Mish mash

The problem with stepping out of blogland is that I'm still thinking. Yah, thinking. So, when I come back to blogland I need to offload these thoughts. So, here are my thoughts from yesterday afternoon through today:


mini Ben & Jerry's ice cream, num!

---

it comes with its own shovel! (between the lid and
a secondary lid over the ice cream itself)

---

this pic shows scale -
I was instructed to grab a larger spoon
since the shovel doesn't work so well



look familiar?
A Million Little Pieces by James Frey

---

this cutie patootie belongs to friends of mine
he was a the ballgame with us,
the life of the party :)

---

a collage of my mouth
got the bottom braces today
had the tops since January
mouths are decidedly not so pretty...

Hug-A-Bear

This one is for Jürgen's mom. Hug-A-Bear was given to me by my father when I was 5. During our life together Huggy's head and ear have been ripped off several times in tugs-of-war between me and my brother. To this day Huggy still makes me feel safe and warm and happy. :)

full on Huggy

his wobbly neck :)

the profile AKA mugshot

Celebrities masquerading as commoners

The Microsoft Man was 45 minutes late. Some flippant comment about not being able to find us. But, when I looked up at his face he bore a striking resemblance to a younger Tim Robbins (dreamy), and his voice was a dead ringer.

How am I supposed to be mad at Tim? Sure, he was chewing gum, and talking like a good ole boy, but that just made me more intrigued by him. I listened to every word he had to say, since he was sitting directly next to me. I asked him a question, and it was like a slow motion event. I watched him watch me ask the question. I know words were coming out of my mouth, I heard them, but he just stared at me. Then, someone asked another question and I composed myself, waiting for that question to be answered, and I cut back in to ask my question and he talked to me, he actually talked to me!! *swoon* We finally broke for lunch, then after lunch was the technical discussion so the room basically emptied out except three of us plus The Microsoft Tim Robbins. So, rather than feeling awkward and continuing to sit next to him I sat across from him. Much better, then I could just look up and get a dose of eye candy, thank you very much. I felt much more comfortable commenting and asking questions for the rest of the discussion.

Okay, enough babbling about how I have the hots for MSTR. The point of my post is that I've seen other people in life who look so much like a celebrity that I fantasize that these are really the celebrities doing research for a part or, even better, take a day job when they're between projects. I once had a phlebotomist who looked exactly like Natasha Lyonne. I almost told her, but she was about to poke me with a needle to take my blood, so I really didn't want to distract her from that. I also once had the pleasure of being served by a Lisa Loeb look-alike at a local high-end restaurant. I'm sure I've seen more celebrity look-alikes in my daily grind, just don't remember them all. I do, however, remember every time I've met a real celebrity. :)

Kidnapped by the evil giants

As you can see I did not hit the delete button. I was actually at that ballgame last night, so it cheered me up. Today I am at an all day training with Microsoft. They're not here yet, surprise surprise. Please come save me if you don't hear from me this evening. :( Also stepping out of the training to get my bottom braces. W00t? I am so liking this braces in my 30s thing... (C'mon Jenna and MaMa!!) See y'all later.

Hovering around the delete button

I'm stepping out of blogland for the rest of this day. I'm really pissed. And, if I pay any more attention to this beast I'll be self destructive and delete the whole thing. Wouldn't that suck if all your favorite bloggers just went fou and deleted their blogs on the same day, dropped out of blogland, never to return? Creepy.

Anyway, I shall return when I am no longer annoyed at people for having a difference of opinion.

This girl got no game

*sigh* I'm supposed to go to a ballgame tonight but it just started raining. Could someone call the weather fairy and politely ask her to cease and desist this very moment so that my 7pm ballgame isn't cancelled? Oh, I'm sad. Sad, sad, sad. I wanted to take pictures with my camera! Especially one of my friend M with his honkin' camera lens attached to his camera because he looks silly when he wears it around his neck. :)

PS - Why is it cease and desist? Desist means cease. Whatever...

Bling is an understatement...

Paris Hilton's engagement ring, thanks to City. See this and more Paris ring pictures at Greek Princess.

Gone to the Dogs

I'm a French Bulldog? Okay, if you say so. I always thought of myself as more of a Basset Hound... What dog are you?

You say tomato, I say clamato

Took this picture while walking back to my office after a client site visit. I'm pretty darn sure it's Clematis, it was in with a bunch of other vinies.

