astonishing ability to lie) that no one would yet know that the little girl was dead.  Wow.

I'm sure we'll be hearing plenty about this verdict over the next few days.  I'm willing to be a big girl about it and listen to the jurors reasoning about why they did what they did.  But I'm not expecting to hear anything that's going to convince me they did the right thing.  And little Caylee lost her only shot at justice.

Sad Furry Faces

People are mean.

A family up the street from me had two sweet little grey kitties.  They moved, and left the kitties behind.

My next door neighbor has taken pity on them and is feeding them- I'm providing them with lounge/sleeping facilities (my porches).  And every time I look out a window, I see sad little faces looking back at me, wanting to come in.

I want to let them in, of course.  Even though I've already got 3 beasties in the house, I could make room for 2 more.  I know the current feline residents would stage a protest, and I also know they'd eventually get over it. 

My problem is money.  Cat food, kitty litter, and vet visits for 5 cats is expensive.  It's bad enough with just the three- I'd have to work 80 hours a week with five.  (Note to self; buy lottery tickets.)

People are so freakin' irresponsible.  It's not like everyone is issued a pet and must take care of it- one has to choose to go out and get a pet if you want one.  So why bring a critter home that you have no intention of taking care of?  It defies logic.

And so here I am, feeling guilty that I can't right a wrong that someone else did.  At least it's nice and warm out now, and these kitties have food and shelter for the summer.  I guess I'd better find a no-kill rescue for when the cooler weather comes- I sure don't want these two getting put down at the pound.  They're both very friendly, and despite being turned out of their home, they still trust people.

R.I.P. Escort

It's official: my Ford Escort is dead.  I killed it.

I didn't mean to, of course.  I was out and about on a bright sunny day, and whammo!  I hit another car at an intersection.  Didn't see the oncoming white car for the glare.  Thankfully nobody was hurt (although the airbag did beat me up a bit).

The damage to my car didn't appear to be all that bad, except that the airbags deployed.  Since repacking them is apparently a costly situation, the car was totalled.  Time to go car shopping!

I'll admit, my old Ford and I didn't always have a happy relationship- I had it for 12 years, after all.  That's a lot of miles (and  lot of repairs!).  Still, there's something about a car that you've had so long that the driver's seat has a butt print that exactly fits you.  I suppose I'll miss it.

But not for long.  :)

Lessons Learned Online

I was reading a post on another blog about things the blogger had learned in his two years writing online.

It got me thinking-I've only been writing a short time, but after being online for about a decade I've learned some lessons over all.

1. You really can't make millions in your sleep.
2. Lots of people have cute cats.
3. Every news site reports the same news.
4. Spam is more than just canned meat.
5. I have body parts that need to be enlarged that I didn't even know I had.
6. People will say anything if they think they're annonymous.
7. Be careful what you wear to WalMart.
8. You have more "friends" from high school on Facebook than you every had real friends while you were in school.
9. There are many talented people with videos on YouTube; unfortunately, some of them are talented at really weird things.
10. Some celebrities just can't stay out of trouble.

At least I've been payin' attention!

Getting Brave With The Blogging

Okay, I did what all the experts suggested, and started a Wordpress blog.  Yikes!

To tell the truth, it wasn't as daunting as I thought it would be.  If you pick a host that has a one-click Wordpress install,  they pretty much walk you through it.

One thing that made it a whole lot easier for me?  I started on Blogger.  Blogger is a great place to learn the art of blogging; everything is so sensibly laid out that you even the least computer-savvy person can learn to set up a blog here.

I may have started a new blog using WP (strictly because I think I might be able to sell it at some point), but I'm still a big fan of Blogger.  It's so easy, and you can make such a nice blog- and best of all, it's FREE!  I love free! 

Though from a business standpoint it's certainly a good idea to own a blog outright if you may want to sell it in future,  I will by no means be abandoning Blogger.  It's a great blogging platform.

Weird Dreams

Never ever does a dream of mine make sense.
Last night was no exception.  I dreamed that I had a blue Ford Focus, and I kept trying to park it in front of my parents' house, but no matter what I did it wasn't right.  I'd back into the space, turn the car off, and get out and check- and each time something was wrong.  I was too far from the curb, or parked at an angle, or half-way in the driveway.  Then I started pulling the car up, putting it in neutral, and pushing the car into the space.  Time after time that didn't work either.  Then I woke up.

Weird!  And I didn't eat any spicy food before bedtime either. 

