Happy Halloween, Y'all!

In Zumba news... Sí, I can menea menea with the best of 'em on the Activate Zumba DVD. It's the 45-minute beginners' workout, so I probably won't be as cocky with the next DVD. I'm just relieved I can keep up with this one for now. Dancing is a lot more fun than step aerobics. I still love cardio kickboxing, but I'll stick with this for a while.


Friday Five: Exertion

1. What was the cause of your last working up a sweat?
Zumba!

2. What routine part of your life seems to take more mental effort for you than for most others?
Planning the weekly menu. I even have a faboo program that allows me to choose recipes from my own cookbook and pop them into an aisle-organized grocery shopping list. Still, it is hard with my picky eaters.

3. What’s something many others consider laborious but you consider rather easy?
Cleaning out attics, closets, cupboards, etc., with "keep, trash, give away" piles and reorganizing what remains.

4. What’s something you’re going to have to do really soon but have been putting off just because it’s going to be a lot of work?
Actually, I've just completed two things that I had been putting off. 1) creating a single meticulously detailed list that documents every single job and volunteer position I've had since working at college- addresses, phone numbers, references, salaries, duties, everything 2) winterizing the hot tub

5. Where’s the steepest hill in your neighborhood?
If you go around our loop clockwise, it's a mistake, because the steepest hill goes up the left side of the circle. Experienced walkers/runners/riders go counter-clockwise. The very steepest hill in the entire neighborhood is the grassy hiking trail off the main road.

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Parade of Homes 2012

Jeff and I went to the Austin Parade of Homes on Saturday. We were very disappointed that one of the six houses wasn't open yet. If we would have known that, we would never have gone this weekend! This year's gorgeous homes in Oak Hill have picturesque hill country views, but most have odd floor plans. Not sure how they happen to be odd as a group, but this year, they have what we feel are somewhat illogical layouts.

One realtor noted that separate living space (in that particular home- a full-on casita with its own garage) is considered a design of the future, intended for parents or children to move in. A few of the houses had it. Unlike the typical "mother-in-law" room in a far corner of the house for visitors, these are almost mini-apartments, physically separated from the main house.

We gave our People's Choice vote to Pillar Custom Homes. There are so many stunning individual elements in every house, but we felt the overall room flow was best in the Pillar model. Particularly nice- the shower as you walk in from the pool. Enertech (with my favorite media room and master bedroom!) came in second for us.


Patrick's Saturday Six: H

1. H is for HABIT: Which habit would you most like to break?
Leaving my shoes by the back door. I think I've been saying that for years.

2. H is for HAIR: How long have you maintained your current hairstyle?
Far too long. I've changed the length between shoulder-length to very long, but it's really the same bangs & hair combo I've had since I cut it short about 13 years ago. The short hair was a total mistake. Oh wait! I switched my side part to the other side about three years ago. Boo-yah.

3. H is for HAND: Are you right-handed or left-handed?
right

4. H is for HEAT: During winter, to what temperature do you normally set your thermostat?
68 during the day, 66 at night

5. H is for HIGHWAY: When the speed limit is 55, how fast do you generally drive?
I drive the speed everyone else is going, unless they are going under the speed limit for no good reason. The majority of people are driving about 59 in a 55.

6. H is for HYPOCHONDRIA: Which illness do you most fear?
Meningitis. That stuff can kill you in 24 hours.

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Good Day for the Job Search

Aggies WIN! Whoop! The boys looked amazing last night. Just... YAY! So proud.


Guess what! A job has opened up in my field of academic study, in Austin, where there are perhaps five positions altogether in the biz. I'm trying not to get too excited about it, since it's been a while *cough* since I graduated. Plus, for all I know, it's one of those jobs they have to post, even though they already have someone lined up to take it. Still.

It was quite serendipitous that I even saw it at all. I had searched only a few times for jobs in my degree field, knowing I wouldn't find anything local, especially something that didn't require twenty years of experience, and I hadn't. Yesterday, I did one of my daily searches for my old job keywords and this completely unrelated opening popped up. It was practically jumping off the screen. Turns out, it just happened to have both the keywords within its job description. Thank you, imperfect job search engine, for always giving me off-the-wall jobs I never ask for. Finally something great showed up!

I've applied online already and now I'm calling all my old school buddies to see if they happen to know anyone there I could talk to in person. The position is almost entry-level, which is where I would need to get in. My grad school hours will cover part of the limited experience requirement.

Cross your fingers and toes, folks. I'll very gratefully accept your prayers, positive vibes, lucky shamrocks, whatever you're into. Thanks!


Saturday 9: Somewhere Over the Rainbow

1) Do you ever fantasize about flying, beyond the rainbow or anywhere else?
The only fantasies I have that involve flying, I can't discuss here.

2) Do you think you have seen The Wizard of Oz more than 10 times?
No

3) Which Wizard of Oz character would you most like to dress as for Halloween?
Glinda the Good Witch. She's very sparkly.

4) What will Trick or Treaters get when they come to your front door?
Airheads this year. I have tired of persistent teenagers making return visits for good chocolate.

