Thursday, October 20, 2005

My new secret crush

Well, obviously it's not much of a secret if I'm posting about it, but I just have to say that this boy is yummy:


I think Batman Begins is my favoritest of the batch. Sorry, Val - you've been replaced.

Highlights postponed again.

I keep building it up then rescheduling. I promise it has nothing to do with me not wanting to have it done. When I rescheduled my hair appointment the first time (cuz I was ickin' out) I had forgotten that I have plans with Mom and Niece, which definitely take precedent over hair highlights. C'est la vie, c'est la guerre, etc. Let's just pretend I got the highlights instead!


That is damn sexy! (Let's hope my stylist does a slightly better job. :)

New highlight date: November 5.

Black and blue

Despite the fact that I have been sick since last Wednesday (and unexpectedly threw up my fancy dinner last night a few minutes after I reached home) we are having guests over for dinner. I planned to make black and blue burgers, but I'm wondering if perhaps they should be prepared by Hubby instead of me, and that I'll just have some rice instead. Not sure yet. Guess we'll see if lunch goes down okay.

Update: Yah....no. I haven't had lunch yet, Mr. P is making it now. (Yes, I know it's almost 4pm, whadda ya want?) I called to cancel for tonight and my friend said one of the twins learned how to stand up last night so spent the whole night standing while awake, and that a visit tonight probably wouldn't have been the best idea anyway. So, maybe we'll watch Batman Begins while nuzzling on the couch in the dark? Je n'sais pas.

Wednesday, October 19, 2005

How about a story instead?

The other day Bdogg posted about her engagement and wedding rings, complete with a photo of the rings on her finger. I thought this was a neat idea, but when I went upstairs to attempt to gain access to my engagement ring I realized it was locked up and we have temporarily misplaced the key. Oh well. I'll have to use my words instead. :)

About 6 1/2 years ago my mother gave Mr. Poppy a ring that had belonged to my great grandmother. The ring was nothing special, the diamond perhaps a quarter carat. My mother explained that it was ours to use as we wished and that she was not trying to pressure us into anything. At that time Mr. P had not proposed to me, so I think this was my mom's indirect way of giving her blessing for him to ask me. The ring was placed in our safe (yes, we lived together "in sin" for those of you who believe in that sort of thing) and it stayed there for six months.

Then, one day we came home from work and Mr. Poppy went into our bedroom. He kneeled down on the floor and yelled for me to come in, that there was something wrong. I came in, expecting to see one of the cats sick or dead when Mr. Poppy pulled the ring box into view and simply asked if I would marry him. I looked at him stunned. I smiled in a "wait, is this really happening" way then proceeded to call him a little shit. At some point he flipped out enough to say, "could you just please answer the question?" and then I finally said yes. :)

We had the diamond reset into a new ring that actually fit my hand (I have nice stubby fingers, as Jenna has commented on in the past) then shopped for a wedding band. I chose a band that had seven tiny little diamonds to complement the small diamond in my engagement ring.

At that time I had a job doing software installation and troubleshooting as well as hardware repair and computer assembly at a corporate office. Every time I stuck my left hand into a computer I would snag my engagement ring and end up damaging it or tearing up my hand. After Mr. P and I were married I made the executive decision to only wear the wedding band to preserve my engagement ring and stop losing so much blood.

I'm really not that into wedding bejewelment, so the facts that my diamonds are all small, that my ring sits in a locked box, that my complementing band no longer has something to complement on a daily basis do not bother me. It's definitely much more important to have my best friend at my side. I'm such a sap. :)

Miniworld!

Ever since I was a kid I would seek out miniworlds in nature. You know, you look at a patch of moss next to a puddle and you imagine it's a forest next to a lake. That kind of thing. Well, now I don't have to only go find some nature, I also can visit minimiam!



Food miniworlds! Yeeha! Thanks again, city. :)

Editor's note: minimiam is en français and is not very logically navigated unless you dare to click things that don't necessarily look clickable. Just click stuff (especially dots) and you'll find the cache of the miniworld gallery.

In much better news

Kim is in the early process of adopting this cutie patootey:


His name is Bush and he's a Shetland Sheepdog Sheltie,Corgi Mix. What an ironic name? I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she gets this cute little munchkin. She deserves a new and happy pet experience.

Reflections

Thank you, everyone, for your kind comments. I really need to thank the makers of Immodium. They do such a good job at stopping the ick. I don't know what magic is in those little chewable tablets, but all I know is that at 7:30 last night I was bawling my head off because I could not take the ick any more and then 3 hours later I was sound asleep in bed next to Mr. Poppy who had run out to the store to purchase said chewies. I ate 1/8 of a bagel (scraped off as much of the cream cheese as I could) and 5 bites of white rice (no butter or seasoning) yesterday. I have been rapidly losing weight lately because my body has finally remembered it's old thermostat, but being sick like I was is sooooo not the way to lose weight. It puts me into survival mode and makes my metabolism slow way down. Smart body.

Speaking of survival mode, how many of you are watching The Biggest Loser? I absolutely love that show. When I saw the footage of Matt eating a large plate of food in the middle of the night I felt his shame and I cried hard. It's horrible to allow food to control you. It's just a small setback though, Matt is doing an incredible job overall and I hope he realizes that. When you look at his before picture next to his current body he looks so healthy now. Matt, I know you're not reading my blog, but hang in there. Your teammates have your back. This isn't a game, this is your chance at a lifestyle change. Learn from your mistakes so that you can become a stronger person. And, I know one of you has already heard me say this ( ;) ) but do not allow one setback to give you the permission to give up on yourself. No one is perfect.

