They suck. For two reasons. They get your hopes up, as in "oh my! someone commented!" and they serve no good purpose, as in, "VIAGRA!"
The alternative, having someone type in a bunch of letters for word verification is just irritating for the people who really have something to say.
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
In other news...
My hair does not like me. It is doing some sort of Dan Rather side sweep thing, which is expressly what I told it not to do. My hair has not liked me for the past few days. Yesterday, it looked like I was wearing a really bad 70's pageboy wig. My hair hates me. I think it is my frequent attempt to tame it with a flat iron. I know, each morning, we are both planning our attacks. It truly stinks that my hair normally wins.
10 years
In my 19th year, I discovered that my father was not the man that reared me. I discovered I would not be able to return to school. I lost my childhood home in a fire. I accepted Christ as my Lord and Saviour. It was not unexpected. I'd been going to church since I was 17. I knew that it made sense. I'd been looking for God since I picked up my first book of "mythology" in the third grade, the Bahgavahdgita. I devoured mythology and I loved bible stories, just not the bible. The bible was a cumbersome tome that stated truths in a way so convoluted, you wondered how anyone could choose it as religion. When I was older, when I started seeing the bible the way the Baptist church taught me to see it, I could sort of make sense of it, better sense than my fellow sunday school classmates.
When I accepted Christ, I couldn't make much better sense of the bible than I could when I was 10. It was almost a year before I didn't dread reading any words and at once, I started on a path different from my contemporaries, because I devoured the old testament and it was probably 3 years before I became as enamoured of the new testament. I especially loved Elijah. I loved the work of God through him, his weakness and his strength. I thought he was funny, a worthy role model for me because he was so strange. I once kept a friend awake and cognizant through a drug overdose (unfortunately, a doctor perscribed one) by telling her the stories of Elijah. I fell in love with Isaiah and Samuel and Daniel and would read these over and over again. Of course, when I read new testament, I gravitated towards Paul, although John was a standout. I was confused by David and he remains, to this day, my biggest example that God doesn't necessarily want what church says He wants from us.
I have been with God for 10 years. It's amazing to me, to look back through my life and see the places where he's touched. I believe some disappointments were scheduled by God into my life for the purpose of making me who I am. I believe some of my failings were to bring me to my knees before Him. I believe that my anger was to show me that I could talk to God in any state, that he would not strike me with lightning for daring to accuse Him of not caring, of not loving, of this all being for nothing. I believe His comfort in those times were purposeful, because I see that comfort extended to others in my testimony, through my words. I have no wisdom but what God has shown me in the life He has let me live. I have no joy but that He has given me the freedom to make choices and He stands behind me through the bad choices as well as the good choices. I knew no love until He showed me His Son and when my little mind had understood all it could, He plucked my husband from his life and dropped him in mine to show me an even more understandable model of His outrageous love. My encouragement is that He is always there, that only my emotions can be far from Him, my feelings can be far from Him, but I never am for He is always with me. He has saved my life and protected me in ways I could not fathom. He has put His angels around me and though I do not see them, I see the results. I would praise God from the heavens, through all joys and tears because He has been good to me. He has not promised ease, and in that, He is clear. I have not had an easy life. I did not come to Him when all was easy. I have suffered ridicule for my stance, I have been misunderstood because of my love, I have been hated when I would not budge, I have been judged for understanding. I also have been wrong, I have been hateful, I have been judgmental, I have not loved. I was not perfected in my salvation, but even in this, I praise God. My humanity still calls to others, to hear what God has done, even if they won't accept, to acknowledge that something happens when I pray, because an answer has always come. God has done this all, the exultation and the heartache and for one end. His glory. I am expendable, but in a good way, because when I am exhausted, then I will be with Him, but while I am here, I will work to exhaustion because God is good. There is so much I have forgotten about His goodness, there is so much I have pushed away because of His care, but I will remember your goodness, oh Lord, and I will sing your praises forever.
When I accepted Christ, I couldn't make much better sense of the bible than I could when I was 10. It was almost a year before I didn't dread reading any words and at once, I started on a path different from my contemporaries, because I devoured the old testament and it was probably 3 years before I became as enamoured of the new testament. I especially loved Elijah. I loved the work of God through him, his weakness and his strength. I thought he was funny, a worthy role model for me because he was so strange. I once kept a friend awake and cognizant through a drug overdose (unfortunately, a doctor perscribed one) by telling her the stories of Elijah. I fell in love with Isaiah and Samuel and Daniel and would read these over and over again. Of course, when I read new testament, I gravitated towards Paul, although John was a standout. I was confused by David and he remains, to this day, my biggest example that God doesn't necessarily want what church says He wants from us.