5) Did you ever TP a neighbor's house or indulge in other acts of Halloween vandalism as a kid? (Don't worry, that statute of limitations is up.)
We were too busy trick-or-treating and overindulging on Halloween candy when I was a kid to take the time to trick anyone.

6) Who annoys you more -- people who never respond to your texts/emails, or those who never look up because they're always checking their texts/emails?
people who are always checking them

7) Who was the last person you hugged?
Jeff

8) What two colors do you like to wear together?
dark blue and bright red

9) Did your alarm clock wake you up this fine Saturday morning? 
Nope, it was a casual Saturday this weekend. No early waking necessary.

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John Taylor Book Tour- Austin

Oh. My. Gosh. LOVED the original JT's book signing last night!

There were somewhere between 300-400 people. The great Margaret Moser did about an hour-and-a-half interview, with audience Q&A and John reading some excerpts from the book. Then everyone lined up in very orderly fashion in single file down the center aisle of the Scottish Rite Theater... ahaha well somewhat orderly. Tracy and I hung out and chatted in our seats instead.

Then came the moment of the signing- literally a moment, because there were a lot of people and neither we nor he wanted to be there all night. I don't care how long its been since you screamed your lungs out for one of your teen idols (okay- 2011 for me but you know what I mean), your heart is still going to skip a beat when he says, "Hello Kathy! Thanks for coming out tonight."

Ahhhhhhhhhhh... no prob. I was just... in the neighborhood.

Eeeeeeeee!!!

At one point in the Q&A, he responded to a question by an audience member if he thought any music of today will stand the test of time twenty years from now. He said, "I don't care how old you are, the best music of your life is going to be the stuff you listened to when you were 17/18 years old." For him it was Roxy Music. For us it was Duran Duran. For kids today, it could be Arcade Fire. So true.

Best photo of the night, because I FORGOT MY REAL CAMERA. Gah.

Cue the screaming!

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Zumbariffic Friday

I've lined up three absolutely fabulous references for my job search. They were all so sweet with their enthusiastic responses! That really made my day yesterday.

Now if the right job could just open up, that would rock.

I also started doing Zumba yesterday. They say it can be hard at the gym, because the dance steps are very fast and there isn't a beginner class. I decided to get one of their DVD sets (the Exhilarate Body Shaping System) first. So far, I've done the "learning the steps" DVD. It was a workout of its own. Fun fun fun though!

If a job opportunity doesn't come along soon, I could always start a Zumba prostitution ring. *gigglesnort*


Patrick's Saturday Six: F & G

What. I missed a couple.

1. F is for FACE: Which part of your face would you most like to change if you had the money to do so?
I would get a brow lift with a hairline incision to reduce my giant forehead. Until then, it's bangs for me.

2. F is for FAST: What’s the fastest speed you’ve ever traveled in a car?
85mph on Hwy 6 between College Station and Houston

3. F is for FEAR: What single thing are you most afraid of?
The same thing that everyone is most afraid of- my car plunging into a body of water with me in it. Am I right, folks?

4. F is for FORK: In a Chinese or Japanese restaurant, do you prefer chopsticks or a real fork?
I get a fork in a Chinese restaurant, but I use chopsticks at Japanese places. Japanese food is chunkier I guess. Or maybe there is more peer pressure at a Japanese restaurant. I'll have to think on that.

5. F is for FOWL: What is your favorite piece of chicken?
thigh

6. F is for FRUIT: If you could only have one kind of fruit for the rest of your life, which fruit would you choose?
Easy! Watermelon.


1. G is for GAME: Which game were you best at playing when you were a child?
Password

2. G is for GHOST: Do you believe that ghosts exist, whether you’ve seen one or not?
I don't believe in ghosts, even though I thought I saw one. I saw a ghostly apparition of a person in running clothes run through my living room, when I was alone one afternoon. I was maybe 17, and I called my mom, crying. I was terrified. I think I was just dehydrated or something.

3. G is for GLOBE: What country anywhere around the globe would you most like to visit?
Italy

4. G is for GRILL: What’s your favorite food to have grilled outdoors?
rib-eye steak

5. G is for GRITS: Have you ever eaten grits, and if so, do you like them?
I hate grits with a passion. *shudder* Whatever they are, they look like someone already ate them.

6. G is for GUM: Which brand is your favorite chewing or bubble gum?
Stride Spearmint

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Sick Kiddo

Saturday, Lauren started showing all the early signs of the mouth infection that sent her to the hospital for a week last year. We couldn't believe it. By Sunday morning, she was in bad shape.

In May of last year, after three visits to the ER, with preliminary diagnoses from an allergic reaction to a deadly inflammatory syndrome, she was admitted to the hospital, where the infections expert finally diagnosed it as a simple "primary HSV-1 infection." Rarely, at the initial exposure to the virus that causes cold sores, one can have a severe outbreak of countless sores inside the mouth, on and under the tongue, on the lips and down the throat. It is extremely rare to see it in someone older than 3-5, because the virus is so common and we are all exposed by then. Lauren was 17.

They assured us that after the primary infection, the body builds up antibodies and from then on, she would just get the typical cold sore on her face near her lips now and then. Well, she has never had a cold sore since then- only this second severe outbreak like the first, a year-and-a-half later.

