"...Just Thinking About People I'm Gonna Fire."

Ahhh Anderson. They got you good!



All these years and that photo has never emerged. Excellent sleuthing, CNN!

A few days ago, I said the word "poop" while Lauren was typing her email address, and she typed her_email@yapoop.com. It's pretty much been the funniest thing to hit the household all week. I tell you... we are easily amused!


Song Lyrics o' the Day

... Someone asks you if you ever think of her
And you smile politely and you demur
Then all at once your head starts to swim
You can feel her breath on your skin... 

The Airborne Toxic Event "All For a Woman"

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SUGAR and COFFEEEEEEEE!

That was a fake tv show they did in a bit on the "All That" show on Nickelodeon when Lauren was little.

At 5:00 in this vid...



We were recalling it at Amy's last night, because they had coffee ice cream and a new mix in-- cake. (Chocolate or white.) While we were hanging out and actually discussing purchasing a $35 rubber cow, I invented a new flavor for them:

Wait for it...




Coffee ice cream with DONUT mix in.

You're welcome.

OK, get ready for this! Cathy is performing at open mic night tonight at a bar in Houston, singing a duet with her friend Geoff, who is an established local musician. I sooooo wish I could be there!! Hoping to see video tomorrow. She is going to rock the house. Tear it up, girl!!

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Tuesday

What. Not all blog post titles can be winners. :p

I'm following the oddest combination of people on Twitter. It's a bit like showing up to the grocery checkout with pudding, condoms and habanero peppers.

I've also noticed that some folks are starting to use Twitter hashtags at Facebook. If you're gonna phone it in with an app that posts to every social media site you're on, at least make your post generic enough that no one can tell.

Not jealous that you have an app. Just saying.

(Two more weeks until I get my iPhone!!)

So... Best publicity ever-- Remove your blog from Blogger's search and the "next blog" navbar links. Just look at the doubling of my traffic!

Now if I only had something reeeeeally interesting to say here for the lovely whopping 80 or so people stopping by today...

Nope. Tune in tomorrow!

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Happy Moms Day!

Hope all the mommies out there have a wonderful day.

I'm not a fan of Rudy's barbecue. Just a personal taste thing. Almost everyone I know likes or loves it; it's just far too black-peppery for me. Yesterday we couldn't get to Torchy's for a special breakfast taco morning out, because of some sort of run blocking off the whole place, so Jeff suggested Rudy's. I had no idea they even had breakfast tacos. Turns out, they are great (well, the sausage, egg and cheese at least). So hit them for breakfast, if you haven't!


Sunday Stealing: The "You Can't Be Missed" Meme, Part 1

1. Which state do you consider to be the most boring state?
South Dakota. Sorry, South Dakota. Maybe you're up to the wee hours of the morning doing shots with California, but we just don't hear about it.

2. If any chef from the Food Network (or any well known chef) could cater your wedding, who would it be?
Paula Deen. If you're gonna go all out, you may as well enjoy a bunch of fabulous food whose recipes begin with a stick of butter.

3. What's the last thing you ate that was red?
cherry tomato

4. Have you ever questioned the sexuality orientation of a close friend?
In high school, I did. As an adult, you usually know the sexual orientation of your close friend. Yes? Although, now that you mention it, you've got me wondering if Doug is secretly straight. He is a connoisseur of cars. *arches eyebrow*

5. Everyone loses a friend after some big fight. Tell us about one.
I've had some huge fights with friends, but never lost one in the process. One of the biggest was with Kimberly in high school, when she thought it was okay to go on a "casual date" with my ex.

Not. Okay.



Ahaha.

6. Have you ever washed an iPod or mp3 player in the washing machine?
not yet

7. Have you ever screamed/yelled angrily at a boss?
Nope.

8. Have you ever cried yourself to sleep?
A few times.

9. Have you ever regretted being in a relationship with someone?
At the time, yes. Looking back though, you realize there were so many wonderful things about the relationship that you would never have wanted to miss- things that shaped you as a person in positive ways.