I have been with God for 10 years. It's amazing to me, to look back through my life and see the places where he's touched. I believe some disappointments were scheduled by God into my life for the purpose of making me who I am. I believe some of my failings were to bring me to my knees before Him. I believe that my anger was to show me that I could talk to God in any state, that he would not strike me with lightning for daring to accuse Him of not caring, of not loving, of this all being for nothing. I believe His comfort in those times were purposeful, because I see that comfort extended to others in my testimony, through my words. I have no wisdom but what God has shown me in the life He has let me live. I have no joy but that He has given me the freedom to make choices and He stands behind me through the bad choices as well as the good choices. I knew no love until He showed me His Son and when my little mind had understood all it could, He plucked my husband from his life and dropped him in mine to show me an even more understandable model of His outrageous love. My encouragement is that He is always there, that only my emotions can be far from Him, my feelings can be far from Him, but I never am for He is always with me. He has saved my life and protected me in ways I could not fathom. He has put His angels around me and though I do not see them, I see the results. I would praise God from the heavens, through all joys and tears because He has been good to me. He has not promised ease, and in that, He is clear. I have not had an easy life. I did not come to Him when all was easy. I have suffered ridicule for my stance, I have been misunderstood because of my love, I have been hated when I would not budge, I have been judged for understanding. I also have been wrong, I have been hateful, I have been judgmental, I have not loved. I was not perfected in my salvation, but even in this, I praise God. My humanity still calls to others, to hear what God has done, even if they won't accept, to acknowledge that something happens when I pray, because an answer has always come. God has done this all, the exultation and the heartache and for one end. His glory. I am expendable, but in a good way, because when I am exhausted, then I will be with Him, but while I am here, I will work to exhaustion because God is good. There is so much I have forgotten about His goodness, there is so much I have pushed away because of His care, but I will remember your goodness, oh Lord, and I will sing your praises forever.
Katrina
I not much for watching tragedies on television. It may seem calloused, but I like to wait until it ends to see how it all turns out. I talked to friends who lived in New Orleans who evacuated before the storm and I watched a little bit of new coverage. I would have been fine with all of that, fine to see, when help finally came, what happened. It would have been fine to hear the next week of rescue stories and hear the triumphs and tragedies of finally finding missing families.
What I did not expect was to get mad. Steaming angry is a better way to describe it. I couldn't believe that the people didn't have at least food and water. I mean, they sent in big buses to help people get out until they filled the Houston dome, why couldn't they have sent those same buses with food and water in lieu of taking them away. I know it was scary to have the buses drive off with noone inside because there was no where to take them, but dang, it's worse when you're not even sure who's going to die beside you the next day, hoping it won't be you or your child. It was heart rending watching the condition that everyone was in. And every day in the news, you saw people blaming other people and people trying to cover their butts. You saw the best and worst of humanity.
The other day I was praying about what I could do for the people who so desperately need so much help. I wanted to just cook a bunch of food, put it in containers and drive to New Orleans, to Mississippi and Alabama and pass out food. It couldn't have been impossible, no matter how much we were made to believe it was. But I don't have enough money to do any of that stuff and I felt defeated until I was reminded that, more than anything, prayer works. So I've been praying. For shelter, for relief from the heat, for food and clothes, for diapers and restrooms, for rescue and for finding loved one. I've been praying for those whose properties weren't damaged, that they can go back to houses that haven't been looted, that they will be a shelter to those left behind.
People seem so surprised that people from New Orleans didn't want to leave their houses, their land, everything that was everything to them. I confess, if we had to evacuate, I would easily leave this place with only a twinge of regret to what we have built here. But I also understand the strength of history, how it compels us to preserve it. I would be loathe to leave a home we'd built from scratch, a home we'd lived and loved in for 50 years. That would make me sad. I understand why they don't want to leave. I understand why they should. I pray they will too.
What I did not expect was to get mad. Steaming angry is a better way to describe it. I couldn't believe that the people didn't have at least food and water. I mean, they sent in big buses to help people get out until they filled the Houston dome, why couldn't they have sent those same buses with food and water in lieu of taking them away. I know it was scary to have the buses drive off with noone inside because there was no where to take them, but dang, it's worse when you're not even sure who's going to die beside you the next day, hoping it won't be you or your child. It was heart rending watching the condition that everyone was in. And every day in the news, you saw people blaming other people and people trying to cover their butts. You saw the best and worst of humanity.
The other day I was praying about what I could do for the people who so desperately need so much help. I wanted to just cook a bunch of food, put it in containers and drive to New Orleans, to Mississippi and Alabama and pass out food. It couldn't have been impossible, no matter how much we were made to believe it was. But I don't have enough money to do any of that stuff and I felt defeated until I was reminded that, more than anything, prayer works. So I've been praying. For shelter, for relief from the heat, for food and clothes, for diapers and restrooms, for rescue and for finding loved one. I've been praying for those whose properties weren't damaged, that they can go back to houses that haven't been looted, that they will be a shelter to those left behind.
People seem so surprised that people from New Orleans didn't want to leave their houses, their land, everything that was everything to them. I confess, if we had to evacuate, I would easily leave this place with only a twinge of regret to what we have built here. But I also understand the strength of history, how it compels us to preserve it. I would be loathe to leave a home we'd built from scratch, a home we'd lived and loved in for 50 years. That would make me sad. I understand why they don't want to leave. I understand why they should. I pray they will too.
Sunday, September 04, 2005
I'm not the only one!