The main concerns with a severe mouth infection are excruciating pain, severe swelling of the lips and throat, and dehydration/malnutrition. She cannot eat or drink anything but decaf tea. She can't even take the pain of plain water in her mouth. I talked about mouth sore tips when she was going through this last year, and that is one. Regular tea can be irritating, but decaffeinated versions are sometimes soothing.

We've been working like crazy with her doctor to try to keep her out of the hospital this time with pain management and antivirals. It's been so hard for her, but I think she's turning the corner on this thing. Last time the whole illness was about 14 days, with new breakouts stopping at about day 8/9. This time, at day 4 (yesterday) new sores had stopped forming.

So far, she's managing her pain with oral meds. Triplicate scripts, but oral nonetheless. Last year she was unable to swallow pills at all and required morphine and other IV meds and nutrition. The swelling is significant, but not nearly what it was last time. She's doing the best she can with the tea, and hopefully we can get her eating some banana smoothies or milkshakes by tomorrow.

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Senseless Debate: Working vs. Stay-At-Home Moms

I can take the back and forth, nasty political swiping on Facebook all day long. What I cannot stand is divisive garbage like a bitchy, condescending ecard with an image of two women, that says, "I hear you. Raising kids and running a house keep me busy, too. I also have this little gig on the side called a full-time job." Especially when it's posted on a web page for women.

The moronic gem was posted by a discount shopping Facebook page called Women Get it Free, which lost fans as a result. It was also shared with the comment "Love it!" by one of my charming male friends. (Nice. Well, I do appreciate seeing a person's true colors.)

It doesn't matter one scintilla to me if you stay home with your kids or work at a paying job. However, I will enlighten the people who found the card so damn amusing...

The child care provider you pay to care for your children all day while you are at your paying job is doing the job a stay-at-home parent does all day. You are not doing the work of two people. Fancy yourself a supermom if it makes you feel good, but you are neither better nor worse, no more or less productive, hard-working or valuable to society or your own children than a stay-at-home mom. You're simply doing something different with the same number of hours in a day.

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Close Game!

I figured we wouldn't be able to beat LSU this year, but we sure gave them a run for their money. We were up 12-0 for a while, and ended up losing by only 5 points. It was a battle of the defenses (and against the refs, who were absolutely awful in both directions). 21 points were scored by LSU on A&M turnovers. Honestly, that's beating yourself.

One of our season ticket neighbors brought a buddy from LSU, who despises the Tigers' quarterback and their coach, which provided a lot of entertainment through the game.

Johnny Football had a rotten day, partially because the Tigers defense was doing a great job preventing him from running (he got only 27 yards), and partially because he was tossing interceptions left and right.

The Ags have lost to two Top-Ranked SEC teams by five or fewer points, which is far better than I had hoped for this season. While I wish we could have pulled those games out in the end, I think the Ags are looking very good! On to next week!!


Sunday Stealing: Who Are you? Part 2–The Grown Up Meme

15. How would you describe your childhood in general?
Happy suburbia. We played outside all day, when we weren't at school. Lori and KimB were my best friends. We would take off on our bikes sometimes and spend all day hanging out crabbing at the drainage pond, talking in the park, buying teen mags at 7-11 and riding around the neighborhood. We were all very much into music, and indoors we were typically dancing and singing along with records or the radio.

16. What is your earliest memory?
big spider in the window when I was 3

17. How much schooling have you had?
I'm a thesis short of a master's degree.

18. Did you enjoy school?
Yes!

19. Stop and count. Since you were born until today; how many homes have you lived in?
Worms DE, Pasadena TX, Kansas City KS, Deer Park TX, Houston TX, League City TX, 2 in College Station TX, 3 in Austin TX... for a total of 11. Whew!

20. While growing up, did you have any role models?
my parents, my grandparents, Mr. Jackson- my fifth grade teacher

21. While growing up, how did you get along with the other members of your family?
very well

22. As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
a singer

23. What were your favorite activities 3 years ago?
writing, traveling, listening to live music

24. As a child, what kinds of personality traits did you display?
talkative, empathetic, good at most things but frustrated when I wasn't good at something

25. As a child, were you popular?
No, but I wasn't unpopular. I had a lot of friends. I was more in the geeky crowd. Can you imagine?

26. When and with whom was your first kiss?
With FrankieB the summer before fourth grade.

27. Describe any influences in your past that led you to do the things you do today.
My mom was an active stay-at-home parent, and an officer and valued member of her various clubs and activities -Young Homemakers, bowling team, Community Association, PTA, etc. I didn't ever imagine that I would take that path in my own life, but I always admired her and am very proud to have attempted to follow in her footsteps.

28. What’s next? 
I am trying to get back to work!

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BTHO LSU!

Let's go, Ags! It's time to pull a huge upset! See y'all at Kyle Field.


Lauren and I watched the premiere of American Horror Story back when it began. We were really unimpressed and not the slightest bit scared, although many other viewers were. We didn't watch after that.

This week, Adam Levine was on the premiere of season 2, now called American Horror Story: Asylum. So we watched.