I suppose if this dream has a "meaning", it's pretty obvious-trying the same thing the same way over and over will get the same result.  I didn't need a night parking a car to tell me that!

Another One Bites The Dust

I did it again. I broke another cookie jar.

Cookie jars, mugs, butter dishes- I simply cannot be trusted with anything breakable.  One wrong move and smash! another one bites the dust.

And this one was my last cookie jar, except for the snowman one. As I'm not getting him out in May, it's time to go cookie jar shopping.

I'm kind of torn, here- I like cute character cookie jars, but of course they're all ceramic.  And I know what'll happen- it always does.  So of course I don't want to pay much.  But the cutesy cookie jars always cost more. 

Of course I could get a plain glass one; they're cheap.  And they don't break as easily.  But they're not cute! 

Dilemma, dilemma...

Plastic?  Tin?  Maybe cast iron, just to be on the safe side.

The search continues......

Movies I'd Love To See In 3D

With all the hype about 3D movies these days, I came up with a list of older films I'd like to see redone in 3D.  If they can do it for the whole Star Wars saga (coming to theaters in 2012), they should be able to do it for other films.

• Jurassic Park.  No brainer!  3D dinosaurs chasing people.  Extra cool.
• The Road Warrior.  It's basically a two hour car chase.  Imagine mohawks in 3D.
• Close Encounters.  The mothership really appearing to land in the theater.
• The Ten Commandments (subject of previous post).  Lots of special effects to enhance there.
• The Matrix. It'd be cool, but I might have to take Dramamine before I watch it in 3D.
• The Fifth Element.  Big bad-a boom in 3D!
• Blade Runner. Imagine how much more menacing Rutger Hauer would be coming off the screen towards you.
• The Terminator. "He'll be back" in 3D.
• All of the Alien movies.  I'd have to wear a metal chest plate to see them though.
• 2001: A Space Odessey.  It'd be even more trippy, and I still wouldn't understand it.
• Raiders Of The Lost Ark.  Woo, that big rock ball rolling towards you at the beginning!
• Kill Bill Vol. 1& 2. All that kung-fu coming atcha.
• Ben-Hur.  I want the chariot race in 3D.
• The Exorcist.  Pea soup flying at you.
• The Crow. All those bad guys getting it but good.

When I started this list, I had only a few films in mind, but turns out I could go on and on.  Any more suggestions?  :)

So Shall It Be Written - So Shall It Be Done

I'm sitting here as I sit here every Holy Saturday, watching The Ten Commandments.  I love it.  I can't help it- it's so campy.  Very Bible meets Days Of Our Lives.  "Oh Moses, Moses..."  "Can one so rich in beauty be so poor in pity?" "Are you a master builder or a master butcher?".

And it is of course also a sweeping epic.  Lots of grand sets and glamourous costumes (I didn't know they had bullet bras in ancient Epypt!)-classic Cecil B. DeVille. All those crowd scenes and special effects, done the old-fashioned way-no CGI in 1956! 

But I think that the real reason I watch this movie faithfully every year is that it's a little piece of continuity in life.  The Ten Commandments, like all the kiddie Christmas specials, takes me back to the time when I'd be watching it wearing pajamas with footies.  Nothing like a little nostalgia for the holidays!

Happy Record Store Day!

Didn't know there was any such thing, did you?  But today really is National Record Store Day.

It seems that good old vinyl is actually making a bit of a comeback.  Sales of vinyl LP's increased about 14% between 2009 and 2010.  That's a big deal, especially in an age when music downloads make up almost half of all music sales.  And there are still about 700 independent record stores nationwide hanging on and making sales. Woo-hoo! Good news in my book.  CDs and mp3 downloads are nice and convienient, but they do have a sort of flat sound.  LPs give you a much fuller, richer sound.  And does anyone else miss album art?  Yes, it's still there in that tiny little square on your mp3 player screen, but it's sure not the same as having a 12 x 12 cardboard cover with the artwork staring you in the face.

Little independent record stores each have a unique atmosphere, too, like the one in High Fidelity. (Note: there's some naughty words in the clip.)

You don't get that from iTunes or the mall store!

Anyway, I'm glad people are starting to appreciate vinyl records again.  When you get down it it, they're just plain cool.