If you think my beanie weenie and white merlot was bad, then check out this guy's fast food wine pairings.
TACO BELL
BURRITO SUPREME
Wine: 2003 Vina MontGras Cabernet Sauvignon Syrah Reserva
Why it works: This blend, which would go nicely with just about any food with a bit of kick, seems especially designed for the spicy grilled smack-in-the-taste-buds that this wrap's hot sauce provides.
Yay for the weirdos. And the people who don't want to cook or go to a restaurant where they will be forced to pay more than $10 for their meal.
Taken (spoilers)
In 2002, Steven Spielberg produced a miniseries for Sci-Fi called Taken. I was so excited, I couldn't wait to see it. And do you know what happened? I missed every episode. I was pissed. I really wanted to see it. I mean, who could do aliens better?
Last week, I found the DVDs at my local Blockbuster. Someone had taken the 2nd disk with 4 hours worth of show on it, but I wanted to watch it anyway. I'm smart, I can figure things out. And I was excited.
I have to say that, although I watched ever DVD I had and cried at the end, it was the most disappointing show I'd ever watched. I probably would not have watch more than the first two shows. It started in the 1940s when a pilot was taken by aliens when his company of planes "crashed". When they were awakened, they were discovered by their allies and taken to safety. The pilot was the only one to survive. he was a fighter. We follow the tales of aliens abducting all the men in his line and each man fights. Also, it is in the 40s that the alien ship crashes into Roswell. So, and alien survives, pretends to be human, makes love to this woman an begats a baby. The guy in the military (he's a bad man) covers it all up, kills to get and keep all the information and marries his wife to force his boss (his wife's father) to give him the alien project. In a nutshell the three families. So, we see the military family be ruthless over the course of the 10 hours, the pilot's family of men fight every alien abduction, and the alien's family just be a bunch of weirdos. I sat through hour after hour of whining, crazy looking carnies, bright lights taking people away and decades passing and then we get to present day.
It is when Dakota Fanning is thrown into the mix that things start to get interesting. The one thing I liked about the writing is that we don't know what the aliens are up to. So when we realize Dakota Fanning (masquerading as Allie) is the end results, we are instantly drawn in to the story because we all want to know one thing: what can she do? Then they try to bore us again, but the one sustaining force is: what can she do? We see her bend time, we see her read minds, we see her project images, thoughts, we see her heal a bullet wound, we see her make everyone lose time as if they were taken. She willing goes to be researched so that she can do something to make them convinced that she was taken by the aliens and they will leave her alone. But the military figures out she pulled the wool over their eyes when she escapes pretending to be the general (or, at least that's the highest title I know, but it may not be his). So they keep tracking her down and there is kind of a man hunt (all of this is surrounded by boring-ness, by the way) by the citizens of the U.S.ofA. and we see that first alien that survived again. His earth name is John and he explains, over the next three hours (after being shot and being old as hold) that he is an alien scientist and he was just doing experiments. You know, pick up the humans, tag them, see how they live in the wild. We see that every day on Animal Planet. And I think, so that's it? You studied humanity in the wild over the course of years, put this little girl together just to study her? That's all I get for 10 hours of my life? I mean, it could have at least been that the earth would implode unless we always had a bispecies entity on the planet, or if they had not bred her through alien abductions, her parents would have never stayed together, sort of an alien eharmony. "We put marriages together based on the implants we painfully put in your head, tracking your every move over decades until we finally find the right one for you." Even though the ending was sad (Dakota Fanning was great) and emotional, it stil wasn't worth the price of admission. The writing bogged me down. Did it win an Emmy for best miniseries because there were no other shows, or because noone had writing as good at Ms. Fanning's acting. Either way, I wish for at least 9 of those hours back including the hours I didn't watch because it was taken.
Last week, I found the DVDs at my local Blockbuster. Someone had taken the 2nd disk with 4 hours worth of show on it, but I wanted to watch it anyway. I'm smart, I can figure things out. And I was excited.
I have to say that, although I watched ever DVD I had and cried at the end, it was the most disappointing show I'd ever watched. I probably would not have watch more than the first two shows. It started in the 1940s when a pilot was taken by aliens when his company of planes "crashed". When they were awakened, they were discovered by their allies and taken to safety. The pilot was the only one to survive. he was a fighter. We follow the tales of aliens abducting all the men in his line and each man fights. Also, it is in the 40s that the alien ship crashes into Roswell. So, and alien survives, pretends to be human, makes love to this woman an begats a baby. The guy in the military (he's a bad man) covers it all up, kills to get and keep all the information and marries his wife to force his boss (his wife's father) to give him the alien project. In a nutshell the three families. So, we see the military family be ruthless over the course of the 10 hours, the pilot's family of men fight every alien abduction, and the alien's family just be a bunch of weirdos. I sat through hour after hour of whining, crazy looking carnies, bright lights taking people away and decades passing and then we get to present day.