It was freaky scary. There's a lot of sex and a lot of gore in it. Jessica Lange and James Cromwell are so great!


Saturday 9: The End of the Innocence

1) "The End of the Innocence" is one of Crazy Sam's favorite songs. Do you like it? Loathe it? Or is it before your time?
Loathe it. And now it's in my head. Thanks.

2) Obviously Don Henley was a smoker back in the 1980s. Do you smoke? Are you a former smoker? Or did you never start?
Oh. My. Gawd. Is it Are You A Smoker Week in the survey meme world?  For the third time in as many days... I've never been a smoker.

3) Childhood is generally considered an innocent time. In what town did you spend yours?
The southern suburbs of Houston. My dad worked at NASA.

4) Do you abide by "innocent until proven guilty?" Or did you come to your own, pre-trial conclusions about famous defendants like Casey Anthony and OJ Simpson?
As a casual bystander, I feel I am free to draw conclusions from reported evidence and the defendant's demeanor. We can all make a fairly good guess as to guilt or innocence from that, and our opinions don't matter in the grand scheme anyway. If you are a jury member, of course it's ideal to be unexposed to these influences before the trial, or to put them aside for purposes of determining a verdict that actually affects people's lives. I would take that responsibility very seriously.

5) Is there an old TV show whose cast you'd like to see reunite?
The Loooove Boooooat ♫ --- Ahhh.... There. I've gotten that awful "End of the Innocence" song out of my...

Darn it.

6) Do you know how to ride a horse?
I've ridden a horse on a couple of occasions, but I wouldn't say I know how. I was always riding with someone who knew how.

7) You're ordering ice cream. Cup or cone?
Cup

8) Do you believe a gentleman should help a lady with her coat?
Yes

9) Which search engine do you use most often?
Google

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Seven Psychopaths

The movie was so funny!! Super-violent and very quirky... and incredibly funny.

The true test of a comedy is seeing it with about fifteen other people dotting the seats in a big theater on a weeknight. People are self-conscious about laughing out loud when there aren't a lot of others doing the same. Everyone in our theater was LOLing throughout the film.

My favorite part- Billy's animated description of "the final shoot-out." OMG. We were all dying. (Dying. At the final shootout. Ha.)

One of the best quotes, also Billy's, was the whole thing about Ghandi and the eye for an eye scenario. "...Ghandi was wrong."

See it. Unless you can't stand the sight of blood. There's a lot of that!


Friday Five: Vice Squad

1. What is your history with cigarettes?
Extremely limited. See yesterday's post.

2. What is your history with alcoholic drink?
I drank sometimes at parties in high school. I drank on Friday and Saturday nights during college, when I was out with friends. I've been drinking very little since college. Maybe one drink a week, on average. I almost always drink at social gatherings where others are drinking.

3. What was the worst trouble you got into at school?
In third grade.... Hey, let me tell the story before you start pointing and laughing. I said "crap" and Brian Cummings told on me. (What a butthead.) On top of that, I DENIED IT. Yes! Right to Mrs. Walker's face. Told her I had said "cap." I was a bad seed.

Seriously the worst trouble I got into at school.

4. What’s something you got away with in school but shouldn’t have?
In fourth grade, we had a state capitals test. I asked my friend from South Carolina what the SC capital was and she gave me the wrong answer. (WTF.) I got it wrong, which was the appropriate outcome, but no one caught me. That was the one and only time I ever cheated.

5. Who’s your partner in crime?
Laura. And we do really bad stuff now that we're out of school! :p

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Hello Thursday

Our word of the day is flibbertigibbet. Yes, it's a real word! I thought it was one of those made-up words, where everyone knows what you mean, like cattywampus. But no. I was looking up something else at dictionary.com, and flibbertigibbet popped up as a word I should know. I knew, but I didn't know the dictionary knew.


Sometimes, I really need to remember this:

Curious as a Cat

1) If you could eat only one meal the rest of your life, what would it be?
Ew. I have a thing about eating the same thing too often. It would have to be... Salt Lick's pork ribs and brisket with their German potato salad and sesame cole slaw.

2) Name one thing you wish you could go back and change about your education.
At the moment, I wish I could wave a wand and have a master's in just about anything other than nuclear physics.

3) Do you or did you ever smoke?
I have smoked single puffs off of the following: clove cigarette, menthol cigarette, cigar. All icky. Oops- just remembered there were a few nights Cathy and I were at one of John's dinner theater plays in high school, where we sort of smoked a menthol cigarette each, because everyone was doing it. I mostly tapped the ashes into the ashtray, rather than smoking it.

4) Show and Tell. What comes to mind first when you see this picture? Or, tell a story if it reminds you of one.

This reminds me of my favorite childhood story in the WORLD- The Velveteen Rabbit.

'...When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real.'

'Does it hurt?' asked the Rabbit.

'Sometimes,' said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. 'When you are Real you don't mind being hurt.'

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Results of the Debate- Debatable

I didn't watch the debate last night, but it looks like the candidates were dead even in the end. My liberal friends thought Obama won. My conservative friends thought Romney won.