New WTC tower design made public

Folks from NYC - what do you think of this new design?



Folks from not NYC - what do you think? I'm in this category, and I don't care for the new design. I don't think I'm being unpatriotic, I just don't think it does the original WTC justice.

Dive bomber

This "little" guy did not want me anywhere near him so he kept flying straight at me then returning to the post. I was just trying to feed the birds and squirrels because they were out of food. I spent 15 minutes tiptoeing around this dragonfly before I told him, "look, I need to put this food out!" and chased him off when he came at me twice more. Oh well. I tried to get along, but he was not havin' it... Reminds me of some people I know. :)

Sad kitty tells you off

(Thanks, Jege!)

Need more Sad Kitty™? Go here and here. This one is my absolute favorite. :)

Update: All the above were "created" by Jege from original Sad Kitty™ artwork. See the original Sad Kitty™. (clicky) Also included at the Sad Kitty™ site is Mad Kitty™.



(My Favorite Mad Kitty™ is this one. Jenna, I think you'll approve.)

Update #2: Some folks have told me they can't see the images at the site, so here's a .png file version:



Let me know if you still have trouble.

Time for some new flip-flops!

The Cheese Sandwich has collected some quotations from W about his stand on war exit strategy.

I know there are two POV's here, but here's how my unpolitical mind sees it: Being a leader is about getting things done, but at the same time explaining to the general public how you plan to get things done. We hired you (technically I was on the nay side of the table, but I was still at the table) and I'm pretty much not seeing a reason not to fire you... I have no idea if another president would be doing a better job in your place, but you're the person in the hot seat, and I really don't know of very many people who are happy with the US reaction to September 11. We caught Saddam, who is not Osama. Oil prices are skyrocketing. Our goal is to win "the war on terror", with NO CLEAR VISION of how to achieve this end. If I were grading this project I'd give it a D-.

Right now as I type this entry my friend Roger is on a plane to Kuwait, his one stop before Iraq. I continue to believe each day that he will come home safely to us, and can see no good side to why he has been taken from his family, friends, and co-workers who care for him as if he were family.

Update: Apparently I was smaht and posted the wrong flip-flop link which got one reader all pissy at me. So, please reread the war exit strategy link if you plan on yelling at me. Chrissakes...

Badger

Make your own flickr badge:



(Thanks, trippyswell!)

Can we say "it's about friggin-A time"?

Bush to tout 'clear strategy' for Iraq
President to address nation from Army base

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- With his approval rate sinking, President Bush is set Tuesday to address the nation about his "clear strategy" in war-torn Iraq while key Democrats will look for signs the president is willing to shift some policies.

Bush will mark the anniversary of the U.S. handover of sovereignty to Iraqis with a speech at 8 p.m. ET before a military audience at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

"I think we have a clear strategy for success," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Monday. "He's going to be talking in a very specific way about what that strategy is. It's an opportunity for the American people to hear about the strategy."

He added, "The president made it clear after September 11 that some will want us to grow complacent and forget about, or put the attacks off as a distant memory. But it does require patience and resolve to see this struggle through to the end. We have no option but to defeat the terrorists, and the terrorists will be defeated." [Oh, will they??] (Rest of sh-tory)

Let's hope the strategy involves the cessation of the daily stories of soldiers dying.

Did you need to be freaked out today?

Boffins create zombie dogs
SCIENTISTS have created eerie zombie dogs, reanimating the canines after several hours of clinical death in attempts to develop suspended animation for humans.

US scientists have succeeded in reviving the dogs after three hours of clinical death, paving the way for trials on humans within years.
Pittsburgh's Safar Centre for Resuscitation Research has developed a technique in which subject's veins are drained of blood and filled with an ice-cold salt solution.

The animals are considered scientifically dead, as they stop breathing and have no heartbeat or brain activity.

But three hours later, their blood is replaced and the zombie dogs are brought back to life with an electric shock.

Plans to test the technique on humans should be realised within a year, according to the Safar Centre. (Rest)

I'm askared. This is so Pet Sematary

Now for something happy instead: Stuff On My Cat!



(Doesn't that look just like Ripley?! It's not her, though.)

Vacation vixen returns to blogland

Kim just returned from the Grand Canyon and Vegas. That lucky, lucky girl. Well, not so lucky now that she has a week's worth of work piled on her, but I digress!