It is when Dakota Fanning is thrown into the mix that things start to get interesting. The one thing I liked about the writing is that we don't know what the aliens are up to. So when we realize Dakota Fanning (masquerading as Allie) is the end results, we are instantly drawn in to the story because we all want to know one thing: what can she do? Then they try to bore us again, but the one sustaining force is: what can she do? We see her bend time, we see her read minds, we see her project images, thoughts, we see her heal a bullet wound, we see her make everyone lose time as if they were taken. She willing goes to be researched so that she can do something to make them convinced that she was taken by the aliens and they will leave her alone. But the military figures out she pulled the wool over their eyes when she escapes pretending to be the general (or, at least that's the highest title I know, but it may not be his). So they keep tracking her down and there is kind of a man hunt (all of this is surrounded by boring-ness, by the way) by the citizens of the U.S.ofA. and we see that first alien that survived again. His earth name is John and he explains, over the next three hours (after being shot and being old as hold) that he is an alien scientist and he was just doing experiments. You know, pick up the humans, tag them, see how they live in the wild. We see that every day on Animal Planet. And I think, so that's it? You studied humanity in the wild over the course of years, put this little girl together just to study her? That's all I get for 10 hours of my life? I mean, it could have at least been that the earth would implode unless we always had a bispecies entity on the planet, or if they had not bred her through alien abductions, her parents would have never stayed together, sort of an alien eharmony. "We put marriages together based on the implants we painfully put in your head, tracking your every move over decades until we finally find the right one for you." Even though the ending was sad (Dakota Fanning was great) and emotional, it stil wasn't worth the price of admission. The writing bogged me down. Did it win an Emmy for best miniseries because there were no other shows, or because noone had writing as good at Ms. Fanning's acting. Either way, I wish for at least 9 of those hours back including the hours I didn't watch because it was taken.
Friday, September 02, 2005
I have wireless internet at home!
Which means more *not getting anything done* at home. I'm so happy that my sweet, smart, handsome, clever, generous husband agreed that getting a cable modem was where it's at.
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Dear A&E
I watched your version of Pride and Prejudice Sunday night. You made me miss the first 7 minutes of the 4400. I love that show. It was a really good show, with just the right twists and turns that made it an enjoyable end to the season, but with just enough questions to have me longing for January. Not only did I miss the first few minutes of one of my favourite shows, but I also decided to watch the season finale of The Dead Zone at a later date. Here's why I chose a video of your program over the right now season finale of a show I enjoy very much.
The characters. I have watched the 1980 BBC only version of this movie, the 1940 version of this move, read the book and am finally seeing your version and I have to say that of them all, even against the Mr. Bennet in my head, you saw him best. He was awesomely sarcastic, condescending and loving. He made me laugh out loud several times. Elizabeth Bennet was perfect. I, at first, thought her too pretty for the part, because she was prettier than her sister (who had something of a superman jaw, which is very disconcerting on a woman). In reality, this did not turn into a problem because her acting, especially her prejudice against Mr. Darcy in believing every bad report of him was so well done, I started taking her side against him. Mr. Darcy was the best part though. In the 1980 version, David Rintoul made him very cold and didn't really make me believe his was struggling with love of Elizabeth. I believed Colin Firth was going to fence his way out of being in love with Elizabeth. There were so many things about the character portrayals that I liked better in this story. Lady Catherine de Bourgh was imminently more watchable although I think that Dame Judi Dench, (who will play Catherine de Bourgh in the 2005 version with Kiera Knightly ) may change my mind. And the vicar, Mr. Collins, made me laugh as well. He was perfect.
I had once thought that The Honey was very like Mr. Darcy on paper. Until I watched the A&E version, I had not seen my husband on screen as clearly as I did with Colin Firth. Unable to stomach Mr. Collins, he just gets up and leaves him talking to himself. Not willing to deal with Caroline Bingley's criticism of Elizabeth, he used well placed put downs, but was not flowery in any sense. He told it like it was and that was sexy. And that's why I like The Honey.
All in all, A&E, I must say that watching the entire 5 hours was a joy. Thank you.
This Girl
The characters. I have watched the 1980 BBC only version of this movie, the 1940 version of this move, read the book and am finally seeing your version and I have to say that of them all, even against the Mr. Bennet in my head, you saw him best. He was awesomely sarcastic, condescending and loving. He made me laugh out loud several times. Elizabeth Bennet was perfect. I, at first, thought her too pretty for the part, because she was prettier than her sister (who had something of a superman jaw, which is very disconcerting on a woman). In reality, this did not turn into a problem because her acting, especially her prejudice against Mr. Darcy in believing every bad report of him was so well done, I started taking her side against him. Mr. Darcy was the best part though. In the 1980 version, David Rintoul made him very cold and didn't really make me believe his was struggling with love of Elizabeth. I believed Colin Firth was going to fence his way out of being in love with Elizabeth. There were so many things about the character portrayals that I liked better in this story. Lady Catherine de Bourgh was imminently more watchable although I think that Dame Judi Dench, (who will play Catherine de Bourgh in the 2005 version with Kiera Knightly ) may change my mind. And the vicar, Mr. Collins, made me laugh as well. He was perfect.
