Macy's Parade

DD's high school band (she'll be a freshman next year, omg) will be marching in the Macy's Parade in 2008. Only 10 high school bands from across the country are invited each year.

The director has planned an awesome trip for the students, including a couple of days in Washington DC. We need to decide if we'll fly up and meet them in New York City. It really is a once in a lifetime thing, so I think we'll want to see them in person.

Must find parade-attending tips and tricks...

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To two people...

Only a couple of people from my high school days will get this.

On iTunes, when you look at artists in alphabetical order, it says:

Bow Wow
Bow Wow Wow

ROFLMAO

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Carter Oosterhouse

Y'all know Carter, right? HGTV? "Trading Spaces"? "Carter Can"? Anyway, Carter is one of the hottest guys around, I'm sure you would agree. I just think he's not that photogenic. He looks amazing on video, hammering stuff and... stuff, but the still pics I've seen aren't usually that great.

Until now.

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Finished "Out of Sync"

Finished Lance's book in about 30 minutes. Okay, it took a little longer than that. It's short. I'm just saying. My favorite part was the story of Keith Richards drinking JD and flipping them off during the concert while they were flying over the audience. Too funny.

I really need my 2008 desk calendar, which I purchased from the fall Band fundraiser. I must ask Madam Band President about its expected arrival date when she gets home.

Speaking of bands, I watched the Band American Idol, or whatever it's called, on Friday. LOVED Denver and the Mile High Orchestra. I was very grossed out by the band with the shirtless young boys. I am wondering why half the hosts are Australian, for an American show. lol.

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Message board drama

A while back, I was a message board admin. It was one of the most fun things ever, the vast majority of the time. Unfortunately, sometimes admins must deal with trolls or even well-meaning people who are driving everyone crazy, and it takes a monumental effort to make sure you and the other admins are handling it fairly. There's always particular uneasiness in the community about deleting or closing posts, because it would seem that you could just let things run their course and all would be well. Sometimes it's just not the case. While the idea is to keep the group from getting irretrievably mired in a nasty argument of epic proportions, all deletions and editing cause understandable drama.

The country's largest scrapbooking board had another problem this weekend, which we also dealt with back in the day. Their private admin area was breached, and some people saw some venting administrator commentary that was never meant for anyone else to see. All of us have vented about someone in an email or on the phone- even someone we normally like just fine, but who is causing an issue at the moment. Venting on a private board or web page? Don't do it. You never know when a technical glitch will cause a private area to become very public.

This particular board belongs to an online store, which makes it a more serious matter, because it's a huge international business with paying customers involved. Their issues are many, but the most disturbing was an admin (remember, a store representative) who called a customer a "douchebag" and a "b*tch" and said she would "like to take a stick to her head." Yikes!

Now the members are discussing what is the worst part of it all- the technical glitch that resulted in unlocking a private area, the hurt feelings of customers who were called names, the mistrust of the entire community who wonders if their names have been mentioned on the private board, the heavy-handedness with which the admins have deleted negative or questionable posts by members (because the TOU states that people can't post certain things), yet obviously not censoring themselves in the same way... The list goes on.

It makes my head hurt, and I'm only an occasional lurker.

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Cheer

First competition of the season today. It was out-of-town, but only lasted 4 hours, so it was a nice segue into November nationals. All three teams (Youth, Junior and Senior... DD is on both Jr. and Sr.) won first place in their divisions!! The little girls won High Point for their level.


All teams in uniform


All teams in Championship Tshirts

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Saturday Six

This week you’ll have to choose the greater of two “evils” and explain why you chose that particular one. You might not see both options as an evil; or you might find it impossible to pick one as being significantly worse than the other.

But you should pick which you would find the most offensive, even if you agree with one’s right to take the action, label or position listed.

1. Which of the following two would you find more offensive if you saw it out in the open in a family restaurant: two men holding hands or a woman breast-feeding a child? Why?
A woman breast-feeding a child, if her girl-parts are hanging out all over. Breast-feed away, but let's not make it dinner and a show.