Introducing The New Blog

I've been meaning to do it, and I finally got it set up.  My new music blog, http://www.thehappyturntable.blogspot.com/ ,is finally up and running!  It's not going to be the typical review-of-all-the-latest-stuff music blog, it's going to be about my favorite music, old and new.  My tastes are eclectic, so there should be something for everyone as time goes by.  Stop by-you might one day find your new favorite band!

Green Green Grass Of Home

That's an old country song, by the way.

It's April, so time to start mowing the grass again.  I looked out at the back yard today, and I'm like wow how'd that happen? What was bare and scaggly a couple of weeks ago is now beyond lush and green.  Time to get the mower out.

So I got to work mowing. I have an electric mower (my yard is teensy) and a looong cord.  Fortunately, after many years doing this, I've finally mastered the art of not mowing the cord.  I got everything all co-ordinated and got started, and damn that grass was long.  A couple of days more and I'd've had a mini hayfield on my hands. Up and down the yard I went (gotta have those nice neat rows!) with the mower bogging down every step of the way.  Electric mowers are just not meant for foot high grass.  I plugged away and got it done though, and when I was done I had this whole big trash bag full of clippings.

I realize that for many folks one trash bag full of grass clippings ain't much.  But considering that my mower is a mulcher and I usually end up with about a handful's worth, that was a LOT of grass.  If it had been the other kind of grass, I would've had enough to sell and retire on.  And to boot, everything was damp, so both my hands and my clothes were green all over.  Sing it, Kermit!

Anyway, finally got it all done.  And now the vicious cycle begins-tomorrow it's gonna rain!

Spring's Afoot

We're supposed to have summerlike temperatures here in my neck of the woods tomorrow (finally!).  You know what that means!

After months and months of cold weather, my feet will finally be free!  I gleefully grab a pair of sandals and put them on and....

Uh oh.  Big ugly monkey feet.

I should have expected this, of course- it happens every year.  After all that time cooped up in sneakers, socks, slippers, and sweater socks,  my feet look like they belong to some species that's far less than human.  I know I should do the whole pedicure/exfoliating thing all winter, but it's just to damn COLD around here to do more than a quick wash and nail trim. So every spring I have to give my poor feet  a major makeover.  Nails, buffing, scrubbing- a complete foot beauty treatment. 

Well, no options I guess- warm weather's coming, and I ain't keeping these feet cooped up any longer than I have to.  Gotta run and start my "footwork"!  :)

And Now For Something Completely Different

I was flipping through channels the other night, and came into Monty Python and the Holy Grail here:

I was rolling around laughing in seconds.  Monks singing a mournful hymn, then klonk! in the head. And again, and again, till the villagers bring the witch to Sir Bedevere for judgement.  Time to stop flipping channels.

I've always been a Python fan, ever since PBS first started showing it when I was in junior high school.  The nonsensical sketches, Terry Gilliams very original animation, and a band of genius comedians- what more could a 13-year-old ask for in a comedy show?  And though I haven't seen the original episodes for quite a while (I'll be remedying that on YouTube!), the charm still hasn't worn off.

My run away favorite sketch has always been The Ministry Of Silly Walks:

 

John Cleese and his extra long legs made that sketch, and it also takes some well deserved shots at government agencies and how they work.

And for those of you wondering why email spam is called spam, it came from a Monty Python sketch:

The ever inescapable spam!  :)

My New Favorite TV Show

As I sit here writing, I'm watching that new Extreme Couponing tv show!  Wow!  Thousands of dollars of groceries for 94, 96, 98% off!  I'm hooked. And I thought I did great at the local scratch and dent stores.

Although I am awestruck at such savings ( I can be quite a cheapskate ),  I kind of get the impression that for some of these folks this is actually a form of hoarding.  A stockpile of items you'll use in a reasonable amount of time is great, but why would anyone keep a lifetime's worth of deodorant on hand?  Just imagine what it'll be like by the year, say, 2025-yuck!  You ain't gettin' that near my armpits!

I am overall inspired, though.  I had no idea that there are actually websites out there where they clip the coupons for you and you can buy them pre-clipped.  The coupons are generally sold for a small percentage of the face value, and you can pick which ones you want.  I may have to check into that-my big gripe with coupons is that I never come accross ones for things that I use.  And I'm not about to stoop to dumpster diving, like one woman did on the show!  Sometimes you gotta draw a line.  :)

The Fleeting Nature Of Fame

I was at my local mall today, and I happened to sit down for a minute.  The spot I picked was just inches from where our local celebrity, Fountain Girl, took her header right in to the fountain outside Boscov's. 