Photos, photos, photos, and more photos of Kim's trip can be found here (clicky). And, here's one to tempt you:



(Um, ow.)

More nummy cheese goodness

Poutine...ahh, food coma. Nummmmmmmy.
(Thanks, zorbs!)

Update: Since lots of people are asking, you can either click the word poutine above, or read this blurb from Wikipedia:

Poutine (pronounced, roughly, poo-tin, or peuh-tsin; exact Quebecer pronunciation is IPA [pʊtsɪn] — listen to it in WAVE or OGG) is a popular junk food snack similar to American disco fries. It is a mixture of french fries with fresh cheese curds, covered with hot gravy. The curds' freshness is most important as it makes them soft in the warm fries, without completely melting. When the curds are really fresh they will often squeak between the teeth. Poutine with melted cheese is not regarded as 'genuine poutine', nor is poutine made with shredded cheese or cheese slices.

Shake it like a Polaroid picture

(You know you're not actually supposed to shake them, right? But we all do, don't we? :)

Mary Anne introduced me to Polaroid-o-nizer™ which allows you to make any of your photos into a Polaroid. I know you already figured that out, but I enjoy stating the painfully obvious. Now, to the good stuff:



(S, couldn't resist. ;)

How responsible of the big P

I grew up drinking Coca-Cola. Just did. In my adulthood I flip-flop between Coke and Pepsi. I'll drink one for a while, then switch to the other depending on how sweet I want my soda to taste, then switch to the other when I get sick of whichever one I'm drinking. Last time we shopped I got Pepsi. Inside the Pepsi box was a game for Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith. I used the little code inside the box to see if I won anything from Pepsi. I won a 2 liter bottle of Pepsi with lime. I didn't really think much of it after that, but today in the mail I received this:


(That's Ripley's tail. She likes to monitor my mail.)



I'm not too crazy about the idea of Pepsi with lime, so I might never redeem it, but it's a neat coupon.

Pre-dinner delight

An ode to cheese
Oh cheese, how you tease me -
calling my name all day long.
Oh cheese, how you please me -
with you in my tummy I'll never go wrong. :)














(Thank you to Frigo and The Laughing Cow^®.)

Yet another sad day in 100 Acre Wood!

John Fiedler, voice of Piglet, dies
Actor also starred in 'Bob Newhart Show'

NEW YORK (AP) -- John Fiedler, a stage actor who won fame as the voice of Piglet in Walt Disney's Winnie-the-Pooh films, died Saturday, The New York Times reported in Monday editions. He was 80.

Fiedler served in the Navy during World War II before beginning a stage career in New York. He performed in supporting roles alongside Sidney Poitier on Broadway, John Wayne in Hollywood and Bob Newhart on television.

With Newhart, on "The Bob Newhart Show," he was Mr. Peterson, the meek patient who was often a target for Jack Riley's sarcastic Mr. Carlin.

Fiedler also appeared in the films "12 Angry Men," "The Odd Couple," "True Grit," "The Fortune" and "Sharky's Machine," and was a cast member on the TV show "Buffalo Bill."

But he was best known for the squeaky voice of the ever-worrying Piglet that he landed when someone noticed his naturally high-pitched voice. (Rest)

So sad, Tigger and Piglet died within one day of each other!

TMI, definitely, but I need to vent.

I am wearing a thong today for the sake of not showing panty lines through my skirt. It feels like there is dental floss in my crack. I am in a perpetual state of needing-to-fix-the-wedgy-ness. Why do people wear these things every day?! Ugh. But, I have had comments on my skirt so I guess I am receiving a return on the investment...


"Yar, mateys. I'm the butt pirate of the East.
Hand over all yer thongs lest I make ye walk the plank!"

Frontyard extravaganza

Good morning, everyone! Yesterday and this morning I took a bunch of pics of our front garden flowers. Take a look at the collection at flickr (click to view the set).

And, here's one for the road:


Primrose

Backyard extravaganza

Another gorgeous day in the land of Poppy.


This is a blueberry bush. It has no mate. Therefore, it should not be able to make blueberries.



But, look! Those are (green) blueberries! Amazing!



The birds are so hot that they are flocking to the bird bath today. (Click the pic to see the much larger version, and yes I do wish that the water hose wasn't in the shot. Oh well.)