2. Which of the following would you find more offensive if you heard someone say it: a blond joke or a racial joke? Why?
A racial joke, but only because we've all been trained to be outraged at racial jokes. A blond joke is really no different, but I can't muster a lot of disgust with someone telling one.

3. Which of these would you generally consider more offensive: An atheist who badmouths Christians, or a Christian who badmouths atheists? Why?
A Christian who badmouths atheists, because Christians believe they aren't supposed to be judging others.

4. Which of the following ideas about a presidential hopeful would you find more offensive: that a woman shouldn’t run for president because a woman doesn’t belong in the White House, or that a black man shouldn’t run for president because a black man doesn’t belong in the White House? Why?
A black man, because I would expect that people have moved on from racial prejudices by now more than I expect that they have moved on from sexism.

5. Which of the following political terms or movements would you find the most offensive: “Pro-Life” or “Defense of Marriage”? Why?
"Pro-Life," because this insinuates that there are people who are "Anti-Life" running around killing babies. I have a feeling that the vast majority of people who have had an abortion went through great personal turmoil making that decision.

6. Which of the following forms of protest are you likely to find most offensive: an animal rights group’s members shedding clothes to encourage people not to buy fur, or a war protest group’s members burning the American flag to criticize war policy? Why?
Burning the American flag is never okay IMO. The flag does not represent the yahoos in Washington. It represents us all as a country of people.

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Saw IV

Some spoilery things ahead. Read at your own risk if you haven't seen the movie yet.

We're big fans of the Saw movies. Last night we saw Saw IV. If you see it, just disregard the first scene, and the movie will be great. Well... enjoy that scene for its stomach-turning grossness, and then just leave it on the cutting room floor of your mind. It has no bearing on the film itself, and is there to mislead you. Problem is, you're already being misled without it, so it is unnecessarily confusing.

We came out of there at 11:15 pm and talked about the plot twist at the end until 2:00 am. We just didn't understand it at all when considered along with scene 1. Finally we got on the web and saw that people were explaining that they think the first scene... SPOILER ALERT... the first scene has not yet occurred. I mean not even as of the final scene of the film. It's more related to opening things up for Saw V.

Now, if they had gone back to that scene at the end (or placed it at the end), it would have been a huge letdown from the surprising final scene. So, I think they just should have left the first scene out. It is the viewers' natural assumption that everything is happening in real time, even without the autopsy scene.

Anyway, that aside, it was pretty good. I didn't like the artsy-fartsy scene transitions at all. I found them distracting in a horror film. I loved the flashbacks that gave us insight into John's history. The story was good. The traps weren't the best of the four films, but they were definitely gory enough.

I give it a B without the first scene. The theater was beyond crowded. Huge turnout here.

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Scorpions

There is a perfect, lacy, eaten-out shell of a scorpion hanging in a spider web in the garage, right next to my car door. Normally I would dispose of such a thing, but I leave it as a tribute to the spider who caught and ate that sucker, and as a warning to other nasty scorpions who may venture into my garage.

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Illuminations

I found this very cool-looking event called Illuminations at the old Seaholm Power Plant downtown. I'm thinking, OOH! I must go! Then I saw the Audience Release, which you agree to when purchasing tickets. There's a possibility of my death while I watch? Now I'm intrigued and a little freaked out.

Blue Lapis Light, who is performing the show, has a studio here in Austin where you can learn to do aerial dance yourself. You know, wrapping your legs and/or arms with the long cloth thingies and hanging from the ceiling! Now that might be cool.

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New website work

By way of a very nice recommendation from the Foundation, I am now bidding on designing a new website for another non-profit. This will be the first website I've done for a fee in five years. I had to do a little research on what people are charging these days. We'll see if I get the project!

I've started reading Lance's book. It's not the longest book on earth, but considering it's the memoir of a 20-something, that's probably expected. I'm to the Lou Pearlman lawsuit part.