(Once more, just for giggles:)

Now, of course we haven't heard much from Fountain Girl lately, after it was revealed that she has all that trouble with the law going on.  And we wouldn't have heard anything from her in the first place, if she hadn't come forward and said it was her in the video.  No way would anyone have recognized her in that grainy security video, so she wouldn't have had to complain about how embarassed she was (so much so that she was going to sue).  Maybe she's happy now that's she's no longer the "it" thing of the moment.

Celebrity can sure be fleeting!  I guess that's a good thing for those folks like Fountain Girl who find themselves unexpectedly in the spotlight and don't want to be there.  Happens quite a lot in this day of the internet. 

And on the other side of the coin are those who actively court the spotlight but have trouble hanging onto it.  Example; our other local celebrity, Kate Gosselin (known locally as The Blonde From Wernersville).  Now there's somebody who has lived, reproduced, divorced, and (badly) danced across our TV screens, and called it a career.  Before her stint on Dancing With The Stars, I had no idea there were so many ways to do the Robot!  Despite her many efforts, though, she and her brood seem to have disappeared from the reality show universe.  No doubt she's up there in Wernersville, plotting her return to TV this very moment....

Itty Bitty Quicky Post

I just signed my blog up with Technorati, and they need to see their code a blog post to verify blog ownership; here it is:  J487J6AVZYQP 

Jazz Fest 2011

Though the quiet little corner of Pennsylvania that I live in usually doesn't offer too much by way of excitement, we do occasionally have some fun things going on.  One of those is the yearly Jazz Fest.

 I'm actually not the world's biggest jazz fan, but I do like some of it. (I liked more of it in the early days when they were just getting started with the festival, because then they were offering most events for free in order to promote things.  :) )   I did get to one event this year; a Steely Dan tribute band called Royal Scam. They were really good!  Like the MC said, just close your eyes and you won't know the difference. They played all the great Steely Dan songs, like Peg and Rikki Don't Lose That Number.  Unfortunately, towards the end of the show the fire alarm went off.  The Abraham Lincoln Hotel, where the concert was being held, actually did have a small (quickly contained) fire in the basement.  Nobody seemed to know what was going on, so a bunch of folks (myself and friends included) decided to leave.  I was kinda glad we did, seeing that there was smoke in the parking garage when we left!  Although quite a few people did decide to stay, and the band resumed playing.  I made sure to pop over to the band's website and tell them what a great show it was, fire and all.  Hope the hoopla won't sour them on playing in Reading in the future! 

You Know, I Could Write A Book

Who hasn't said those words at sometime or another?  Every life is full of stories, it's just a matter of writing them down (old school, I know-everybody uses Word these days).

I've toyed with the idea before, but somehow I never quite got around to it.  Maybe I should; after all, these days you can write your book and publish it as an ebook yourself without having to kiss the behind of a publisher.  But the hard part, of course is actually writing the book itself-so much to ponder. Fact or fiction?  What genre?  I have a lot to figure out.....

Okay, I'll do some trial runs.

1. Internet Guru Book--Let me tell yoo about all the WONDERful methods I've developed to make money on the Internet!  For only the low low price of $29.95 you can downlad my ebook that will teach you to how too make money in your sleep selling ebooks that tell people to make money by selling more ebooks in their sleep.  For and additional $14,95 a month subscription to my special newsletter, I'll continue to send you useles advice for as long as yur willing to pay for it. (misspellings intentional)  Not for me; if I want to use this sort of method to make money, I'll just rob a bank. It's much quicker.

2. Romance-The sun reflected off of Jeremy's long blonde mane, enveloping him in a golden glow.  As she gazed upon him standing by the manor house's grand arch window, Eliza Jane nearly swooned.  Jeremy glanced up and saw her falter.  "Dearest," he cried as he rushed to her side, "did you stumble?"  And then he took her in his arms and the cat walked into the room and yakked up a hairball.  Sorry, not just cut out to write the mushy stuff.

3. Horror- Can't even think anything up.  I'm just no good with blood and gore (yeeck).

4. Dummies- Anything I know how to do wouldn't take 300 pages to explain.

5. Young Adult- Running with supernatural speed, Tyler blazed a trail through the dark woods to the little remote cabin.  As he burst through the cabin door, he caught a glimpse of a red-eyed wolf bounding out the back door. Anguished,he turned his attention to the other occupant of the room. "Ashley, I can't bear it!" he cried. "I must have you-I can't bear the thought of you with that werewolf!" "Oh Tyler," Ashley responded, "it's you I love!  Take me in your arms and bite my neck and" here comes that damn cat again........