I had once thought that The Honey was very like Mr. Darcy on paper. Until I watched the A&E version, I had not seen my husband on screen as clearly as I did with Colin Firth. Unable to stomach Mr. Collins, he just gets up and leaves him talking to himself. Not willing to deal with Caroline Bingley's criticism of Elizabeth, he used well placed put downs, but was not flowery in any sense. He told it like it was and that was sexy. And that's why I like The Honey.
All in all, A&E, I must say that watching the entire 5 hours was a joy. Thank you.
This Girl
Thursday, August 25, 2005
New Computer
I did get the new computer and I love it. I sold my old computer to a friend for $50 and her digital camera. I had this crazy rigoramole I did everytime I went online that involved ignoring warnings that popped up, switching users, then ejecting the external wireless card, followed by further ignoring of warnings. I would then be online, ready to surf, but only shortly because if I did too much, everything would slow down.
When my friend took the computer, I walked her through my routine, then had her do it, but told her she could call me anytime. She did the smart thing and called The Geek Squad so that her computer could actually work the way she thought it should and the guy, Mr. Jason she called him, laughed when she told him the routine.
Well, Mr. Jason, I'm glad you could laugh and fix the problem, but I will have you know that, except for 2 weeks before I discovered the secret, I was able to get online every day. So you know what you can do with your laughter? Exactly.
When my friend took the computer, I walked her through my routine, then had her do it, but told her she could call me anytime. She did the smart thing and called The Geek Squad so that her computer could actually work the way she thought it should and the guy, Mr. Jason she called him, laughed when she told him the routine.
Well, Mr. Jason, I'm glad you could laugh and fix the problem, but I will have you know that, except for 2 weeks before I discovered the secret, I was able to get online every day. So you know what you can do with your laughter? Exactly.
Personality
I took a personality test today here and not really sure how the site worked, I took my outcome and just looked at the strengths. Pumped up and full of myself, I basked in the unintended glory. Suddenly, the thought to go to the weaknesses had me clicking and I walked away deflated. It would be easy for me to become melancholy (the test said I tend to do that) but then I begin thinking about the person I am.
How do you make yourself (or help yourself become, if you will) a better person. Last night, my husband and I were talking about how churched people say, "Jesus is the answer" but even when we have the answer, we seem to keep looking. John the Baptist, with direct vocal confirmation from God, still sent people to make sure Jesus was really the one. I mean, otherwise, he would have to continue being "the voice of one crying out in the wilderness" until the one he was to precede was really here, which meant his imminent death might not be so imminent. My least favourite saying is, "You always find (something) the last place you look". I don't know why this bothers me, but it does. So, out of sheer stubborness, I keep looking after I've found something. Dumb and laughable, but worth it to me. We can come up with intelligent answers as to why we do look after we come to know God, or better yet are known of God, but seeing how we are constantly plagued by lack of trust in anything, even in ourselves, I'm not surprised we mistrust "the answer". Do you remember when you used to do math homework and the odd numbered problems were answered in the back of the book? When you did a problem all the way through and got an answer, you would look in the back and if the answer was different, there was always the thought that, in this case, the book was wrong. I think that's how we look at Christ sometimes. We work so hard to come up with the answer and then when we check "the answer" it's completely different from what we came up with.
So, how do you change? I'm not ignorant of the things I should do. I have a list of them in just about every book of the bible. It's not hard to sort out what I personally should do in the list. Fortunately someone has boiled the answer down to two steps. Love God over everything and love your neighbor as yourself. Or, if you want to be technical, just the simple word Love. That's it. That's hard. I'm hardly a "love your enemy" person. I'm not even a "love your acquaintance" person. But I have come up with a few things that might help me move away from the person I have been to the person I am becoming.
1. Hug more
2. Laugh like I mean it
3. Act like I like people until I actually do.
4. Eventually love them.
I have no problem doing any of these things if I know someone well and like them. I just have a problem being nice to the rest of you. Here's hoping something works.
How do you make yourself (or help yourself become, if you will) a better person. Last night, my husband and I were talking about how churched people say, "Jesus is the answer" but even when we have the answer, we seem to keep looking. John the Baptist, with direct vocal confirmation from God, still sent people to make sure Jesus was really the one. I mean, otherwise, he would have to continue being "the voice of one crying out in the wilderness" until the one he was to precede was really here, which meant his imminent death might not be so imminent. My least favourite saying is, "You always find (something) the last place you look". I don't know why this bothers me, but it does. So, out of sheer stubborness, I keep looking after I've found something. Dumb and laughable, but worth it to me. We can come up with intelligent answers as to why we do look after we come to know God, or better yet are known of God, but seeing how we are constantly plagued by lack of trust in anything, even in ourselves, I'm not surprised we mistrust "the answer". Do you remember when you used to do math homework and the odd numbered problems were answered in the back of the book? When you did a problem all the way through and got an answer, you would look in the back and if the answer was different, there was always the thought that, in this case, the book was wrong. I think that's how we look at Christ sometimes. We work so hard to come up with the answer and then when we check "the answer" it's completely different from what we came up with.