I am happy to report that the Chuy's sign has gone up at William Cannon and Mopac. Finally some decent Mexican food in southwest Austin.

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New AC

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In the News...

We did well in Travel and Leisure's America's Favorite Cities for 2007. Pretty cool.

I saw the 10,000 Men story on the news at DD's orthodontist (she got her retainers- whee!). What a fantastic idea for Philadelphia and other cities as well. It has its naysayers in the press, but the presence of people out and about in neighborhoods definitely cuts down on criminal activity. I think it's great- a perfect example of people taking their community into their own hands, and making it what they want it to be. I wish the best for them.

The fires in California- wow. They're not in the hills anymore. They're right there in the towns. Freaky. Let's hope those winds die down soon.

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"Scared the Crap Out of Me"

When Marie Osmond fainted last night on Dancing with the Stars, I was right there with Tom Bergeron, who said a few minutes later that it scared the crap out of him. lol. She was acting a little strange, giggling and jumping around, out of breath. I was about to say, "What is she on tonight?!"... then she fell over. Yikers. Poor thing. Glad she's OK.

New Duran Duran music on the radio! Is there anything better than that?! Awesome song.

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Ten on Tuesday

10 Useful Internet Sites

1. Google - of course
2. Coupon Cabin - coupons for online stores
3. SalesCircular.com - price comparisons and sales for local brick-n-mortar stores
4. PopCap Games - best free fully-functioning online games
5. Cruise Clues - every bit of info a cruiser wants to know
6. AllRecipes - a jillion recipes rated by users
7. Yapta - tracks airline ticket prices before and after you buy
8. IMDB - everything movies and TV
9. ComingSoon.net - upcoming movies and DVDs

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RE: Rick Springfield Tour

Referencing the previous post, I looked up Rick Springfield's tour schedule.

Um.... he played Dallas in June! Why doesn't anyone tell me these things. :p

He's nowhere close to here from now on. Anyone wanna road trip to Biloxi?

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Happy Sunday

I found out that Lance Bass has just written and released a tell-all book about himself and the NSYNC days. Didn't we SO know it would be he to write the first one? I've ordered a copy.

Listened to Big 80's on Sirius Radio today while we ran around town doing stuff. I can't believe I still know all the lyrics to so many of those songs. Is Rick Springfield still doing concerts? I missed his show in Vegas. :(

The Hill Country Galleria has its Grand Opening this week. Upscale, outdoor mall in Bee Cave, integrated with brand new homes and condos... and City Hall! We must check it out.

Tonight, DH and I ate dinner at La Vista at the Hyatt Regency Town Lake... er... LadyBird Lake. We had our wedding reception there 17 years ago, and we go there fairly often. I remember I stayed with everyone at the Hyatt the night before my wedding. The morning of, my dad took me and my bridesmaids to breakfast at La Vista. I couldn't eat a BITE. They were all... eating and eating! I couldn't imagine how they could eat at a time like that. Haha. The decor is a little different now, but that table is still there.

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Two-week Post-Op Visit

Saw my OB/GYN this morning for a scheduled post-op visit. She grinned and tugged my shirt and said, "You look so cute! You don't even look like you had surgery." Okay, she wins the Best Doctor Ever Award.

I already knew there wasn't anything on my pathology report, but we went through it in its entirety today. Two pages to say I didn't have anything seriously wrong. LOL. Skeery! All little things that can cause random spotting and bleeding. I'm SO glad I'm done with that!

I'm cleared to drive now, so... Ciao, y'all!

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Hola

Every time I type the word "and" lately, I type amd. DH works at AMD. I must have been typing that a lot recently. Anyone have an idea why when I type any word ending in "-all", I type "-allas"? I hate that.

This weekend Kathy L. and I are getting pedicures. I wonder if I'll be able to maneuver myself up into that chair by that point.

Kathy's company now has their entire bonus structure based on her new product. No pressure there!!