I had to Google "binders of women," after many amusing, but obscure references to that on my FB news feed when I finally checked in late last night. Romney's whole thing about having to allow flex time "if we're going to have women in the workplace" was offensive and archaic. Sarah Silverman summed it up perfectly on Twitter: "Mitt Romney is one of the most progressive thinkers of 1950."

As for Obama, I always shake my head when supporters (like me) of work programs and/or fast track to citizenship for illegal immigrants currently working in the US think Obama is on their side, when he is actually deporting them at a rate 1.5 times that of W. The only difference between him and the Republicans is that he favors Federal control over the borders, while the Reps favor state control.


Song Lyrics of the Day

...How do you feel? That is the question
But I forget you don't expect an easy answer
When something like a soul becomes initialized
And folded up like paper dolls and little notes
You can't expect a bit of hope
So while you're outside looking in
Describing what you see
Remember what you're staring at is me...

"Through Glass" Stone Sour

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Laura and Kathy Go to Cabela's

Raven said Laura and I need our own reality show. We really do.

Laura had never been to Cabela's. I told her how interesting it is and that we needed to go. Last night we headed over there. She was looking for rain boots and something for her upcoming camping trip, which she is dreading. (THAT would be a great episode of the Laura and Kathy show... where I call Laura from my king-size bed at the Four Seasons to see how she is faring in her sleeping bag in the woods. Writing that in my little notebook...)

The first thing you see when you walk in the Cabela's door is a guy at a podium with a sign that says you are required to check in your firearm. I noted that it is better than a sign that says you are required to check OUT a firearm.

When you're walking around a store that sells six hundred thousand things you've never seen before, whose functions you cannot determine, you start going with your most imaginative assumptions.

There was this-

Buck Rage. Not sure if the little thing attaches to the top of the bigger thing or if it's just a bonus... thing.

Is this a bowling accessory or an egg holder or something for lonely nights on the prairie with four of your closest friends?

Unfortunately, my curiosity drove me to watch a video of the Butt Out process online this morning. (Mad props to the Butt Out company for the pun.) Google has thousands of descriptions and videos of it, and I still don't have a clue why part of the intestine has to be pulled out and tied off. Just reason #423 that I would never hunt.

This prairie dog target looked like I felt, after eating at Cracker Barrel next door. Ooh. Too many carbs.

Cabela's carries all these awesome commercial-quality smokers and jerky/sausage-making machines and such. They carry Transformer-y folding outdoor furniture that starts as a 2-inch cube and morphs into things like a picnic table with drink holders and a table setting for eight. Pouches of dried camping food that, when you add boiling water, become entrees from beef stroganoff to a 22-lb roasted turkey. $900 fishing poles. (Okay, I'm not kidding there.)

The coolest thing about Cabela's is the taxidermied wild animals all over the store, along with an enormous fish tank where you can get up close and personal with some huge (live) fish. Laura said that if Cabela's had been around when the kids were little, we would have been there every weekend, telling them it was the zoo. SO TRUE.

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Weekend Update... In Brief

A&M Game: Offense- amazing! Defense- absent (credit to La Tech's Patton though- he is fantastic)
The Big Move: Pretty painless
Job Hunt: Awaiting an as yet undetermined tactical change
Sinister: Scary!


Sunday Stealing: The Who Are You Meme
You can find the set of questions in its entirety at the link. I've answered the rest of them so many times, I'll just answer #3 here. :)

3. Where did your parents meet?
It was 1962. My Dad was in the German Air Force and was receiving specialized training at Redstone Arsenal in Alabama. My mom, age 18 at the time, was a hostess at the Service Club, where the international servicemen hung out in the evenings. (My mom was totally into foreign guys. Her three big-time life loves were from Turkey, Italy and Germany.)

My Dad asked her to dance there one night. They're both great dancers and they hit it off immediately. They dated for a short time before he returned home.

In '65, they met again by chance in Germany, where she was working as a civilian for the US Military Intelligence Corps. They were engaged and married in 1966.

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Job Hunt Blues

My job hunt is going nowhere fast. I've been at it full-time for two weeks now, and I can already tell you that twenty-year-old experience, even management experience, is the same as none at all. So... major suckage on that front.

It looks like I'm going to have to go the web developer route (I have mixed feelings about that) or start something altogether new.

*major sigh*

Everything happens for a reason.


Saturday 9: Ain't No Other Man

1) Do you believe there's only one person (and there ain't no other) for you? Or do you think we can truly love several partners over the course of our lives?
We've all seen over and over and over again in life that there isn't just one person for you. Certainly, you can very happily devote yourself to one person for your lifetime. If they leave you (or are hit by a bus, as Laura and I say), there is someone else out there with whom you can be happy as well. I do think there is far stronger family solidarity and a higher level of personal fulfillment to be gained by keeping the same partner throughout your life, and that it is the desired outcome for most people.

2) Do you have this, or any other, Christina song on your iPod/mp3 player?
I have this and five other Christina songs on my phone.

3) Christina Aguilera won a Grammy for her performance of this song. What do you deserve an award for? And who would you thank in your acceptance speech?
My positive nature, which has been intensely challenged lately. Colin Farrell should present the award, because that would really bolster my positivity. I would do a Melissa Gorga "thank you Jesus" kiss towards the Heavens, and then thank my parents.