And, here's one of the balloons that launches near our house. The perfect day for a balloon ride. :)


One more shot of the balloon. I was not wearing bottoms (pants/shorts/skirt/etc.) because it's too hot to function in much clothing, so I had to take the picture through the screen door which caused the images to be a bit fuzzy. I would have dared to go out in just my t-shirt and skivvies but our next door neighbors have kids, one of which is entering puberty, so I don't want to confuse him by pulling a MILFy stunt. :)

Jen looks so happy!

When was the last time you saw Jen looking this happy in the arms of a man?!?!



(Thanks, Junk Feud!)

It kinda makes more sense that she would be happy with a funny man. Brad was too serious for her. And, they looked too much alike. (I look a bit like my husband, so I'm one to talk... :)

Duck leaf!

Jen from For the Birds posted a beautiful pic she took while on a walk:



It's a leaf in the shape of a duck! I am in awe...

A sad day in 100 Acre Wood

Voice of Winnie the Pooh's Tigger dies
Paul Winchell also created voice for 'The Smurfs'

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Paul Winchell, a ventriloquist, inventor and children's TV show host best known for creating the lispy voice of Winnie the Pooh's animated friend Tigger, has died. He was 82.

Winchell died Friday morning in his sleep at his Moorpark home, Burt Du Brow, a television producer and close family friend, told the Los Angeles Times.

Over six decades, Winchell was a master ventriloquist -- bringing dummies Jerry Mahoney and Knucklehead Smiff to life on television -- and an inventor who held 30 patents, including one for an early artificial heart he built in 1963.

But he was perhaps best known for his work as the voice of the lovable tiger in animated versions of A.A. Milne's "Winnie the Pooh" -- with his trademark "T-I-double grrrr-R." (Rest)

What an incredible man! Sadly, I only know of all of his many incredible accomplishments because he died.

Lurking

I'm really confused by several of my favorite bloggers ranting about lurkers. Here's why:

(*they refers to the bloggers complaining about the lurkers)

• they* have a blog that's public, not private
  
• they* comment on other people's sites, which in turn lets more people know about their blog, so "strangers" might wander over just to see what's going on
  
• they* blogroll people's sites, which in turn lets more people know about their blog
  
• they* join blogexplosion, or blogxchange, or blogclicker, or or blog zoo, or...yougetmydrift..., which in turn lets more people know about their blog
  ...YET...
  
• they* post a "LURKERS, STOP LURKING" entry which basically insults anyone who is reading their site but not dropping a comment.

Yes, I love receiving comments, but I'm really blogging to keep myself happy and hopefully it makes others happy. I don't require one darn thing from my readers, and I would never, ever, never label someone who never left me a comment but reads my blog on a regular basis a LURKER. The way bloggers complain about lurking turns it into such a dirty word... Newbies are supposed to lurk! And, even if someone isn't a newbie, can't we all just be happy that we're blogging, and accept that some people are shy, or don't feel they have anything exciting to say in a comment so they just don't?

On the flip side, if you're reading this post, I'd love to hear from you. (Nice comments only, none of those mean posts like the time the psycho called me a drug addict and yelled at me for posting a funny definition of man that I found at Waking Ambrose. Merci!)

Order up!

I felt like making (and eating) a big breakfast today, so I did.



Maple hickory-smoked bacon, scrambled eggs with fried Vidalia onions and cheddar cheese, baked hashbrown, cinnamon swirl coffee cake, fresh pineapple, and orange juice. Num!

It's over 90 degrees here so I am a little less enthusiastic about cleaning up after breakfast. :)

What is it like?

What is it like to choose to live with someone who is so different from you that you must tiptoe around that person, feel uncomfortable in your own skin, pretend to be someone else, just so that you feel like you fit into that person's life?

The first person I fell in love with was so completely different from me that I was always trying to be someone else. I cried a lot. I felt awkward. I felt unloved. I felt unimportant. I felt fake. I have fond memories of that person, but I still resent much of that time, because I actually felt that if I was myself then I was not good enough for him...

Earlier tonight I made weird noises that I can't quite recall, some sort of woohooing, or something, and my husband didn't even flinch. I can be myself with him. I don't feel self conscious when my husband is within earshot when I randomly break into song, when I string tons of curse words together just for effect, when I start speaking in other languages to the cats, or when I do any of the boundless quirky things that make me who I am.

I am so glad that my first love broke my heart so that I could find this love... :)

SuperBear!

In distress? Fear not, SuperBear to the rescue!

From tragedy comes humor?