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Ellen and the Dog

I have an unpopular opinion on this, but here goes...

I think Ellen Degeneres is great, and I watch her show when I can. Part of her appeal is her "girl-next-door" "woman of the people" thing. How could such a person use her celebrity to create this ridiculous spectacle?

She had a total meltdown on her show, for what purpose? I can think of no other, than to prompt her fans to pressure this dog rescue place to give the dog to Ellen's friend. Now look what has happened. The dog rescuer may have to shut down her rescuing (and worry for her own safety) due to DEATH THREATS from Ellen fans. WTF?

Now Ellen may not have expected death threats on her behalf, but she certainly knew and obviously encouraged her fans to contact this place and plead a case for returning the dog to Ellen's friend. She needs to fight her own battles, instead of using her fans, especially the wackos, to strong-arm a business for her.

Ellen's hairdresser is probably a fine person to have the dog. Who knows. She could have gotten it the right way, but she didn't. Ellen admitted this is her fault. How basic a thing is it to understand the process when adopting from a rescue organization? Follow the rules. Very simple.

So much for the girl next door. Celebrity special treatment is the order of the day. And a dog rescue organization goes down the tubes. Sad.

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Drug-Resistant Ear Infections

DD now has an infection in both ears. We're taking her to the doctor to get new antibiotics. Turns out there is an antibiotic-resistant ear infection going around here, so that's probably what she has. Luckily, she isn't in too much pain.

Went to HEB yesterday with the hubby. I did pretty well, but needed an ice pack once we got home. The girls who had surgery the same time as me on the HysterSisters message board, where I've lurked for a couple of months, are in varying states of recovery. Most of them had laparascopic surgery, which is a much faster recovery, but several had abdominal incisions, too. Enough of them are where I am now, that I'm comfortable that I'm on track. Whew!

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Sunday Seven

Name seven items in your “junk drawer.”

1. Keys, some of which I don't know the origin of.
2. A few coupons.
3. Combination locks.
4. Random receipts
5. Batteries
6. Phone chargers
7. Pool ID cards

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Saturday Six

1. If you were to count to three on your fingers, would you hold up your thumb, index and middle finger, or your index, middle and ring finger?
Index, middle and ring.

2. What was the last thing you remember counting in your home?
Five of everything when I put together DD's lunches for this week. (I put everything together in bags, and just add the sandwich each day!)

3. When you are listening to someone who uses repetitious phrases when speaking, such as, “you know,” how many of them do you generally need to hear before you begin subconsciously counting the occurrences?
What's up with this? LOL. I've never been compelled to count such a thing. I may eventually feel as though the person as said something "a gajillion" times. I'm prone to exaggeration and the use of made-up words.

4. Take the quiz: What is your expression number?
Your Expression Number is 9
An idealist and humanitarian, you strive to make the world a better place.
You do your best when you follow your feelings and sense of compassion.
Deep down, you dream of being loved by many.
You are capable of much human understanding and have a lot to give to others.
While you are very ambitious, you never lose sight of perspective.
You have an abundance of creative talents... you just need to tap into them.
Although you are a giving person, you can become selfish if you are ignored.
If you are not able to help people, you tend to shelf your talents.
Without others, you become aloof and start to lack sensitivity.

5. You’re calling a friend on the telephone and he’s not home: assuming he didn’t have voicemail, do you actually count how many rings go by or do you just hang up after a time you feel is sufficient for him to answer?
Ahaha. This is a little like #3. I just hang up after a time.

6. You go out to eat and you order a plate of twelve chicken wings. Do you actually count them before eating?
Not unless I'm splitting with someone.

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Caught Up

Finally caught up on all my personal and business email! Whee! Spam is a plague. Even Yahoo can't catch it all the time anymore.

One of the cast members of Friday Night Lights was on Letterman last night. She talked a lot about Austin, which was cool. Am I the only one who didn't know we're calling Leslie "The Mayor" these days? LOL. I love it.