4) Christina Aguilera has her own brand of perfume. Do you have a fragrance or scent you regularly wear?
I haven't been wearing it regularly at all, but Philosophy's Pure Grace is my favorite scent.

5) Do you have any allergies?
ragweed, cedar... and deathly allergic to CT and MRI contrasts

6) There's an older lady who proclaims during a TV commercial, "I will give up beer, bread, wine or soda but I won't give up Life Alert!" No, we're not going to debate her diet. Instead the question is: What are some of the staples that are always on your grocery list?
Jeff's Yakisoba he takes for lunch, blueberry Nutrigrain bars, some sort of nuts

7) What's your favorite sitcom of all time?
Will & Grace and Cheers

8) When it comes to your socks, do you prefer solids, stripes or prints?
solids

9) At what age do you consider a person "middle aged?" And when do they transition to "old?"
I think of middle-age as starting at 50. Old is like 70. We should all be so lucky to make it that far!

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On the Road Again...

JeffC is going with us to College Station today.

Jeff. C.

Never thought we'd see him in Bryanopolis, but it is happening.

I wonder if we could get him to go to the Chicken. That's probably pushing it.


Patrick's Saturday Six

1. E is for E.S.P.: Which mental superpower would you rather have: the ability to read minds, the ability to change matter or the ability to transport yourself from one place to another?
I would definitely love to be able to mentally transport myself from one place to another. I could see my favorite musicians in concert out-of-town, even overseas. I could sit in with the UN or other high-level political meetings. I could go to all the Aggie away games!

2. E is for EARTH: How much do you recycle to save the planet in a typical week?
About 2 trashcans. We hardly ever drink out of cans or bottles. We don't eat many canned things either. Also, if it's going to take too much time to do the required prep work on items for the recycle bin, I don't do it. For instance, I won't waste a bunch of water washing out a sticky jar or can to toss it into the recycling; however, I will rinse out a pickle jar.

3. E is for EAST: What’s the farthest East you’ve traveled in the United States?
Bar Harbor, Maine

4. E is for ELLIPSIS: What kind of punctuation, other than the period or comma, do you use most often?
!! Exclamation points!! 

5. E is for ELLIPTICAL: What is your favorite exercise in a gym?
Cardio kickboxing. Laura is supposed to make me go to take me to try Zumba at Lifetime any day now.

6. E is for EMPTY: Most often, do you consider the glass half-empty or half-full?
Half-full.

!!

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:)

Bad Lip Reading does it again (this is a video, Laura :p)--- The first presidential debate:



"Just go 'mmmmmmmm...'" 

This is pretty funny:  Her Dairy vs. His Diary

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Scary Mrs. Potato Head 'n Stuff

(Sounding like my mother in 3... 2... )

Girls. If you are layering two tops, at least one of them should cover your bra straps. Yes?


Lauren's ancient Mrs. Potato Head is in the game room, waiting with a pile of other stuff she has to go through and decide what to keep and toss. This weekend, Lauren came out of her room and looked at it, with wide eyes.

Me: What.
Lauren: That thing is creeping me out.
Me: It's Mrs. Potato Head. It's creepy.
Lauren: It's not that. It's that every time I see it, it's in a different place. It started out over there and it keeps getting closer. Now it's here on top of the stack, facing me.

It sounds like an episode of Twilight Zone, eh? (I think I moved it. Hmm.)


Lauren is a baseball fan-- sort of. More than I, although that's not difficult. My favorite quote from the Go On series with Matthew Perry (he plays Ryan King, a radio sportscaster)-

Ryan: Football fans, we've eaten the broccoli that is baseball and now it's time for dessert.

Exactly.

Another funny moment from the occasionally amusing, but pretty mediocre show that I'm no longer watching-- Stephen (John Cho from the abruptly cancelled and awesome FlashForward) says that Peyton Manning wasn't available for an interview, so they got Colt McCoy.

Ryan says something like, "Great. Any player with a fake-sounding name will be fine."

Ahaha!

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A&M 30 Ole Miss 27

Wanna see pure joy??



That is exactly what it looked like in our living room, with four Aggies jumping around like nutballs. (Well, minus the gatorade.) The most thrilling ending to a football game I've seen in years!!

The Ags were very unexpectedly imploding last night during most of the game, with SIX interceptions, including two thrown by Johnny Football (gasp!). He came into that game with no interceptions all season.

"At one point, it looked like the precocious freshman had run out of magic," said the Fort-Worth Star-Telegram. "Turns out he was just getting warmed up."

In the last minutes, things started happening like crazy, and our guys came back from ten points down to win it all. Manziel 29-yard rush for one touchdown. Missed extra point. Manziel/Swope touchdown pass, and we were up 30-27.

An interception by Hurd in the final seconds, when the Rebels were at our 32 yard line, sealed the deal. YES. Whooooop!

One bright spot was that we stayed within ten points, despite a very messy game, where it seemed nothing was going our way. This is a team that for the past few seasons has been falling apart in the second half, even (especially) when we were up significantly at halftime. It is so refreshing to see them keep pushing and play the entire 60 minutes, even if they are having a bad an abysmal day. Amazing heart and talent!