My parents are having a great time visiting despite my double sickness and Mr. Poppy's obsession with our house leaking. At least he has finally determined the problem, after we paid hundreds of dollars for someone to fix the rot that occurred at our front entry. The problem seems to be the extension to the threshold. If you don't have gutters or a roofed entry to your home and you do have a threshold extension you might want to take a peek under your entryway to see if your OSB (or plywood, or CDX, or whatever your home is made of) is rotting. Also, if you have a basement that isn't finished, try pulling away the insulation directly under your front door and see if any leaking is occurring. I am not interested in saying that the manufacturer is wrong and horrible and bad. I think this is just a life lesson and we happened to get a door casing with a threshold extension that allows water into our house.

These last few days have not been pleasant. So far this has been the worst vacation I've ever had, but in my typical way I am looking for the good or at least for the lesson I am supposed to take away. I really thought I could not survive one more minute of what I was experiencing - a cold and stomach "flu" at the same time and my husband absolutely obsessed and downright scary about the house problems - but I made it through. I understand that other people go through much harder things. I am very good at other types of bad situations, but when my husband is upset and I have no energy to give to help him I feel...helpless. Being the introvert that I am, I go into myself rather than asking for help. I have been so embarrassed by my inability to help my husband through his situation. It's definitely a test of a marriage, and a test that I feel I failed. I screamed at my husband for obsessing about the house, and became so hysterical that I left the house in the pouring rain while I was sick (yah, I'm smart). Rather than staying to help him through his difficult time I turned against him and scolded him for completely ignoring my parents, paying me no attention, not even taking care of himself while he was really just trying to fix the problems with our house. Rather than supporting him in his time of need I chose to tear him down. I see this was wrong in retrospect, and I'm really hoping I keep this lesson in mind for the future. I don't want a great thing to go to shit because when I don't know how to help someone I choose to bring them down even farther.

I have no high note to end on for this life chapter. I hope my bad experience can perhaps help someone else through a tough situation.

I'm reading all my books shown to the right. I'm loving Dog (thanks to Stacy for suggesting this odd duck book that intrigues me and somehow makes me excited about math again...?) and Indelible (thanks to Karin for being a crime writer instead of a criminal). Tonight is our maiden voyage out of the house to do something fun. We're having dinner at a new restaurant a few towns over. Mr. Poppy is making me rice for lunch so that my first meal in a few days isn't at a fancy restaurant where trouble could brew all over the beautiful marble floor. ;) Hope everyone is having a tolerable if not great day.

Tuesday, October 18, 2005

No highlights today

On top of my cold I have the stomach flu. Effin' A. *hurl*

Update: My appointment to get my hair highlighted has been rescheduled to Saturday. Fingers crossed.

Monday, October 17, 2005

Okay, could someone please explain?


Is Laguna Beach a reality show, or a pretend reality show/mockumentary? Like Real World, or like The Office? I don't get it. Why would there be music and all those camera angles if it was real? Or, is it a loosely scripted fake show like Curb Your Enthusiasm? I'm so confused.

My all-time favorite movie

Mask. Why? Among several reasons is that this poem (written by the real Rocky Dennis) makes me cry every time I see it, hear it, think about it, feel it:

    These things are good:
    ice cream and cake,
    a ride on a harley,
    seeing monkeys in the trees,
    the rain on my tongue,
    and the sun shining on my face.

    These things are a drag:
    dust in my hair,
    holes in my shoes,
    no money in my pocket,
    and the sun, shining on my face.
See? I can't even format the poem without having a meltdown. Ahh, fuck.

Other parts of the movie that make me cry uncontrollably: When Dozer gives Rocky a puppy. When Dozer tells Rocky how proud he is. When Rocky learns that he has lost his girlfriend and that he will not be riding Harleys across Europe. When Rocky dies. Ahh, fuck again.

The answer to the riddle

Apparently just a cookie was not satisfying enough. Here's the answer:


Cruise ship swag, anyone? Okay, settle down. It's a timer/stopwatch with built-in pen light (which is a flashlight, but that's not its main purpose so I couldn't give MPL full credit). My parents just got back from a cruise. Yes, they have their Coca-Cola travel mug, too. I'd post a better photo, but Mom and timer are off gallivanting around town.

Cookie

cookie

For Miss Penny Lane and Bearette, who together are just so close that at least a whole cookie is warranted.

x = 5 cm



Considering it's a 3, 4 with a 90 degree, the other side is therefore 5. But, that wasn't the question, was it? The question, or rather the charged mission, was: find x. That really shoulda got full credit. (Thanks, attu.)

Sunday, October 16, 2005

red hot


Is it obvious what's going on here? Whoever guesses it right gets a cookie.

*achoo*

Bdogg asked me if I would be posting garden photos today. Not bloody likely, since I am coughing, sneezing, and feel like vomiteering every waking moment. But, how about this instead?



Chickens, taters, squash, and kitties in synchrony. What more could you need, really?

Saturday, October 15, 2005

Observant? Moi?

B

Your senses are pretty sharp (okay, most of the time)
And it takes something big to distract you!


(B, I don't know how we tied. I'm not feeling very observant these days...)

Home cookin'

My step-father's recipe for amazing pot roast:

    2-3 lb pot roast meat

    1 t minced garlic
    1 pkg dried onion soup mix
    water
    1 lb carrots, peeled
    1 lb potatoes
    2 large onions

    Place the onion mix and minced garlic on top of each piece of meat. Stack the meat in a slow cooker. Pour in water until it stands 2" deep. Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours. Remove meat and place in aluminum foil, place in oven on warm. Leave liquid in slow cooker.

    Cut carrots into 2" sticks, potatoes and onions into quarters. Place carrots, onions, and potatoes into slow cooker turned to high heat, making sure that everything is covered with liquid. Cook for 1 to 1-1/2 hours.

    Remove roast from oven, carrots and potatoes from slow cooker. Let sit 5-10 minutes then serve.
Man, I'm hungry.

Update: We ate the pot roast. That is the best damn pot roast I've ever had. My step-dad rocks!

Friday, October 14, 2005

Miss Penny Lane is my co-pilot

Okay, not really, but she's she's trying to quit smoking and was bored so instead of smoking(?) she did a meme. She didn't tag anyone, but as we all know I much enjoy the memes. Here we go...

