Long Time no Posting...

I just figured out how to log back into this blog.  I know, that detail is completely, and utterly worthy of your attention.  I'll be updating now that I'm allowed back into my account.  Peace. 

A Lil' Much..

can you believe this? somebody stick a fork in this guy! he's done!

Today would be a great day..in Tahiti

Today would be a lovely day to be in Tahiti. It is like 0 degrees outside, and I've been under the weather. So I thought I would vicariously warm myself on a beach in tahiti to lift my spirits a little. Doesn't seeing this picture just make your day too? Now to actually go there...

Happy Hump Day!

It is Wednesday, and as the universal term proclaims: Happy Hump Day! I always assumed this was referring to getting over the mid week slump but I digress...

I bought some new running shoes yesterday! I was so excited that the pair I wanted was on SALE. Hurray for finding last year's model of shoe. Hello? I will take the soppy seconds. They are all shiny and reflective, and pink. I love them. Last time I got Saucony sneaks, and I wasn't all that thrilled. This time round I got Asics.
Tomorrow, I officially break them in with a friend for a jaunt down by the river after work. Looking forward to some good weather so I can break in my sneaks.

As far as today goes..my hump day was pretty ok. Found myself able to stay calm in some challenging situations, and actually surprised myself. That is always a plus in my book. I try to surprise myself often :)

rain drops keep falling on my head..

today was one of those stormy days that makes you wanna crawl up under a blanket, and grab a novel. we've been under tornado watch most of the day and will continue through the night. the weather has been down right crazy. I'm not surprised we are having severe thunder storms with 'tornadic' activity, given the high temperatures and those northern cold fronts colliding. it happens this time of year.

Overall, today was not too shabby. Spent most of the day trying to catch up since I was out Friday and Monday. But I can't complain...friday is just round the corner :) Hope everyone else had a grand day...

Magnificience

This weekend was one of the best I can remember. Spent the time with family from out of town, family in town, and just loved having no agenda. No schedule, no due dates, no spreadsheets, or reports. The few times I did think about work, I moved on to other thoughts quickly. We crafted, we laughed, we painted, we drew, we made jewelry, we cooked, we loved, and generally just had a ball. I didn't even get on the computer much this weekend except to look up a few things here and there. Which explains the lack of entries :)

So there you have it. I'm still riding high off my weekend. And today, being Monday I took today off as well. Saw the fam who had to drive out of town off, and am just doing small chores to get ready for my work week. But, the bonus is, only 4 days till Friday!

My Blog is now re-vived

It has been a looooong time since I wrote anything here. Since I started this blog, much has happened, been forgotten, achieved, lost, wondered about, loved, lost sleep over, and in general just been. I want to go with the flow, so I want to challenge myself to write something each day. Who gives a rat's ass if anyone else reads it. Maybe it is just for me. And maybe there is someone else out there who might at the very least, garner a laugh from my clumsy plod through life. :)

Yeah, so...but...Ummmmm

It is 22 December, and i cannot believe it is almost Christmas. I love this time of year. For my family and I it is a time of decorations, lights, special meals, friends and family. Thankfully it is not a stressful time. But, as I age I realize how quickly the days and months slip by. And before i know it, Christmas is over and done and then the blandness of everyday life comes back.

I love sitting in a room lit only with the lights from a tree. A nice fire to go with is a plus.

So I am taking time to slow down long enough to appreciate the time while it is here and hope that i can garner enough energy from a few days off to tackle the challenges of the coming year.

Peace to all.

New Dr. Seuss Book Title

Funny Road Sign

This is a road sign I spotted not far from my house. The first time I saw it, I had to turn about because I wasn't sure I actually saw what it says. I snapped this picture, and a few weeks later saw that the post on the sign had been removed. So here is the picture. In case you need help getting the joke it reads: "Thirteen foot, seven inch Dude"..now you get it?

Olympiad

I've always been a bit of an Olympics junkie. I've loved watching the Olympics over the years, and watching some random athelete's dream of gold come to fruition. I also like how the Olympics tend to bring people together. For a few short weeks, people from feuding nations can come together and forget about the worldly troubles. I often see atheletes embrace each other regardless of gender, color, or ethnicity. So, I was very sad to see this picture of the Spanish Olympic Basketball team published. Supposedly they say it was all in good "fun" and not meant to be offensive. I am not Chinese, but I was offended.