Halftime entertainment note: Twitter reports say that Ole Miss fans booed the Aggie Band when they stepped onto the field. After their performance-- standing ovation.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/10/06/4317017/manziel-rallies-texas-am-for-win.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/10/06/4317017/manziel-rallies-texas-am-for-win.html#storylink=cpy

Sunday Stealing: Stealing's Last Meme with Bud

41. What are your nicknames?
I hate this question, because I don't have a cool nickname like Pookie or K-Lo. 

42. What car do you drive?
Hyundai Santa Fe

43. Best date you've ever been on? (if married, before your present spouse)
I don't remember any dates before Jeff. ;)

44. What happened the last time you cried?
I was very frustrated when I realized every job opening available right now requires at least five years experience.

45. Longest shift you have worked at a job? What was the job?
Like hours in a row? Probably 12 as a data analyst on a database lock day.

46. Favorite movie?
Love, Actually

47. When was the last time you sang in public? What did you sing?
The annual talent show at my high school, my senior year. I sang "Chasing Shadows" by Kansas. Shane played piano.

Here is Kansas (sorry, no vid of me)--


48. What was your last fight about?
Yeah. Too soon.

49. What stuff do you never leave the house without?
phone, credit card, keys, gum

50. Favorite item of technology?
cellphone

51. Favorite web site?
Lost at E Minor

52. Do you smoke?
no

53. In your experience, have long distance relationships worked?
no

54. Do you believe in astrology?
nope

55. Who was the last person who called you?
Laura

56. What was the last text message you received?
"Works for me!!" from Kathy

57. What are you wearing right now?
a robe

58. What is your favorite season?
Fall- cool weather and football!

59. Best thing about winter? 
getting cozy in a blanket or by a fire

60. Do you think wtit is cool or overrated?
cool

61. What are you doing this weekend?
Lauren and I went to her high school's football game. Jeff and I went hiking. Kathy came over and watched the game with us. Laura and I are going to the outlet mall today.

62. What do you want to be?
Employed

63. What's your biggest regret?
Not finishing my master's degree.

64. Are you smiling? Why?
You just asked me my biggest regret, and now ask if I'm smiling. No.

65. If you could go anywhere in the world where would it be?
Rome

66. Do you play an instrument?
piano- not very well though

67. Do you wish you could see anyone in particular right now?
Angel

68. Last thing you watched on youtube?
Kansas singing my senior talent show song :)

69. Why didn't you decide to take over Stealing?
I thought about it. I really did! But I'm job searching right now and I think I wouldn't be able to give it the amount of thought and time it deserves. So glad someone is taking over though.

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Media Room Fail

I now have a REAL desk for the first time since college.

Ikea Malm (coincidentally mentioned on New Girl this week). I stole it from Lauren's room.

This room, with my desk, is supposed to be a game room. We've talked about having a pool table in here or ping pong or something. So far, it's been a preschooler's playroom, a scrapbooking room, a rocketry room and an office. Now that I realize we'll be here for at least several more years, I thought it could be a media room. I drew this little napkin-style diagram (hey I'm not Candice Olson), basically facing 45° left from where I'm standing in the photo above:

There is a large opening to the room in front of me and three windows behind me. Those are the Broyhill film-reel tables from Homegoods on the third level, reclining leather movie chairs with drink holders on the middle row, and a long couch for lounging/snuggling/piling-lots-of-people on the front row. Second and third levels are raised, of course. Remote controlled curtains to block out all the light.

The scale is a little off. The distance from the couch to the screen would actually be about 2", so... I probably have to get rid of it. I know it would be more logical and comfy to get rid of the tables, but they're so cute. Come on now.

Notice the fatal flaw though-- my brilliant idea of having a retractable projection screen at the opening of the room falls apart once you are in the room watching the big game. NO EXIT.

Just don't drink too much. It'll be fine. We'll raise the screen for the halftime potty break.

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Interior Design Fantasies

Oh yeah, baby.

I had been in Homegoods one time before yesterday. My first visit was a colossal disappointment. The place reminded me of a garage sale, and I didn't see one thing that interested me. Why I walked in there ever again, I'll never know, but I did. I found the most awesome table! It's perfect for the media room I've been dreaming of for years, and if I had a place to store it, I would have bought it on the spot.

Eighty bucks! It's all metal, with a glass top. I picture it in the food/bar area, with a couple of regular chairs.

Someday...


Sunday Seven (because the Friday Five was too hard)

Name the seven worst candies or treats you hoped you never received on Halloween night.

candy corn *shudder*
Good & Plenty
Necco Wafers
hard candies
Dum Dums lollipops
Bit-O-Honey
those chewy peanut butter kisses in plain orange or black twisty wrappers

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Debate

"Aca-scuse me," but first I have to tell you that Pitch Perfect is HYSTERICAL. Elizabeth Banks produces and plays a role in the film. She and John Michael Higgins are so funny as college a capella competition judges with the best one-liners ever. The movie is very silly and purposely cheesy. The music is a'ight- not up to Glee standards especially in the technical realm of film/audio editing and synching, but it works and we were bouncing along in our seats.