I see that South Congress is quickly becoming the new little social hub down South. There is a new condo development and now they're building these "pedestrian islands" on the street. The condo/retail development thing near Ben White is called SoCo- how chic is that?!

There's a new Babe on All My Children. Last week, the old Babe hugged Crystal, and when they separated, another actress was playing Babe. Very strange.

I still haven't been anywhere other than the doctor. Today, I'll accompany DH to the grocery store. Woohoo!

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48 Hours

Watching 48 Hours. It's about the current crime problems in New Orleans. So frustrating to watch. I can't imagine how terrifying it must be for people who live there.

Again, there is so much potential for leaders to come out and turn things around. Hopefully someone will. Where is the Mayor? The DA keeps failing to file charges against people. What's up with that? Why are people just taking it? It's like the Wild West out there. And now witnesses are even more afraid to testify because no one ever goes to jail.

They did show a recent march on City Hall, with hundreds of angry residents asking where the city is in all this. Mayor Nagin tells them the city will do better. When?

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Greetings from the couch

Still on the laptop here. I'm watching Andy sing "Take a Chance on Me" to Angela with his acapella buddies on The Office. AHAHAA. And awwwwwwww...

I think I've now seen every episode of every show on HGTV. I did help DD make a tshirt for a school thing tomorrow, so I was up quite a bit today.

My hair is very curly, because the flat iron would take too long and I'm not seeing anyone anyway. All my "get well" flowers are still pretty and blooming. I wrote thank you notes today, too.

So all is well, and I'm hoping I've taken my last narcotics. *crossing fingers*

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Hello, world.

It's me! I am finally on little enough pain meds to type, and direct myself to a website.

Surgery went perfectly. Came home Saturday. I'm now on alternating Darvocet and Motrin. Other than expected pain, everything else is good.

DD was elected President of her school Band. How cool is that?!

DH got his L3 rocketry certification! I saw the video today.

Wayne Newton just got voted off Dancing? Wha? lol. Now they're playing"Had a Bad Day." That reminds me that I need to watch the new American Idol show with the bands. Should be good.

Well, I ramble enough sober, so I'll spare you my trailing thoughts while I watch Boston Legal on pain meds.

Ta!

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Speaking of Donny & Marie...

As a kid (according to Wikipedia, I was 9-12), I used to dutifully tape "Donny & Marie" each week on audio cassette. My friends and I would then listen to and sing along with the show through the week.

I particularly remember the week Andy Gibb was on. We were all totally in love with him. It was the coolest Donny and Marie week EVER.

Hee hee. I wish I had kept all those tapes!

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Ten on Tuesday

10 Television Shows You'd Like to Have (or Have Already) on DVD

1. The Office
2. Entourage
3. ER
4. Grey's Anatomy
5. American Idol
6. Will & Grace
7. Donny & Marie (the 70s variety show, not the talk show)
8. Cheers
9. Scrubs
10. Boston Legal

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iPod Touch and stuff

The iPod is way cool. Basically an iPhone without the phone.

Commercial on the radio today: "Wouldn't it be great if you no longer had to shave your rocks?" Actually she said, "...had to shave or wax?" but I didn't hear that at all.

I've been checked out by all my doctors, had lab work out the wazoo, some of it twice. I'm in perfect health. Thank you very much. Surgery on Thursday!

DD is first chair in band again.

I like Rascal Flatts a lot, but I'm not getting into the new album.

DH is back from a long trip to Nevada, where he went to a national rocket launch and became a master rocketeer with his latest certification.

Last weekend at the high school football game, some high school guy surrounded by a big group of his friends was trying to pick a fight with someone, and Kim (another band mom) went right over and told him to stop. When he didn't, she got the policeman and the guy was escorted out of the stadium. Go Kim!! I was just standing there waiting to duck and cover.

Tomorrow I'm going to clean my house from top to bottom, and give myself a pedicure, since I won't be able to do either for a while.

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