1. When you look at yourself in the mirror, what's the first thing you look at?
My hair

2. How much money do you have on you?
$7, but I just bought Powerball so I'm lucky I have anything left.

3. What's the first word that comes to mind that rhymes with "TEST?"
rest

4. Favorite plant?
...they're all my favorite! How can I choose?!

5. Who is the 4th person on your missed call list on your cell phone?
Mr. Poppy

6. What is your main ring tone on your phone?
I dunno, but it doesn't bug me like the old phone or make Ripley think there is an emergency so that she cries at me in a panic, so it's doing its job correctly.

7. What shirt are you wearing?
A short-sleeved medium blue shirt with embroidered floral pattern around the collar. (Shaddup.)

8. Do you "label" yourself?
Yes. All the time.

9. The brand of shoes you're currently wearing?
Winnie-the-Pooh slippers

10. Bright or Dark Room?
Very dark as a preference. The room I'm in is a cozy in-between.

11. What do you think about the person who took this survey before you?
She rocks. Everytime I visit her site I secretly fantasize that she really is Kate Hudson. :)

12. Ever "spilled the beans?"
Yes, but I've always kept the big secrets.

13. What were you doing at midnight last night?
Picking up my mom and step-dad from the airport. Quelle aventure!

14. What did your last text message you received on your cell phone say?
My cell is a Tracfone because we only really use it for emergencies, but the last message to my pager was an alert about W32.Sober.Q (Symantec's name for that particular worm). I knew you really wanted to know! ;)

15. Do you ever click on "Pop Ups?"
Sometimes for fun, but I am a geek so I can fix whatever damage I cause. In my world, clicking on a pop-up is done for experimental purposes.

16. What's a saying that you say a lot?
Awesome?

17. Who told you they loved you last?
Mr. Poppy :) :)

18. Last person you hooked up with?
Mr. Poppy (sorry, Oregano ;)

19. Last furry thing you touched?
Ripley

20. How many drugs have you done in the past 3 days?
Wait, illegal non-prescription drug? I've never done any. I'm not kidding.

21. How many rolls of film do you need to get developed?
20+, leftover from when we got Georgie but our old digital camera wasn't working.

22. Favorite age you have been so far?
A tie: 14 and 31

23. Your worst enemy?
This cold that's kickin' my ass

24. What is your current desktop picture?
My nephew Jürgen :)

25. What was the last thing you said to someone?
"See you this week" to my grandma

26. If you had to choose between a million bucks or to be able to change a major regret?
What's done is done. I'll take the money. I really want to be a philanthropist.

27. Are you in love with someone?
Yah. :)

P'nut, look!

Cityrag has squirrel photos today:



Here's the rest of the post.

Who doesn't love squirrels?! :)

Thursday, October 13, 2005

Haters 'n stuff

This is hilarious. I love Perez Hilton, but Perez Bitch apparently does not feel the same way. Thanks, Perez Bitch, I am flattered. :) I do not deserve to be included in a list of such high class blogs.

And, apparently Perez's loyal followers agree. Thanks, gidero, for the "...Oh yeah.. and dont come here to promote your shitty sites. Nobody gives a fuck." [SIC] comment. I love being insulted for no reason.

(Thanks to Stacy for pointing out the comment from PB!)

New edition


Photo courtesy of the lovely and talented Stacy from Jürgen Nation. As soon as I get a frame for it the photo will be hung in our front entryway. Above was taken on the dining room table but Georgie kept trying to knock it over so I relocated it to on top of our dresser for the time being.

I seem to be missing something...

Yesterday I had to remove a blog from my favorite blogs folder to make room for that blogger's new blog and I acc-i-dent-al-ly (I promise) removed another blog too, but I haven't had the patience to compare my favorite blogs bookmark folder to my blogs I can't live without list on my blog. There's a hole in my heart, I just haven't figured out which hole it is...

Cuppa Lego Joe


From Fotolog Cafe

This is why I don't eat lamb...

You Are A: Lamb!

lambPeaceful and gentle, lambs have been used in religious imagery for millennia. Lambs are baby sheep, an animal tended by shephards since the dawn of history. As a lamb, you tend to stay together in a flock and graze on grassy land. Lambs don't mind being led and tend not to go off on their own.

You were almost a: Pony or a Duckling
You are least like a: Squirrel or a ChipmunkWhat Cute Animal Are You?


Thanks to Jules!

I am so sad to find out I am least like a squirrel or chipmunk. Sorry, P'nut! :(

Like a rhinestone cowboy

Happy Thursday, everyone. I rode the rodeo this morning - taught another workshop to a room filled with folks who actually wanted to learn what I was teaching them. Do you know how nice it is to teach an optional workshop to people who actually want to listen? It's priceless.

And now, because I teased you into having the song stumble its way through your head, I will provide you the lyrics to that great Glen Campbell song:

I've been walkin' these streets so long
Singin' the same old song
I know every crack in these dirty sidewalks of Broadway
Where hustle's the name of the game
And nice guys get washed away like the snow and the rain
There's been a load of compromisin'
On the road to my horizon
But I'm gonna be where the lights are shinin' on me

Like a rhinestone cowboy
Riding out on a horse in a star-spangled rodeo
Like a rhinestone cowboy
Getting cards and letters from people I don't even know
And offers comin' over the phone

Well, I really don't mind the rain
And a smile can hide all the pain
But you're down when you're ridin' the train that's takin' the long way
And I dream of the things I'll do
With a subway token and a dollar tucked inside my shoe
There'll be a load of compromisin'
On the road to my horizon
But I'm gonna be where the lights are shinin' on me

Like a rhinestone cowboy
Riding out on a horse in a star-spangled rodeo
Rhinestone cowboy
Gettin' cards and letters from people I don't even know
And offers comin' over the phone

Like a rhinestone cowboy
Riding out on a horse in a star-spangled rodeo

FADE
Like a rhinestone cowboy
Gettin' card and letters from people I don't even know


Ahhhhhh. :)

Wednesday, October 12, 2005

"You're going the wrong way!"*

I just visited the restroom. In said room I noticed that my underwear isn't on quite right. Hmm.