So, how do you change? I'm not ignorant of the things I should do. I have a list of them in just about every book of the bible. It's not hard to sort out what I personally should do in the list. Fortunately someone has boiled the answer down to two steps. Love God over everything and love your neighbor as yourself. Or, if you want to be technical, just the simple word Love. That's it. That's hard. I'm hardly a "love your enemy" person. I'm not even a "love your acquaintance" person. But I have come up with a few things that might help me move away from the person I have been to the person I am becoming.
1. Hug more
2. Laugh like I mean it
3. Act like I like people until I actually do.
4. Eventually love them.
I have no problem doing any of these things if I know someone well and like them. I just have a problem being nice to the rest of you. Here's hoping something works.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Have you ever felt there was noone quite like you?
The other day:
"If I only had a picture of you like this right now," the Honey says, only just holding back a laugh.
"What?" I look up at him.
"It would explain so much," he says. I give him the look. The "illuminate me" look. "Right now, you're sitting on the floor in the living room, instead of on the sofa, huddled under a blanket, eating beanie weenie and drinking a glass of wine, all while watching Law and Order: SVU."
"What's wrong with that?" I ask. He just shakes his head and laughs.
Today:
"Are you looking at my socks?" The Honey has been pointedly staring down while we sit at the red light.
"Yes."
"You bought them for me."
"You picked them out." he says, trying to hold back a laugh.
"You knew what you were getting when you offered to buy them."
"Yes," he says, laughing outright now, "I did."
"If I only had a picture of you like this right now," the Honey says, only just holding back a laugh.
"What?" I look up at him.
"It would explain so much," he says. I give him the look. The "illuminate me" look. "Right now, you're sitting on the floor in the living room, instead of on the sofa, huddled under a blanket, eating beanie weenie and drinking a glass of wine, all while watching Law and Order: SVU."
"What's wrong with that?" I ask. He just shakes his head and laughs.
Today:
"Are you looking at my socks?" The Honey has been pointedly staring down while we sit at the red light.
"Yes."
"You bought them for me."
"You picked them out." he says, trying to hold back a laugh.
"You knew what you were getting when you offered to buy them."
"Yes," he says, laughing outright now, "I did."
Monday, August 15, 2005
Dear Google,
Everytime I go online, my homepage is YahooSearch. This is not by choice or convenience. My husband is broken-hearted that Yahoo has exceeded you in the search department. Apparently, they search more resources than you do now. So please, Google, man up, because my husband absolutely hates yahoo and I don't want to hear it anymore. Thank you for your time.
Appreciate It,
This Girl.
Appreciate It,
This Girl.
Writing
I have so many posts sitting in draft hell waiting to be brought to light, that I thought I would throw something up until I can make my thoughts and writing line up. So I have a few questions for my 5 daily readers. So answer...the pressure is on! (Well, it's on me to prove I actually have 5 readers.)
Q: When is a good time for a couple to have children? Please include with your answer whether or not you are married, how many children you have and how long you waited to have children if you have them.
Q: If you are married, do (did) you or your spouse initially want kids?
Q: How much did you (do you plan to) talk about children with your significant other?
Q: What is your favourite colour?
If you do not want to answer in comments just email me with the subject Questionaire
Q: When is a good time for a couple to have children? Please include with your answer whether or not you are married, how many children you have and how long you waited to have children if you have them.
Q: If you are married, do (did) you or your spouse initially want kids?
Q: How much did you (do you plan to) talk about children with your significant other?
Q: What is your favourite colour?
If you do not want to answer in comments just email me with the subject Questionaire
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Monday, August 08, 2005
Calling my husband out
For my husband's birthday, which is Thursday, I bought him an Apple IPod mini. It was the cute silver model, just like he wanted. I bought it early from the Apple Store because I wanted to get just the right one. I hid it at the milk and cookie shop because if I took it home, he would have found it. One night on our vacation, I found my husband asking me questions while I slept, because I do talk in my sleep. He'd apparently been asking me question for a while and I was awakened by my subconscious because he was asking me if I'd gotten his birthday present already. Pretending to still be asleep, I answered "No." He was disappointed. I was elated. I'd been leading him down false mp3 player trails, pretending that I thought the sony mp3 would be better. I made it through the entire week off with high hopes that I would be able to keep the surprise until Thursday.
Then my husband decided during the middle of The Godfather that he should look through our bank statement. He saw it. He didn't say anything, but I picked it up when he had a question and realized that he was asking about something under the statement about the purchase from Apple. I was soooo mad at him. How is he able to ruin a surprise? He was so excited that I'd gotten it, he wanted me to get it right away so he could charge it and listen to it. So he got his birthday present 5 days early. So, yes, I did surprise him, but I'm more disappointed that I didn't surprise him the way I wanted to. Ah well, happy listening to my baby, right? But you're still a surprise ruiner and it's on the web now.