Grow up. And have a little respect, Seeeeenors.

Trekkin' Down Memory Lane

Lately I have been converting my cassette tapes to MP3 format so I can pitch the tapes and rid myself of clutter. My most surprising find was several episodes of "Open House Party" circa 1990 that I taped from the radio. I used to listen to that every weekend. I didn't even really like main stream pop, but I'd listen anyway since that was the cool thing to do. I preferred alternative music and Indie bands. The tapes are chock full of New Kids on the Block (and Jonathan was always my favorite) Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam, Sweet Seduction, Wilson Phillips, Seal, Miami Sound Machine, Young MC, Milli Vanilli, and other bands.

When I surveyed my CD collection I also discovered I still have the very first CD I purchased...EXPOSE' "what you don't Know". (Stop Laughing)

I have actually enjoyed the CD and listening to the tapes. I am very musically oriented so many of my life memories are connected to music. I can go back in time and almost re-live sections of my life that are associated with music. But mostly from the recent audio flashback, I remember the good times of being a kid. The lack of worries. How the days seemed to last forever. How I lived to tape random crap off the radio. How Summer seemed to drag on and I couldn't wait to get back to school. Then school would start and a week or so into it, I was over it again.

I've laughed at the sheer cheesiness of most of the music I listened to in my late grade school/early high school years. I remember the acid washed jeans, how vanilla ice shaved stripes in his eyebrows, tretorns, Keds, the sky-skraper bangs, the leather studded jackets, faux rappers, the LA Gear sneakers, Hair Bands, oversized Belts, ....But there were some good bands back then... even if the music now is only good for a laugh.

Gotta Love the Veggie Tales

I love veggie tales. I spent the better portion of my weekend watching veggie tales with some friends. Here's a little diddy we learned from the "Wizard of Ha's"
A silly veggie-tale song:
"If it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey, even if it has a monkey kinda shape! If it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey, if it doesn't have a tail it's not a monkey it's an ape!"

Lunar Eclipse

I got to see most of tonight's lunar eclipse from my post on the planet. The weather temperature was mild, so I sat in my driveway and pondered things beyond the clouds. The sky got a bit cloudy though, so I missed a good portion of it.

It is nights like this I wish I had a good telescope. Saturn's rings are supposed to be visible, as will Regulus (the brightest star in the constellation Leo) NASA reports that saturn and regulus will actually sandwich the moon. I am sorry to miss that. Maybe by the next lunar eclipse I will have a telescope........Santa? Are you listening?

When September Ends by GreenDay

I saw this music game on someone else's blog and thought it would be fun to try myself. The answer to question number 6 is actually quite funny, since I always say that I feel smart if I can get just one Jeopardy question right.
But I digress. Back to the music. Give it a go and see what you come up with:

Instructions To Play:
1. Put your iTunes, Windows Media Player, MP3, whatever- player on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. You MUST write that song name no matter how silly it sounds.
4. The last song after question #20 will be your post title.


1. If Someone says "Is this okay" you say? "I just wanna live" by Good Charlotte

2. How would you describe yourself? “Fever” by Rita Moreno

3. What do you like in a guy/girl? “underwater love" by smoke city

4. How do you feel today? “who invited you" by The Donnas

5. What is your life's purpose? “marble lions" by Saint Etienne

6. What is your motto? “I lost on Jeopardy” by Weird Al (I swear this was random!)

7. What do your friends think of you? “polyester bride" by Liz Phair

8. What do your parents think of you? “spitting games" by snow patrol

9. What do you think about very often? “poppy selling man" by 10,000 maniacs

10. What is 2 + 2? “It’s Over” by Maria Taylor

11. What do you think of your Ex? "Daybreak"by Barry Manilow

12. What do you think of the person you like? “Kiss them for me" by Siouxie and the Banshees

13. What is your life story? “Run" by Snow Patrol

14. What do you want to be when you grow up? “walkin’ on sunshine" by Katrina and the waves

15. What do you think when you see the person you like? “One" by Mary J. Blige/U2

16. What will they play at your funeral? “Hurricane" by Athelete

17. What is your hobby/interest? “My guru" by Kalyanji Anandji

18. What is your biggest fear? “Don't Talk" by 10,000 Maniacs

19. What is your biggest secret? “Fields of Gold" by Eva Cassidy

20. What do you think of your friends? “I can't get behind that" by William shatner/ Henry Rollins

the next song up is "when september ends" by Green day

Art space where are you?