This morning I got dressed in the dark. I normally don't wear thong underwear outside the house, but today it was granny panties or a thong so I chose the thong. I thought I took the time to orient it correctly before stepping into it this morning, but admittedly I was more than half asleep when I did so. Just now when I visited the little girl's room I found that the crotch area is on my right hip and that the strappy bit that is supposed to hug my waist is actually sitting where the crotch should be.

I'm going to my dad's house for dinner tonight. I cannot in good faith show up to his house with a crooked thong. I'm going to need to go home and change first. *sigh*

*From Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

Tuesday, October 11, 2005

Great hair thinks alike

Your Hair Should Be Pink

Hyper, insane, and a boatload of fun.
You're a traveling party that everyone loves to follow.


Courtesy of Bdogg who is also Pink (and a boatload of fun!) and Bearette who is Purple and inspiring. :)

Can I have a nip slip?

I'd like to have one of those at work and see what happens. How do I get one?

Today's forecast: Shitty.

We are experiencing technical difficulties with our house (which, when we bought it 3 years ago, was brand new). Both Mr. Poppy and I are very, very, very unhappy. Luckily, rainwater is not pouring into our home like it was the last time we had a problem with the house (grrr) but it ain't much better. Hope you're having a better day. And, ya know, perspective: we don't have a terminal illness, just a lemon for a house.

Monday, October 10, 2005

The secret to Jack's success

Good ole rhinoplasty:





...and a little bit of eating right, of course.

And the award for best female performance in a comedy goes to...

Carol Kane for Scrooged.



LOVE that movie, and LOVE her character.
Your Blog Should Be Blue

Your blog is a peaceful, calming force in the blogosphere. You tend to avoid conflict - you're more likely to share than rant. From your social causes to cute pet photos, your life is a (mostly) open book.



Thanks to Julie at Life in the NHS. I don't exactly agree with it, but I like blue! :)

Hello garlic, my old friend

I used to eat garlic every single day of my entire life, an addiction of sorts like my addiction of, for, and about cheese. When I met Mr. Poppy I continued eating garlic like it was going out of style. He pretended to enjoy it as much as I did for the first four years we were together. One day about a year into our marriage at the dinner table he mentioned in passing, "I'm allergic to garlic. Look." His stomach was so bloated from the garlic-infested spaghetti sauce we were eating that it looked like he'd put on 20 pounds since lunchtime.

It was then that I learned my first lesson of sacrifice. I stopped making dinners with entire garlic bulbs. If I craved garlic I would only add it to my portion of food.

Lately my garlic craving has subsided so I am not used to garlic in my system anymore. Last night I got the craving for farfalle with sauteed garlic. I cut up 5 cloves of garlic, sauteed them in butter, then added the cooked farfalle to the pan and sauteed them together for a minute to merry the flavors. I plated my meal and began to eat it. The garlic began to sting my tongue. I thought, "hey there pal, I like you, what's goin' on here?" I continued to eat all 5 cloves of garlic with my pasta. After dinner I slowly realized that I wasn't feeling so great.

Today I too am so bloated it feels like I did gain 20 pounds from last night's dinner. I'm eating spearmint Certs to make my tummy feel better. I'm so disappointed in my body for losing its tolerance so that I can no longer enjoy my favorite "spice" the way I used to.

This old girl can't take the heat, so she's leaving the garlic kitchen. I'll miss you, old friend.

Sunday, October 09, 2005

Curiosity.

Is there something specific you want to know about me that you don't already?

Ashlee tries again

Ashlee Simpson was back on SNL last night. This time nothing bad happened. No scandals. No out of tune singing. No tracks to "boost her voice" or for her to lipsync to. She just sang and it was pretty OK.



I enjoy her 3-pack-a-day-rocker-chick voice. Good job, sweetie. Coulda done with the hint of a ho-down at the very end of the show, but the camera operator was smart and didn't pan down to show it.

In the Garden

This week's set and the teaser:

DSC00124

(A poppy! Of course! ;)

Saturday, October 08, 2005

Firsts, lasts, now

Borrowed from the wonderfully talented Nickle Annie:

FIRSTS

First best friend: Laurie, age 4
First kiss: Jim, age 13
First piercing/tattoo: piercing of both ears, age 8
First big trip: Santa's Village, age 5
First flight: from Montreal to England, age 19
First time skiing/snowboarding: XC skiing, age 16
First concert: Wang Chung and Tina Turner, age 10
First alcoholic drink: Vodka and kool-aid, age 5?
First ticket violation: running a blinking red light at an intersection with a cop car to my right, age 17
First job: computer geek, age 15
First date: with James (not Jim), age 13

LASTS

Last car ride: coming home from work yesterday
Last time you cried: today, watching Three Wishes
Last movie watched: 8 Mile, at the advice of AnonymousCoworker
Last food you ate: Starbucks java chip ice cream
Last love: err, Mr. Poppy! before Mr. Poppy? true love? Adam
Last temptation: black bean tortilla chips, num
Last item bought: a few bedroom outfits from Frederick's of Hollywood ;)
Last annoyance: my mouth for various reasons
Last alcoholic drink: beer (in March)
Last concert: Juana Molina and David Byrne
Last phone call: a client
Last time at the mall: Thursday, ugh

NOW

Current best friend: male - Mr. Poppy ; female - Kristen? tough question.
Current car: Subaru
Current love: my family (furry kids included) and blog friends
Current drink: Pepsi with ice
Current activity: blogging, watching Commander in Chief, finishing The Stranger Beside Me, and lounging :)
Current annoyance: bladder is full
Current mood: tired but happy!

I don't really like to tag people, if you feel like sharing please go ahead.