6. Politics- Those damn (insert Republicans or Democrats, it really doesn't matter) are RUINING this county!  The will stop at nothing to destroy this country! The only way we can stop this evil is if you do what I tell you to! I don't think I need comment.

Oh well, it's all certainly something to think about.  Somewhere the right subject is out there waiting for me!

Big Big Moon

Okay, they say tonight the moon is a perigee moon- that means a full moon that looks bigger and brighter than the average full moon.

I looked out the window and checked. Yup, bigger and brighter!  And beautiful as always.

Of course, the wackos ( why are there always wackos? ) are out there saying that this big moon will bring devastating tidal waves to coastal cities.  Not even remotely true.  As we've certainly seen in recent years, you don't need the moon involved to have major natural disasters...

People have always gazed up at the moon in wonder.  The enduring myth (sometimes I'm not so sure it's a myth after all!)  is that the full moon affects people's behavior.  And then there's the modern day the-moon-landings-were-all-a-hoax myth, conterbalanced by the we-went-to-the-moon-and-some-moon-humans-came-back-with-the-astronauts myth.  Although just what those moon humans were supposedly using for air up there I haven't a clue.  Just goes to show, give some folks some disjointed unconnected pieces of information, and they'll make up whatever they have to to connect the dots and create a story that makes sense to them.  I guess the human brain just isn't made to deal with coincidences.

And while I was gazing out the window at the lovely full moon, I found myself humming that "Friday" song to myself!  Maybe this giant moon really is working on me.

How To Read Ebooks On Your Cell Phone If It Doesn't Have An Ereader

Whew! How's that for a long title?

Actually, I've been trying to figure this out since I got my LG Rumor Touch last fall.  Great phone, but limited apps, and no ereader.  Now I'm not the sort of gal who walks around reading War and Peace on her cell phone, but it's nice to have a little something with you when you're in a doctor's waiting room or getting your oil changed and all they have to read is the July 2007 issue of People.  So I did some fishing around online about how to do this, and this is what I found. (Note: You must have a phone that can access the internet to do this.)

1. Find a site from which you can download ebooks in the EPUB (electronic publishing) format to your computer.  http://www.epubbooks.com/ is my favorite; there's tons of classic literature on this site that you can download for free!

2. Select and download your books-make note of the file names so you can find them easily on your computer.

3. Go to http://bookworm.oreilly.com/ and set up an account.

4. Upload your epub ebooks to your Bookworm account, then logout.

5.  Using your cell phone, log onto m.bookworm.oreilly.com (the mobile version of the site). Sign in.

6. Ta-da!  There's your list of books.  Click on the book you want to read, and click "next" in the lower right hand corner till you get to the text.

It really is pretty simple, and you'll end up with a list of great books to read anytime, anywhere-and you won't even have to use up and memory on your phone.  Enjoy!  :)

OMG! It's Just So Totally Awful!

It came out of nowhere, and conquered the internet.  You know what I mean; Rebecca Black's "Friday" video.  Never heard of her yesterday, she's everywhere today.   Ah, the power of the web!

Turns out this inescapable little video is a product of one Ark Music Factory, an LA record label that seems intent on producing an army of Justin Biebers and Miley Cyruses to unleash on us all.  Judging from the "Friday" video,  they ain't even close.

I must say I do feel sorry for the young girl singer, Rebecca Black.  One is not able to tell from this video if the kid can really even sing; the whole song is a monotone, autotuned drone.  Imagine being a teenager and having articles written about your first single like "Is The Worst Video Ever Made?". She'll probably hide under her bed for the next six months.

And a note to whoever wrote this little ditty- it needs more words!  You can't make a decent song by repeating the same few inane phrases over and over.  And think about what you're saying!  She can't decide where to sit in the car?  Such insight, such depth of feeling.

Haven't seen it?  Here it is.  And I warn you, as awful as it is, it's one of those things that once it's in your head, it'll NEVER leave!

Land Of The Rising Sun

As I write, the sun is rising on Japan on the first day after the earthquake/tsunami. 

After a day of watching videos of the destruction,  the pictures that are now appearing of the damage left behind are still hard to comprehend.  Mountains of rubble everywhere; where would you even start with putting things back together?  How will they be able to hunt for survivors?  And what happens if that nuclear plant goes kaboom? If I feel this helpless here in the States, how much worse it must be for the Japanese people.