Here are The Barden Bellas singing Blackstreet's "No Diggity"



The Bellas finale is really great!

Hana Mae Lee had us rolling as Lilly, the soft-spoken girl whose comments only the movie audience can hear. They are priceless. I would like to list them here, since Lauren and I keep saying them, but that would ruin the fun for you!

See it! I promise it's not just for teens and chicks.


I didn't intend to watch the debate, but I got sucked in. I should have played one of the drinking games to ease the pain of it all. First and foremost, Jim Lehrer was basically absent in his role as moderator. He let both candidates roll all over him all evening, taking whatever time they wanted to go back and forth. Then he spent two minutes at the end rambling about how there were only three minutes remaining for the final question. I spent a lot of time heckling both candidates and complaining, "Get the hook!"

I'm just never going to get over my feeling that Romney is a far right, starched shirt with no inkling of what is happening in the world outside Martha's Vineyard. I think he made a few good points, but like most people, I've made up my mind about him and nothing he can say at this point, no matter how much I agree, is going to reel me in.

I felt like Obama was just as guilty as Romney of sticking to his own certain talking points and throwing around questionable numbers. We all know numbers can be pulled out of thin air, and the way they batted back and forth on the trillions of budget dollars had my head spinning. One number which I call into question is this $3600 Obama said I have supposedly saved in taxes. (...With which I could "buy a new car?" Suddenly it's 1972.) I assure you we have not seen this $3600 of which the President speaks.

The absolute worst proposal from Romney for me was Medicare vouchers. I do not support vouchers for private schools, nor would I ever support vouchers for Medicare. The whole point of public schools and other government programs is that we ALL pay into it, for the greater good of society. It doesn't matter if you don't have children or you want your kids to go to private school. We all pay for public schools. If you desire and have the means to pay for private insurance in retirement, good for you, but you don't get any of your money back from the public program. What's next? A defense voucher, with which I can purchase my own arsenal of firearms?

After debates, I enjoy watching the media and my friends on Facebook all saying their candidate clearly won. Everyone sees what they want to see.

Except me. I wanted to see Modern Family. :)

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Who Has Viewed Your FB Profile?

I have officially submitted my first application for a new job! It's an actual opening, not just the sending of my resume to keep on file.

Now I'm sitting by the phone like a lovesick teenager, waiting for a call. However, I'm still actively pursuing other jobs, so call me or lose me, baby.


My in-laws have clicked some Facebook "omg, look who has viewed your profile" app. Now it's posting spam on everyone's newsfeed every other day. I report it every single time.

You cannot tell who is viewing your Facebook Timeline. You just can't. And really, do you want to know? It won't be your ex or the cute guy/girl at work. It'll be a random person you friended from high school, who sat behind you in some class you can't remember. And it will creep you out.

People used to think that the eight friends who appear on your Facebook page, the "random" ones, were actually the ones who had visited your page recently. Facebook says that is not the case. Now people are guessing that they are the ones with whom you've interacted most in recent days. That seems to be true for me.

I'm also fairly certain that the eight people who show up on my friends' pages when I am viewing them are the people with whom I interact most and/or ones I may know.

They could both be random, but Facebook is always going to try to get you to be more interactive with the site, so it makes sense to have some sort of algorithm determining which friends should be displayed. One factor that's irrelevant--- who has viewed your Timeline. Only Facebook knows though- not those annoying apps.

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It Ain't Over 'til it's Over

See the little notification on the top left, in my iPhone settings?

That's Apple harassing still politely reminding me to upgrade to iOS 6. No way, man. Still waiting for the less buggy update.

This screenshot reminds me to recommend Drop7 as the BEST phone game out right now. If you don't have it, download it. It's free, too! Totally addictive, but it takes several games to really get the hang of the strategy.


I was so happy to see the vast majority of Aggie students stay through the very end of the Arkansas game this weekend and that the embarrassing mass exodus of students in the last quarter of the South Carolina State game was not repeated this week, even when we were up by 40+ points at the end of this game as well. To me, staying until the end of the game is one of our most meaningful traditions, and it sets us apart from most schools. I would be very disappointed to see it fade away because a restless student section just wants to beat the crowd out of the stadium.

The team wants to celebrate with the fans- especially their fellow students. You spent your afternoon supporting them. Stay and enjoy the final minutes. If we were being outscored, it would be even more important to stay. And I hope that would never even be a question. So, I just wanted to say nice job, students! It did not go unnoticed.

Former students, on the other hand, were leaving like the place was on fire. Not as shocking as students leaving, but sad nonetheless. Some of us guilted our area into staying, by shaking our heads and openly declaring the fleeing fans "two-percenters."

(I've compared going to A&M with going to Catholic mass. There are a lot of traditions and rules to follow. And sometimes you may be guilted into doing the right thing.)  ;-)

I don't care if you're hot (we're all hot) or you're wet (we were all drenched) or you have small children. If you stayed for three hours, you can take fifteen more minutes. Instead of trying to be the first to your car, consider hanging out and waiting for the place to empty out a bit. It honestly doesn't take long. Maybe five minutes past the end of the game.

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