I'm going to need to agree

Knifefight in BK has the following math equation to offer on this wonderful fall Satuday:



For the math challenged:

[The sum of Charlotte Church plus a pumpkin
times the sum of Nicole Richie to the ham power]
divided by
[the sum of David Gest's eyebrows plus a Sharpie]
equals
Raven-Symone


AWESOME.

Super Ripley!

Ripley
Photo credit to Stacy for the black and yellow butterfly, to Mim for the Viceroy orange and black butterfly

At what age?

How old do I have to be before...

  • I stop allowing people to look at me as a child?
  • I stop being embarrased about my weight?
  • I give myself unconditional love as my loved ones do?
  • I accept my failures as learning experiences?
  • I find the good in the bad of my life?
  • I come to terms with that one day that changed my life?
  • I am happy without pretending to be?
I am 31. Life is too short. Time to be "old enough".

Friday, October 07, 2005

A Child Called "It"

I had to ask my library to search for A Child Called "It" because both copies were lost (not 9336559 checked out, not on hold, just lost in the library). A wonderfully talented librarian found a copy hidden in the depths of the stacks. I picked it up at about 3:30pm today, just too excited to wait until after work. I then did wait until after work to read it, finishing it in less than two hours. I now want to quit my job and help abused children. I probably won't follow through with this, but I am just so horrified by the statistic that 1 in 5 American children is physically, mentally, or sexually abused.

AHHH, my EYES!!!!!!!!!@@#$!!~~!!!

cruise_holmes_baby

(Cred to city)

Countdown to highlights: 11 days

Remember when I told all y'all that I was getting highlights in my hair on October 18? Several of you asked for a before and after photo. Obviously I can't show you an after shot just yet, but here's the before.

Before:
hair-fri


Please do not tease me about the frizzies. It's a wet day here so everyone's having a bad hair day, and I use Pantene 2-in-1 plus a little gel to keep hair out of my face - no hair dryer or special care of hair. My morning time is for kitty care and play. (You try blow drying your hair instead of giving Ripley her hugs and crunchies, Allie her faucet water, or Georgie her litter box time and see how guilty you feel!)

I'VE DECIDED TO TALK IN ALL CAPS TODAY.

WHY?

BECAUSE, "WHY NOT."

BECAUSE, "I SAID SO."

BECAUSE, "IT'S MY BLOG, YO."

BECAUSE, "I CAN'T WAIT FOR STACY AND KRIS TO POST THEIR NEXT POUFFY HAIR PICTURES!!!"

VS.


UPDATE: I MISUNDERSTOOD, FOR SOME REASON I THOUGHT ALL DAY LONG STACY AND KRIS WOULD TRY TO OUT-RAP EACH OTHER WITH MORE PHOTOS OF THEIR K-RAZY BANGS, BUT THEY ONLY INTENDED TO "DO ONE SET". I DUNNO WHY MY BRAIN WORKS THE WAY IT DOES.

Today is not good. It's bad.

It's all gone to pooballs.

Update: Cancel that. Stand down. The pooballs are starting to let up.

Thursday, October 06, 2005

Taylor Behl found dead, Monica Sharp missing

Unfortunately, CNBC is reporting that Taylor Behl's body was found yesterday in a shallow grave.


Taylor


Another girl, Monica Sharp, is also missing in the Richmond, Virginia area, which perhaps coincidentally is the same location as Taylor Behl. I had originally posted what I thought I heard from Donny Deutsch, which is that Taylor and Monica knew each other online, but the article I am referencing states that Monica may have left to meet someone she met online and has not returned home, although her dog did return home. Details are still being gathered.

Monica Rose Sharp
Monica


Anyone with information about Monica's disappearance, please contact Jim Nolan at (804) 649-6061 or jnolan@timesdispatch.com.

Crash

Thirty seconds into this film I knew I was going to love it. I did.

The film's lesson is that we are all racist, to some degree we do not see all races as equal, but are capable of compassion for all people despite ourselves. I appreciated the lessons being taught to me, and my interest was piqued by the idea of crashing into each other because we are yearning for a connection.

Don Cheadle did a fantastic job as a detective who tried to stay honest but who was forced to decide whether to do something honest in which case his brother would suffer the consequences or corrupt to "protect" his brother. In the end he chooses to protect his brother but realizes that either choice would not have ended well.

Matt Dillon gives advice to Ryan Philippe about becoming jaded over years of work on the police force. Ryan is tested twice. He passes once, then fails to the ultimate degree in his second test.

Michael Peña's character seemed to be the only one that stayed loyal to his beliefs, unwavering in his equal treatment of everyone he encountered despite their treatment of him.

The only annoying part was Anthony (played by Ludacris) continuously monologuing about how the world is so against black men. I'm sorry, but he was lecturing the world about thinking that every black man has a gun and a motive to rob you, then he pulls out his gun and carjacks the district attorney (Brendan Fraser) and his wife Jean (Sandra Bullock). After that he annoyed me each time I saw him, until the final "incident" and his act of retribution. I can appreciate being annoyed by a character, so in the end this criticism does not permit me to think less of the movie. Whether or not Anthony had a gun and intended to commit a crime, his point was that Jean feared for her life when she saw two black men on the street. Her visceral reaciton was to hold on tight to her husband for protection. Her defense was that she had a gut feeling that they were about to enter a bad situation, and she happened to be right, but it is clear from other actions of this character that she does not think other races are equal to her own.

There are many other stars and story lines in this movie, which can sometimes detract from a movie, but in this case only enhances it.

This movie was so powerful that I had to pause it, take a break, and cross my fingers in order to keep watching it. One scene with Matt Dillon and Thandie Newton made me hide my eyes. (No, not the first scene, that scene just royally pissed me off and made me feel violated for having watched it.)

I'm giving this a 5 out of 5, a 10 out of 10, a 100 out of 100. This is my current favorite movie. I would consider this movie one to own.