Makes you wonder too, what if it happened here?  We certainly have enough fault lines here; a huge earthquake could happen along any of them.  Now, Americans never hesitate to run in to help when their neighbors are in trouble (New Orleans notwithstanding), but we tend not to plan our infastructure with disaster in mind.  We buy insurance and hope for the best.  The best isn't always what you get...

I'm sure in the days to come we'll all be seeing much more of the unfolding horror story that is occuring in the ancient island nation of Japan.  It's going to take the best efforts of the Japanese (and I'm sure some help from its allies) to rebuild and restore.  Thoughts and prayers are with them.

Adieu Borders

Today I made what may be my last trip to our local Borders store--it's one of the branches that the chain is closing down this month.  You know, it's just too weird to go in that store and not smell coffee brewing.  I'll miss Borders-we also have a prospering Barnes and Nobles in our area, but Borders was always the more cozy and laid back of the two.   I suppose it's not too surprising that Borders is closing, with the rise of online booksellers and mp3 downloading, but I can't help thinking that the chain gave up on our branch too soon.  Things actually started going downhill for our Borders when the big-as-a-barn B&N store opened-it was as if the folks at Borders headquarters gave up the battle right away.  It was at that point that the Borders store started looking a little shabby and didn't carry quite the selection of merchandise it originally did.  And as they carried less and less variety, B&N picked up more & more of the business...so goodbye Borders.

It was really unique in the beginning, the whole bookstore with a coffee shop concept, but I think both chains grew too fast.  And now the business model doesn't work as well, with additional competition from the internet.  Still, I'd hate to think of the world without physical brick-and-mortar bookstores where you can actually pick up a book and flip through it.  E-Readers are nice, but it's just not the same.

Hmmm....maybe somebody should reverse the business model.  Instead of a big bookstore with a small coffee shop, a big coffee shop/cafe with a smaller bookstore/ebook dowloading station.  Any genius investors out there willing to try?  :)

Who Do You Think You Are?

No, I'm not trying to a smarty-pants, I'm talking about the show on NBC.  Each week, they follow a celebrity as they research their family tree.  Sound boring?  It's definately not.

If you've ever done any family tree research (and I have), you soon find out that every family history has twists and turns.  The celebrities profilied on Who Do You Think You Are? learn this pretty quickly.  Most of them (like most amateur geneaolgists) have some idea where to start- little bits and pieces passed down through the generations.  The full story always turns out to be so much richer.

This past week Lionel Richie learned that his great-grandfather,r born a slave, later went on as a free man to found an African-American fraterallnal organization, the Knights of Wise Men, to help others in his community. When you find someone like that in your past, it really is a humbling experience--it's like after all the things  your ancestors went through that got you where you are today, you owe it to them to make something of your life.

Sometimes the end result of family history research can be bittersweet, too.  The previous week's episode of this show was about Kim Cattrall's search for the grandfather who abandoned his young family 70 years ago.  He just up and left one day, and no one had seen or heard from him since, not even his own mother.  Turns out he'd just moved to a nearby town and remarried (without ever divorcing his first wife).  He made a whole new life for himself and raised another family, seemingly without ever a thought about the first wife and little girls he'd left behind.  Tragic, and sad- but in the end,  Kim's mother and her sisters got to meet the siblings they'd never known about.

If you're intested in researching your own family tree, this show is definately a must-see. Knowing who and where you come from adds greatly to your own sense of self, and will serve as an inspiration to you in your own life.

Revvin' Up The Blog

Here's a note to all my faithful readers and followers (all two of you! :)  ).  As you may have noticed, I've been workin' on this here blog.  In the weeks to come, I'm going to try to post more, and on more interesting subjects than just my babbling.  Hope you enjoy!

Some (Or All) Assembly Required

Okay, so I'm back from IKEA with my new laptop stand.  Now all I need to do is put it together.

Easier said than done, isn't it? You see, since IKEA is an international company, all their assembly instructions are done in pictures, so there's no need to make different copies in different languages.  The end result is instructions that are universally unintelligible to everyone.  I take some comfort in that; just think, somewhere on the other side of the world someone in India, or Russia, or Outer Mongolia is looking at the same set of directions wondering what the hell to do next, just like I am.  It really is a small world (sigh).