My art space (aka my kitchen table) has been corrupted. Where paint brushes and pens and paper used to abound, they are all now moved aside and looking forlorn. Replacing them is my computer and many work related papers. My water cup I always use for painting has been dry for a while now. I think it misses me. Or more like I miss it.
Since I rarely do anything else at my table except art stuff, sometimes it is hard to concentrate fully on my other tasks. As I type I see my easel in my peripheral view. Across the table I see my pens and pencils and brushes poking out of their holding cups. My mind wanders to my latest project...But I'm on a deadline so there is no time to dally. Back to the grind. Maybe I will start a project this weekend. Or finish one of the ones I have started already.
I like my little nook where I paint. I have a UV light that makes my room nice and cheery. Unfortunately at the moment no cheery light will let me forget that I am still not done with my report..

Nicknames

I was talking with my friend Anne at work today and she promptly pointed out two things:

1. Because I use Olive Oil on my face, she says "you give a whole new meaning to "olive complexion" and has since dubbed me "Olive Oil" (insert Popeye laughter)

I thought it was funny...

2. She said I spelled "moistureization" wrong. So I've fixed my error. Not here since I spelled it like I had it when she spotted the error. I found that to be one of those words that looked right and I just couldn't decide.

Thanks for the eagle eye there my friend!

Talking 'bout some EVOO-Lotion!

I have been searching for months, make that years really, for a good moisturizer for my face. I didn't used to have such dry skin but now I really do. The rest of me is ok, but my face doesnt seem to retain moisture. I have tried all manner of thick lotions to relieve the dryness. Standard lotions don't work. Unfortunately it was after I used Bath and Body Works Body Cream on my face that I realized I also had sensitive skin. A good friend of mine uses Mary Kay and swears by it. So, I tried some of that. It says it is "hypoallergenic" but it broke me out, and I have never suffered with breakouts. I've also used the creamy vaseline cream that promises 18 hour moisturization...but that is just strange stuff also. It works, but then it seals my face so well that my face tries to sweat out the goo. I either end up wiping it off, or just leaving my shiny face alone for about 30 minutes. But the greasy feeling lingers and, petroleum can't be good for my face.

So, enter my trusty bottle of EVOO.

I pour a good bit in my palm, rub my hands together and slather my face with it. Not only is it 100% natural (which I like), but it eventually soaks in leaving my face feeling very soft. It also doesn't sting my eyes if I get some in accidentally (Though it doesn't feel particularly good. I recommend avoiding slathering your eyeballs with the oil) I can't believe I haven't been doing this all along. I have certainly eaten my fair share of olive oil over the years but haven't used it for lotion.
Olive Oil I hardly knew ye!

Mmmm...cottage cheese loaf

I have been craving cottage cheese loaf. Don't ask why. I have no idea. I don't remember eating it that often growing up. But maybe I ate it more often that I remember. This would be good with some chopped walnuts added to it as well. It is a good vegetarian dish that even tastes good sliced cold in a sandwich the next day. Here is my friend's version that I like pretty well:

1 packet dry onion soup mix

1 large carton cottage cheese

4 eggs

1 medium onion (chopped fine)

5-6 cups rice krispies or special k cereal

mix it all up, put it in a greased bread pan and chuck it in the oven at 350 for about an hour. Or, until it is all browned nicely and the center comes clean if you poke it with a knife. If you want it done in a hurry you can put the oven at 375 and scorch it for 45 minutes.

RIP Heath

So I am enjoying my evening of mindless TV when I hear a snippet on the news that Heath Ledger has died. I hate to hear that, I liked him. I feel bad for the bloke. I wonder if he had some kind of genetic problem. My brother dropped dead at age 29 from a mal-formed heart valve. He was driving to work, slumped over the steering wheel, and was gone in about 30 seconds. He was here one second and gone the next. Not that I wish this on anyone, but I hope that Heath's death is natural rather than intentional.

I can't help but thinking that maybe The Hollywood curse strikes again. I've read time and time again about Hollywood starlets striving for perfection and pleasing everyone.

Perfection, my hollywood friends, is not possible. Perfection is some lofty societal ideal that torments the gifted and the plain. Too bad many don't 'get' the message before it is too late.
RIP Heath 1979-2008.