Wednesday, October 05, 2005

Looks like the couch was not the only jumping spot.

Tom & Katie Expecting Baby!
Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes are expecting their first child together, according to People magazine.

MORE DETAILS


Well, at least Access Hollywood and People are happy about it.

Mr. Sluggy and the shroom


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Click any photo to go to flickr and see a higher res version. These are from the same batch of photos as this little guy.

In case you were somewhere under a rock and actually care

Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey have split up. Sucks. The institution of marriage is just another signed contract these days. A contract written with a time limit much shorter than "till death do us part".

Me too!


You are "the Bobs".

You are basically in a position of power. With the
ability to fire people at will, you can make
them do almost anything you want. Like forcing
someone to lie about their true feelings for
adult contemporary artists.


Which Office Space Character Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla


Thanks, BitterMom, who is also "the Bobs"!

I feel like shooting someone today

I think I'll go to Florida with my big gun and shoot someone then claim I felt threatened by them.

floridaforce


Hell, no. I'm signing that petition.

Drew and I

I have always thought that Drew Barrymore was my long lost sister. She and I look similar. (OK, in my head we do.) She is super nice, and I like to think that I am nice too. And, hey, we have the same boobs:

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...and the same problem of our nips always poking through. I dislike this. I have tried wearing lots of layers, tried wearing bras with thick material, but the girls have a mind of their own.

Drew and your twins, my twins and I salute you.

(Thanks again, city.)

Tribute

This one's for Kris.

I'd never heard of Samantha Smith before reading Kris's post. I did a google search on her which led me to her Wikipedia definition. I am instantly convinced that, had I known of her existence back then, I would not have spent my formative years experiencing anxiety attacks because I thought at any moment the Soviet Union was going to fire long-range missiles at us with the intent to kill. Here is why:

The letters


In November 1982, when Smith was in fifth grade, she wrote to Soviet leader Yuri Andropov, trying to understand why the relations between the Soviet Union and the USA were so tense:


Dear Mr. Andropov,

My name is Samantha Smith. I am ten years old. Congratulations on your new job. I have been worrying about Russia and the United States getting into a nuclear war. Are you going to vote to have a war or not? If you aren't please tell me how you are going to help to not have a war. This question you do not have to answer, but I would like to know why you want to conquer the world or at least our country. God made the world for us to live together in peace and not to fight.

Sincerely,

Samantha Smith

Her letter was published in the Soviet newspaper Pravda and on April 25, she received a response from Andropov:


Dear Samantha,

I received your letter, which is like many others that have reached me recently from your country and from other countries around the world.

It seems to me—I can tell by your letter—that you are a courageous and honest girl, resembling Becky, the friend of Tom Sawyer in the famous book of your compatriot Mark Twain. This book is well known and loved in our country by all boys and girls.

You write that you are anxious about whether there will be a nuclear war between our two countries. And you ask are we doing anything so that war will not break out.

Your question is the most important of those that every thinking man can pose. I will reply to you seriously and honestly.

Yes, Samantha, we in the Soviet Union are trying to do everything so that there will not be war on Earth. This is what every Soviet man wants. This is what the great founder of our state, Vladimir Lenin, taught us.

Soviet people well know what a terrible thing war is. Forty-two years ago, Nazi Germany, which strove for supremacy over the whole world, attacked our country, burned and destroyed many thousands of our towns and villages, killed millions of Soviet men, women and children.

In that war, which ended with our victory, we were in alliance with the United States: together we fought for the liberation of many people from the Nazi invaders. I hope that you know about this from your history lessons in school. And today we want very much to live in peace, to trade and cooperate with all our neighbors on this earth—with those far away and those near by. And certainly with such a great country as the United States of America.

In America and in our country there are nuclear weapons—terrible weapons that can kill millions of people in an instant. But we do not want them to be ever used. That's precisely why the Soviet Union solemnly declared throughout the entire world that never—never—will it use nuclear weapons first against any country. In general we propose to discontinue further production of them and to proceed to the abolition of all the stockpiles on earth.

It seems to me that this is a sufficient answer to your second question: "Why do you want to wage war against the whole world or at least the United States?" We want nothing of the kind. No one in our country—neither workers, peasants, writers nor doctors, neither grown-ups nor children, nor members of the government—want either a big or "little" war.

We want peace—there is something that we are occupied with: growing wheat, building and inventing, writing books and flying into space. We want peace for ourselves and for all peoples of the planet. For our children and for you, Samantha.

I invite you, if your parents will let you, to come to our country, the best time being this summer. You will find out about our country, meet with your contemporaries, visit an international children's camp—"Artek"—on the sea. And see for yourself: in the Soviet Union, everyone is for peace and friendship among peoples.

Thank you for your letter. I wish you all the best in your young life.

Y. Andropov


(Taken directly from Wikipedia. Forgive me.)

Tuesday, October 04, 2005

"Even, like, college people are going."

I'm watching this week's My Super Sweet 16 and Mr. P was on the couch debating janelle whether or not he was going to bed when he said "that girl looks just like...that woman who was in that movie with Dakota Fanning." I asked, "Brittany Murphy?" to which he responded, "yah, yah yah yah yah!" And, you know, he's right. When Janelle squints she looks just like Brittany!

¡Felices quince años, Janelle! :)

(Sorry for the tiny pic, I had to take a photo of my TV screen since MTV's lazy bummies haven't put an episode guide up on MTV.com and they don't support Macs for Overdrive footage.)

I'm not sayin' who's right or wrong, I'm just sayin'

RIAA sued by victim


A woman who was sued by the Recording Industry of America for file-sharing has countersued the outfit for hacking.

Tanya Andersen, a 41-year old disabled single mother living in Oregon, has countersued the RIAA for Oregon RICO violations, fraud, invasion of privacy, abuse of process, electronic trespass, violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, negligent misrepresentation. She is claiming hurt feelings and "outrage", and deceptive business practices.