Success at last! It's together.  And all the little adjustable bits work like they're supposed to.  And this time I didn't have any parts left over!  A miracle.  Now, if I can only do the same with the little table I bought-wish me luck!

Nine Again

So now they're saying on the news that maybe there's another planet on the outer edge of our solar system. Either that, or it's a brown dwarf star. Or maybe it's not there at all.  Now, it'll sure be interesting to hear more about this, but it'll be even more interesting to find out how it was there all this time and no one noticed! I know that science is the great quest for understanding how the universe works and that you need to question previously held beliefs when new data becomes available, but geez! Missing something that;s supposed to be 4 times bigger than Jupiter?  It's like not noticing a bowling ball in a bag of marshmallows.  At least if it's there, we'll be back to 9 planets again, since poor old Pluto got the shaft recently.

Somebody Turn The Snow Off!

It's January 27, and I'm already ready to cry "Uncle!" with all this snow.  Not only is it back-breaking labor to shovel it, it's at the point now that there's nowhere else to go with it.  I've got snow piles in my yard that are at eye level, and I'm not short.

At least all this snow tends to bring out a spirit of co-operation among neighbors.  Those with snow blowers help out those who don't; younger people shovel for their elderly neighbors.  Most of the time anyway; I know that in some places people start all out battles over parking spaces.  Can't blame 'em really;   you shovel a spot, someone else takes it.  Kind of a metaphor for life, isn't it?

Farewell Jack Lalanne

I just saw on the news that Jack Lalanne (the fitness guy) just died at age 96.  Now I'm not exactly a fitness enthusiast, but I remember his show from the '60s. My mom used to watch and do the exersizes, most of which seemed to involve a chair (and his dog Happy). Little me used to try to do the exersizes along with her. I guess that was the start of me realizing that I'm not in any way, shape or form athletic at ALL.  Anyway, the guy had the right idea before anyone else did.  And it must've worked for him; he was healthy up to the very end.  Now why can't I find some motivation to get up and work out?

New Place To Write

I've been searching the web for more places to submit my writing, and I found a site called Hubpages that looks promising.  It's one of the sites where you earn residuals when people click on the ads on the page, so we'll see how it goes.  I've read that some people do really well on this site.

You also get to pick your own topics on Hubpages.  That's nice--on the ghostwriting site where I've submitted articles previously, you select a topic someone wants an article on.  Of course you don't have to sit around thinking up an idea that way, but since most of those articles are destined for commercial websites you end up writing articles on things like light bulbs and ceiling fans.  Not exactly fascinating work! I went back to my high school days for my first article (Hub, as they call it on Hubpages).  I wrote about ELO, my favorite band back in the day.  Much more enjoyable to write!

Here's the link, if you're interested:  http://hubpages.com/hub/The-Electric-Light-Orchestra-ELO

I Won!

Oh happy day!  I entered a contest at a shop at my local mall.  It was the first day the new Vera Bradley spring bags came out, and the shop was running a daily contest ( for a bag ) and an hourly contest ( for a little case ).  I came home Friday after work, and found 2 messages on the answering machine- one telling me I won the daily drawing, and one telling me I won the hourly drawing!  Two wins at the same time, for someone who's last prize won was two big bags of pretzels at a picnic about 35 years ago.  Maybe things are looking up!

Okay, So I'm Weak...

I did it again- I went into that damn store at the mall that sells the Vera Bradley bags. And what was today but the day that all the new spring styles and colors came out!  Naturally I told myself I was just going to look, and look I did.  I tried to stay at the back where all the sale bags are, but somehow I gravitated to the front where the new stuff is.  And what did I find, but that they now have a style of bag that literally has my name on it!  Really.  The "Mandy".  And with a gift card burning a whole in my pocket, that was all it took to get me to violate my "on sale only" rule as far as Vera bags are concerned.  I think I need time in Vera detox!

Got Your Milk And Bread?

Okay, so we got a whole 2 inches of snow today.  That was more than enough to send people streaming into the store I work at in a panic, 'cause after all they might never be able to get in to the store ever again (I'm being sarcastic here, of course).  Here we are in the 21st century, and people still react to bad weather like they're living in a cave wearing skins.  Guess what? Snow and ice melt!  Snow plows and snow shovels move it all out of the way!  All you have to do is wait a day or maybe even just a few hours, and you're back in business again.  No need to stock up on necessities, it'll all still be there at the store tomorrow. :)