Then my husband decided during the middle of The Godfather that he should look through our bank statement. He saw it. He didn't say anything, but I picked it up when he had a question and realized that he was asking about something under the statement about the purchase from Apple. I was soooo mad at him. How is he able to ruin a surprise? He was so excited that I'd gotten it, he wanted me to get it right away so he could charge it and listen to it. So he got his birthday present 5 days early. So, yes, I did surprise him, but I'm more disappointed that I didn't surprise him the way I wanted to. Ah well, happy listening to my baby, right? But you're still a surprise ruiner and it's on the web now.
Sunday, July 31, 2005
Anniversary Honeymoon
I'm going to be living it up with the man of my dreams, whom I have been married to for almost one blissfully happy year, despite the hurricanes that heralded our union, the lack of a car, the introduction of Pork Chop, and the fact that we may become Macon lifers. Yay marriage! When I come back, I will update you on Pork Chop's Adventure in Babysitting and being a groomsmaid (me, not Pork Chop), possibly all from a new laptop. All that, plus: Who killed Harry Potter? (It's the Half-Blood Prince).
Prescient
The Honey and I have been looking for a church. We have no idea where to start. We go into it saying we aren't looking for a perfect church, but it feels like the things we are looking for we will never find. We left our old church, not out of dissatisfaction with anything in the church or with any of the people. We loved the church. We found that it was too far away to develop relationships. People enjoyed us being there, tears were shed when we announced our leaving, but we didn't know anyone above a superficial level despite going there for almost 2 years.
So, in a town with more churches per capita than any city in the US, why is it so hard to find a church that is right? We are visiting churches where we know noone, we are visiting churches where we know nearly everyone and we are not enjoying it. We almost left one service because my husband, who is the music nerd, could not stand the praise and worship. (This is a man who identified the notes that Batman played to get into the Batcave and also identified that the notes Christian Bale pressed were not the notes we heard.) We liked the sermon, but the people were cool (in the not cool way). Some people greeted us, but were unsure about how to "meet" us, get to know us, convince us that we were in the right place. What did we do though? Did we try to meet new people, find out what this place was all about? No. The general air was one of, "We got what we came from, now back to our regularly scheduled program."
It's something I've noticed and something I've seen in myself. Lately, I've had alot of time to think about me. Where I am going with my writing, who I am becoming as a Wife to The Honey, how I am growing older, how to be a good manager at the milk and cookie store, etc, I've had too much time centered on me. And really, I want to find a church that suits me, whether it suits anyone else. That's the first obstacle in our finding a good church. Every complaint I could have about the people of any church are the same complaints I could level at myself. It would be okay if I at least loved people, if I could find some part of me that could show compassion, if there were something in me that wanted to reach out to others. It's there, but it feels so small sometimes, I think, "why bother."
The second obstacle is time. 5 days a week, we get up at noon to get ready for our night jobs. We don't get to sleep until after 4am. Saturdays are the same, except for the working part. So when Sunday comes, how the heck are we going to get up to be at church by 10? That's another reason why we were having a hard time going to church 45 minutes away. The Honey was in the praise and worship band, so that meant practice at 9 before service at 10:30... you try getting up at 7 to leave at 8 and get there by 9 when you a) commonly get up at noon b)probably only got 2-3 hours of sleep.
It's very daunting to want so much to be a part of a church, a community, but to feel constantly so different from that community. I find myself having to hold my tongue because Christianity is so political now. The Christian powers that be have given us permission to decide we can tell whether someone is Christian or not and it is based solely on their beliefs and views, not on their heart. The only thing man can't judge is the only thing that is important.
I hope we find a church soon. Sometimes, though, I wonder why it's so important.
So, in a town with more churches per capita than any city in the US, why is it so hard to find a church that is right? We are visiting churches where we know noone, we are visiting churches where we know nearly everyone and we are not enjoying it. We almost left one service because my husband, who is the music nerd, could not stand the praise and worship. (This is a man who identified the notes that Batman played to get into the Batcave and also identified that the notes Christian Bale pressed were not the notes we heard.) We liked the sermon, but the people were cool (in the not cool way). Some people greeted us, but were unsure about how to "meet" us, get to know us, convince us that we were in the right place. What did we do though? Did we try to meet new people, find out what this place was all about? No. The general air was one of, "We got what we came from, now back to our regularly scheduled program."
It's something I've noticed and something I've seen in myself. Lately, I've had alot of time to think about me. Where I am going with my writing, who I am becoming as a Wife to The Honey, how I am growing older, how to be a good manager at the milk and cookie store, etc, I've had too much time centered on me. And really, I want to find a church that suits me, whether it suits anyone else. That's the first obstacle in our finding a good church. Every complaint I could have about the people of any church are the same complaints I could level at myself. It would be okay if I at least loved people, if I could find some part of me that could show compassion, if there were something in me that wanted to reach out to others. It's there, but it feels so small sometimes, I think, "why bother."
The second obstacle is time. 5 days a week, we get up at noon to get ready for our night jobs. We don't get to sleep until after 4am. Saturdays are the same, except for the working part. So when Sunday comes, how the heck are we going to get up to be at church by 10? That's another reason why we were having a hard time going to church 45 minutes away. The Honey was in the praise and worship band, so that meant practice at 9 before service at 10:30... you try getting up at 7 to leave at 8 and get there by 9 when you a) commonly get up at noon b)probably only got 2-3 hours of sleep.