"You know what they say - if you don't want to be attacked by sharks, stay on land!" Yes, that is the brilliant logic my husband uttered aloud after telling me a girl was eaten by a shark. Sad for the girl, but my husband has a point... (I'm just sayin'. Which is a tired expression, but it fits.)

The next time I'm in Florida I'm not going in the water and I'm staying in large crowds of very trusted confidantes in order to stave off shark attacks, drowning, and abduction.

Help me.

Dear blog friend,

I am being held against my will. My husband is forcing me to watch the Tom Cruise interview on The Late Show with David Letterman. I asked nicely that he please not make me watch this but he somehow convinced me to just put it off until after dinner. I want my mommy. :(

Sincerely,
Poppy

PS - Tom has really big teeth, is he going to bite me?!

Little kids with fake British accents

This evening I went to a play performed by kids aged 4 through ...oh, let's say 17. It was the most adorable thing I've ever seen! Some of the kids used a British accent (strangely enough, only about 5 of the 25-30 kids did the accent) and their fake accent was just so damn cute I wanted to pinch their cheeks. The show was hilarious, charming, touching, and spectacular. I think it's time to have kids so that I can have kids in plays and have a legitimate reason for showing up to a kid's play rather than feeling awkward by saying I know one of the adults behind the scenes. :)

I am astounded that these kids could remember such complex lines. The play was an hour, and some of the kids were in all 10 scenes, so had a lot of lines! Of course, there were adults feeding lines when the kids lost their place, but even when the kids messed up it was adorable!!

OK, back to lounging on the couch after a long day. Please, if you have a story about little kids acting in plays leave me a comment about it. Little kids are just so cute!!

National TYDTW day

Too bad all dog owners aren't sent a letter at home. Some people knew today was Take Your Dog to Work day, but a lot of people didn't. I've seen 3 cute pups today, all on their best behavior. So adorable! And, of course, today I was going to bring my camera for something I'm doing after work but I forgot it.

Here's a cute little movie about TYDTWD.

Get well soon, James!

NEW YORK (Reuters) -- The Broadway play "On Golden Pond" will close Sunday because star James Earl Jones is suffering from pneumonia.

Jones, 74, an accomplished stage actor and the voice of Darth Vader in the "Star Wars" movies, has been off the Tony Award-nominated New York production since June 15 and is not expected to make a full recovery until August, according to a statement.

"When we take a hard look at the financial reality of running several more weeks without him, closing is our most responsible decision," producer Jeffrey Finn said. (Rest)

On Golden Pond is one of the most memorable movies from being a kid, and the sultry yet commanding voice of James Earl Jones has been with me almost my entire life. I hope all goes well and James does recover fully. Pneumonia is nothing to mess around with.

Did I just crack the secret code?

Kris just told me that Tom Cruise is on the Today show talkin' smack about Brooke and psychiatry. I made some off-hand comment about his whole life being a sham, and then it occurred to me - remember back in 1938 when Orson Welles first broadcast War of the Worlds on the radio without telling the audience it wasn't real?

1938:

2005:

(Wow, that 2005 movie looks so much more exciting than the original book written by H G Wells! Oh, wait, no it doesn't.)

Does that not explain Tom's ridiculously bizarre life right now? He's trying to promote the movie by sending the public into a panic over his behavior. We are being invaded by martian Tom! But, it's just a publicity stunt. When he's done publicizing this movie he'll return to his regular bizarre underworld, only in the periphery of the public eye.

Did I get it right, Tom? Did I figure out your secret? Could you go away now, and let Katie go back to living her quiet life where nobody knows her name? Thanks, big guy!

Poppy's papi

Surfilicious hooked me up with this quiz titled A Girl's Guide to Trouser Trout which reinforces my feelings for my true love:

Your Score is - 45 - True Noble Trout. He is a considerate, caring person who's aware of others' feelings and needs. He gets an "A" for chivalry. No matter what type of trout, an angler would be glad to know him, at least as a friend. Does he have a brother?
That's my honey! :) (And, no, he doesn't have a brother. Sorry!)

Look what I can do!

I got every little thing done on my calendar and task list today...



...without help from my mommy. (We miss you, Mo!)

And now, to continue my fantabulousness, I shall mow the lawn this evening. And make dinner. And play with the (furry) kids. And, uh, ...watch Richard Dawson because I'm crushin' on him. I can't help it. Now that I know he's not a pervy old man I'm in love.