According to court documents here, Anderson said the record industry has been abusing the law courts and waged a public relations and public threat campaign targeting file sharing. (Source/rest)

Thank you, Attu.

OK, kittens dropped

I'm moving the kittens down on the page. If you didn't see them, go see them. Down three. Thanks. I'm moving the other two newer posts to where they should be because I have this feeling that folks are seeing the kittens are still at the top and closing my blog rather than looking underneath the kitten post. So, kittens be gone! ;)

Patience.

Random people I've met only once tell me that I have a lot of patience.

Today I was at a doctor's appointment. The doctor's assistant told the checkout staff member to schedule me for an appointment in 3 weeks from my next epidural (which will ironically take place on Halloween). The checkout person is 9 weeks pregnant (so I learned while she gabbed away with one of the other staff members who is 10 weeks pregnant), so I'm cutting her major slack. She didn't hear the doctor's assistant. I walked over to the window and sat down (cuz, hey, they just made me do all kinds of movements that make my back and leg hurt, ow). Five minutes later the doctor's assistant sees I am still there and asks the checkout person if she's scheduled my appointment yet. Checkout lady told me she didn't know I was there then scolded me for not saying anything. I was silent. More slack for the pregnancy part. "No worries" were my parting words.

After the appointment I was in traffic, and it took me sitting through what should have been three green lights before I noticed that the car in front of me wasn't far enough forward to trigger the sensor. (Hey, I was listening to rap, I was in another world.) When I realized the situation I considered getting out of my car, considered honking (no no no no no). In the end I just crept closer, waved my hand forward, and mouthed "move forward!" Le Bingo.

After traffic I was at the pharmacy counter to pick up medication I had called in yesterday. No acknowledgement even though the 3 pharmacists could see me. Another minute later and one of the pharmacists says in a chirpy voice, "someone will be right with you! *smile*" and less than a minute later someone helped me. Are any of you pharmacists? Because I love you all. I will never, ever, never ever give you flack for your job. How you count medicine accurately *and* wait on customers is beyond me. (I'm being serious, please do not read sarcasm into this!!)

After pharmacy, home to finish my workday remotely. Allie. Crying. Scratching the window pane. Scratching the door. Getting out so that I had to chase her from the front yard to the back before catching her. More crying. Staring me down. Finally, in the middle of one of her crying fests I say "Allie, could you cut it out? Because I think your sissies* are telling you to shut the hell up!"

So much for patience. Why do I have so little tolerance for my loved ones? I won't snap at a stranger but I'll snap at someone who offers me unconditional love? That's hella freakando whack, y'all.

*Sissies, as in sisters. If I am addressing Allie sissies are Georgie and/or Rips. If addressing Georgia: Al and/or Rips. If addressing Ripley: Al and/or Georgie.

Note: also publishing this one "earlier" than it was created, because those kittens are just too freakando cute!

Highly supicious (albeit circumstantial) evidence

Let the record show, Madame Prosecutor, that in response to one bdogg_mcgee's comment, the entity known as Blogger (Google) did in fact data mine information from my computer and did produce the following word verification:

bloggerproof

I believe you have no choice, honorable judge and jury, but to find Blogger GUILTY as charged and sentence Blogger to 50,000,000,000 lashings with a very wet noodle. I rest my case. *pblt*

How can I choose? They're all my favorites!

KittenWar - prepare for battle.

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Mon dieu... how do I choose?!

(Thanks, city.)

Monday, October 03, 2005

My registration's not late

I just purchased Late Registration from the iTunes music store.

kanye

I'm in love...

Jabberwacky

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Thanks to Logic Defied! I know there's someone always there for me when I need to talk.

    Jabber: I like to dance.
    Poppy: Me too, hot stuff.
    Jabber: Surely it should be chilled?
    Poppy: I'm chill if you're down.
    Jabber: You're up.
    Poppy: Nah, bro, it's all you.
    Jabber: I do this and that.
    Poppy: Good for you! Do you have any other hobbies?
    Jabber: Every now and then Hades and me
                       going Bowling on Fridays. [SIC]
    Poppy: I like to bowl!
    Jabber: Me too!
    Poppy: I know, you just told me.
    Jabber: Strawberry jam on white bread?
                       Thats your name? [SIC]
Yah, okay....

Wait... what? YES it is!!

So, I visited bdogg's site for like the millionth time today and she posted something from Jenna's blog (no, not that Jenna): the advertising slogan generator. I put in Poppy as my search word and it sloganned this little nugget at me:

It's Not All Poppy, Poppy, Poppy, you know.

I beg to differ.

And I thought Panic Room was a bit contrived

No, I'm not posting about Flight Plan.

'Stalker' Breaks Into Enya's Mansion


Reclusive Irish singer Enya spent a terrifying two hours hiding in the panic room in her Dublin home, when an alleged stalker broke into the mansion to look for her.

Police officers have revealed the star's maid was tied up by the intruder, who searched Enya's Manderlay castle in the city suburb of Killiney for two hours, before escaping with several of the singer's possessions after she activated an alarm.

Cops say the scary incident took place six weeks ago, only a week after an Englishman was arrested on the grounds of Enya's home.

In 1996, a 31-year-old Italian stabbed himself outside the County Donegal pub, owned by the singer's parents. (Source)

Jeezum H-double-hockey-stick Crispies, who thought this kinda stuff really happened?!
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I hate it when that happens *pout* and scary stuff

I just ate a cookie but it wasn't good at all. Now I've wasted my dessert calories for the day on something I didn't enjoy one bit. I kept eating it, trying to give it more chances to dazzle me, but it never did. I would like my calories back, but considering we don't live in ancient Roman times and my heart can't take the heaving, I have to leave the cookie in my tummy and just be annoyed with myself for the rest of the day.