It's very daunting to want so much to be a part of a church, a community, but to feel constantly so different from that community. I find myself having to hold my tongue because Christianity is so political now. The Christian powers that be have given us permission to decide we can tell whether someone is Christian or not and it is based solely on their beliefs and views, not on their heart. The only thing man can't judge is the only thing that is important.
I hope we find a church soon. Sometimes, though, I wonder why it's so important.
least metal moment...
We were watching VH1 last night, watching The Greatest: 40 Least Metal Moments... Riki Rachtman was on, a bitter metalhead who lost his show, doesn't know why, looked better when he had a little bit of weight on him, was once fun, but now... not so much. It was a pretty fun show, seeing some of the silly metal moments from the last 20 or so years... like Bon Scott of AC/DC fame playing the recorder; yes, the 6th grade band instrument, as an adult... that was pretty funny. But I have to say that the show itself put forth a least metal moment. It was Moment #8 - In the top 10 of Metal's least favourite moments is the day Metallica cut their hair. In the late 90s when these guys were well into adulthood, they all cried like babies because the gods of metal cut their hair. And now, more than 5 years later, they are crying about it on public television. So not metal. Guys, suck it up and keep thrashing! Who cares if Metallica cut their hair and made rock/pop music. Are you metal musicians or not? Do you not headbang with the best of them? Quit cryin' like a bunch of babies and get over it. It is not the day that will live in infamy. It's over and done with. There are so many more least metal moments you could have complained about without seeming like whiny babies. Like Velvet Revolver.
PS, I really know nothing about music, except I thought the interviewed were being particularly whiny about Metallica (and Bon Jovi) cutting their hair. And that's not metal.
PS, I really know nothing about music, except I thought the interviewed were being particularly whiny about Metallica (and Bon Jovi) cutting their hair. And that's not metal.
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Bad boy, bad boy, whatcha gonna do....
We had a run in with the police last night.
We left the milk and cookie store after 3am. The Honey had just set the cruise to 5 over the speed limit when lights start flashing behind us. Slightly annoyed, I look behind just as the blue lights start flashing. The Honey does all the right things so that he won't get a gun pulled on him, but I'm just annoyed, especially when Cop #2 starts shining his flashlight in the car on the passenger side. That's right, my side.
"Can you tell me why I'm being pulled over?" asks The Honey.
"Did you guys just leave the Goodwill Drop Box?" Cop #1 asks.
"No, we just left the milk and cookie store." Replies the Honey. Point in fact? I am wearing my uniform, which feels like the only thing I've worn in weeks... except for last Saturday, when I was a groomsmaid. But that's another story.
"Can you open your trunk?" Cop #2 has come around to the driver side. Suddenly Cop #1 exclaims;
"This ain't no Skylark!" Cop #2 looks confused (or at least I think he should, but I get only a glimpse from Cop #1's flashlight beam. "Didn't they say it was a Skylark?" he asks again, his nasal whine and southern accent like something Hollywood would have picked for us. They decide that since the trunk is up, they might as well look innit, right? We're not real sure what they hope to find, but if it's a large toaster, a crock pot or other "couldn't find the store they belong to so they've sat in the trunk for a year" wedding gifts, they're looking in the right place. Cop #1 closes the trunk with a decisive bang while Cop #2 speeds away. We were free to go.
I learned today that it is against the law to take things from the Goodwill Drop Box. You can be fined up to $10,000. I'm glad we didn't take anything from Goodwill.
We left the milk and cookie store after 3am. The Honey had just set the cruise to 5 over the speed limit when lights start flashing behind us. Slightly annoyed, I look behind just as the blue lights start flashing. The Honey does all the right things so that he won't get a gun pulled on him, but I'm just annoyed, especially when Cop #2 starts shining his flashlight in the car on the passenger side. That's right, my side.
"Can you tell me why I'm being pulled over?" asks The Honey.
"Did you guys just leave the Goodwill Drop Box?" Cop #1 asks.
"No, we just left the milk and cookie store." Replies the Honey. Point in fact? I am wearing my uniform, which feels like the only thing I've worn in weeks... except for last Saturday, when I was a groomsmaid. But that's another story.
"Can you open your trunk?" Cop #2 has come around to the driver side. Suddenly Cop #1 exclaims;
"This ain't no Skylark!" Cop #2 looks confused (or at least I think he should, but I get only a glimpse from Cop #1's flashlight beam. "Didn't they say it was a Skylark?" he asks again, his nasal whine and southern accent like something Hollywood would have picked for us. They decide that since the trunk is up, they might as well look innit, right? We're not real sure what they hope to find, but if it's a large toaster, a crock pot or other "couldn't find the store they belong to so they've sat in the trunk for a year" wedding gifts, they're looking in the right place. Cop #1 closes the trunk with a decisive bang while Cop #2 speeds away. We were free to go.
I learned today that it is against the law to take things from the Goodwill Drop Box. You can be fined up to $10,000. I'm glad we didn't take anything from Goodwill.
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