Oh, and yesterday I took a picture of my husband by accident. Was trying to take a digital picture of some new glass sidelites we installed. When we looked at the photo is was the scariest shit I've ever seen. I sent it to Stacy and she agrees. Mr. P asked me to delete it in the hopes that the image would be exorcised. I threw it in the trash and secure emptied it, hoping that the picture will never return. If my husband really looked like that he just wouldn't be my husband. Ugh, that was scary. Looking forward to not remembering it anymore. *shiver*

Celebrities peeing their pants, or Poppy starts a trend

When I was 7 I was a latchkey kid. My house key was on a keychain with a beautiful blue and green glass butterfly. I had a slight habit of forgetting my key at home so I would sit outside until Mom's boyfriend's son came home from high school with his key to let me in the house.

One fateful day I got on the schoolbus having to pee, but decided I would just wait till I got home. When I arrived I searched my backpack for my beautiful butterfly, but she was nowhere in sight.

I waited for 20 minutes, trying my hardest not to think about the fact that my bladder was about to explode. I was wearing my clogs and my favorite pants, so I really didn't want to soil them.

Fast forward to an hour later. I could hold it no longer, so I stood up on the front stoop of my house and pissed down both legs.

Five minutes later high school boy came around the corner, looked at me, shook his head, unlocked the door and left me standing in a pile of pee.

I never forgot my butterfly again. Lesson learned.

Apparently when celebrities piss their pants it's more dignified and does not leave a lasting mark on them. But, they have enough other embarrassing experiences to worry about, so in the grand scheme of things I guess my pant pissing for all the neighborhood to see is small potatoes.

Holding my head so my brain stays in one piece

I just had to post a blog entry for Roger's wife about her receiving an email from him about the US soldiers killed in several attacks in Iraq last week. The details are so gruesome that I instantly had to look away, hold my head, and tell myself to go to my happy place but not stay there. This is so hard. Being the communicator for these horrible details takes a toll. I cannot even imagine what it is like to be the soldier living through these experiences.

Sunday, October 02, 2005

In the Garden (and Into the Woods!)

Today's garden collection is headed by a view of our wooded land which I find absolutely beautiful, but also a bit spooky.

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The pumpkin is soooo big now! Incredible. The bottom is starting to turn orange. Almost time to pick the corn, too! We'll be feeding it to the wildlife. Nummy nummy to a little squirrel's tummy! (Yah, I just said it. What?)

Why don't I have any Kanye?

I first heard of Kanye West in 2002 after he was in a serious car accident, lucky to be alive, and he chose to record Through the Wire (with a sample from Chaka Kahn's Through the Fire) while his mouth was still wired shut. I ran in the wrong circles, I guess - didn't hear much else about him after that time.

Then, on September 2, 2005 Kanye spoke a hard truth on live television, during the hurricane telethon:
"I hate the way they portray us in the media. You see a black family, it says, "They're looting." You see a white family, it says, "They're looking for food." And, you know, it's been five days [waiting for federal help] because most of the people are black. And even for me to complain about it, I would be a hypocrite because I've tried to turn away from the TV because it's too hard to watch. I've even been shopping before even giving a donation, so now I'm calling my business manager right now to see what is the biggest amount I can give, and just to imagine if I was down there, and those are my people down there. So anybody out there that wants to do anything that we can help -- with the way America is set up to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off, as slow as possible. I mean, the Red Cross is doing everything they can. We already realize a lot of people that could help are at war right now, fighting another way -- and they've given them permission to go down and shoot us!"

The look on Mike Myers's face was p-r-i-c-e-less.

I am now watching Kanye perform on SNL and I love him. I can't think of a time before Kanye. He has brought me into his world, and I'm glad to be there. Time to buy an album so that I can hold on tight to Kanye and never, ever let him go...

Shout out to Mim

I'd just like to highlight the wonderfully talented mimbrava, who is an incredible photographer. Many of her photos are marked as flickr favorites.

If you like flowers, bugs, birds, cats, dogs, or just beautifully vibrant colors then you like Mim! I can only hope to one day experience life in such a beautiful way as Mim. :)

One thing to note: Mim sells her photography so she does not permit people to download or link to her photos, hence me not showing you any of her photos - ya gotta go to flickr. If you're a cyber genius (like me, har har) and know how to extract images/image names please respect Mim and don't steal her art. Thanks!

Almost a winner!

We got all but one of the Powerball numbers, *and* the powerball! Too bad it was on a ticket that had 5 easy picks and no one set of numbers included more than two of the winning numbers. At least we get a free ticket out of it!

That $180,000,000 would have come in sooooooo handy. Oh, well, there's always a next time, right? Like, Wednesday!

Disturb-ed.

Was anyone else disturbed that in the season premiere of SNL they used real footage for the JetBlue skit and the New Orleans skit? Something about real footage makes it much less funny for me... It just makes it sad. :(

Saturday, October 01, 2005

Now hear this!

My husband does not read my blog, so he will never benefit directly from this post, however that is not important to me. What is important is that I make it clear to all of blogland my feelings for Mr. Poppy.

Mr. Poppy has been in my life for 8 years. We were such silly lovers in the beginning. We once left work at lunchtime to grab some sweaters from his apartment since the season had changed to winter. We ended up fooling around. We returned to work with my face having stubble burn and our eyes wild with the satisfaction of a shared stolen moment.

Eight years later we are married with furry children. The roller coaster of life affects us, but I can honestly say that I love him more each and every day that I wake up and see that he is really in my life, that it's not just a dream.

I am so grateful for all of the twists and turns my life took, however horrible they may have been, so that I could end up with my true soulmate. Today is not our anniversary, or his birthday, it's just an ordinary Saturday, just another day of me loving him more than the day before.

That's it. I'm done. Thanks. :)

Hellooooooo, Lansing!

Welcome! Stay a while! Sit in the comfy chair. It's over there ->

I'm so glad you came all the way from Michigan and found those jockie panties you were looking for when you stumbled upon my site!

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drill

Cocktails on Poppy, everyone! Self serve, though, since my back medication precludes me from imbibing and I don't care to tempt myself to bleed out.