10. Have you ever acted like you understood something when you didn't have a clue?
Yes, when I thought it wasn't important to understand, and assuming that we would soon move on to more interesting and comprehensible things. Sometimes that bites you in the butt.

11. Have you ever thought someone must have been insane? If yes, tell us something about the person.
That would be Everett, who thought it was hilarious to turn off his headlights while he was driving Shane and I down a small country road at 55mph in the middle of the night. Pure lunacy.

12. Have you ever pretended to be younger than what you are?
I've always told my correct age when asked, although there have been times when I could tell people assumed I was younger than I was, and I went with it.

13. Back in the day, did you ever cry because you were turned down for a date?
I was never turned down for a date, since I was rarely the one asking, but there were a couple of unrequited crushes I cried over.

14. Have you ever (or your significant other) had a pregnancy scare?
No. I've always been religiously on the pill except for the times I wanted to get pregnant.

15. Have you ever pretended to like someone when you didn't?
I wouldn't do something like that. I wouldn't even pretend to like a band I didn't like.

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Football Tickets!!

Well, our seats have been assigned for the 2011 AgGiE fOoTbAll sEaSOn!! Whee!!!! They are pretty good, especially for our first time buying season tix. Season ticket seat assignments are based on a number of factors, including how many years you've been purchasing them (zero for us).

SO excited!!!!11!!!!1!

Saturday 9: Let's Roll

1. Where were you when you found out bin Laden was killed? How did you find out?
I was at home in the living room. Lauren was on Facebook and her friends were all talking about it.

Lauren: They killed bin Laden.
Me (laughing): Noooo.
Lauren: Yes.
Me: NO. WAY.
Lauren: Yep.

2. One of your best friends turns out to be saying hurtful and untrue things behind your back. What would you do?
Tell everyone hurtful and TRUE things about her. Mwahaha!! Kidding (mostly). I would talk to her directly. And reassess the "best friend" status.

3. You instantly become a star. What is it that made you one?
My supercool late-night talk show.

4. If you could be ANY sex symbol (living or dead) who would it be and why?
Jennifer Lopez. She's gorgeous and talented! I have to say though, since the plastic surgery she's sort of "too perfect." I actually didn't recognize her in a photo someone showed me in a magazine the other day. She was beautiful before-- she still is, but she looks unlike herself and more like a generic model.

5. Where is your favorite place to eat out?
Trattoria Lisina at the Mandola Estate Winery. Beautiful place with amazing food!

6. Are there any current (that began before 2010) television shows out there that you've watched regularly from the very beginning?
The Office

7. When is it time to just let it ('it' can be whatever you choose) go? How do you know? What do you do?
It's time when that thing is either serving no purpose in your life, or worse yet, is having a negative effect. You just step back and look at it from a new perspective, and realize that it's better to be without it.

8. Pimentos-- in Olives? Useless decorative effect? ...or something you maybe enjoy? ...and is there something you can only stare at and wonder about at the snack bar?
Pimentos? I always thought it was pimientos. Pimientos in olives are definitely decorative. You have to have something in there though. Not a fan of blue cheese or garlic-stuffed *shudder* so I guess pimiento it is. What sort of upscale snack bar is hawking stuffed olives? I always stare at and wonder about those disgusting, dried out "soft" pretzels hanging in the theater snack bar- the ones that have a space baked into them for a dip to be inserted. Ack.

9. Why do you think we as a civilization can't seem to get along with one another?
Because instead of appreciating our world's diversity, many people think their own culture, government or religion is the "right" one that everyone should adopt. I don't think a majority of folks feel that way, but just enough to create constant tension.

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Paintball and Canasta

Neither Jeff nor I have ever enjoyed golf, so we sometimes joke around about what we'll do when we retire. My latest brilliant idea was paintball! I could start a group for senior citizens. We could do it every Saturday and have everyone back to the house to play canasta and drink wine afterwards. Jeff said I would hate paintball, because it hurts.

It HURTS?! Who knew. Back to the drawing board.

:)

Friday Five

1. How many times have you been in love?
three

2. When is the appropriate time to first say that you are?
After the other person says it, of course! :)

You know when it's the right time- it's a "moment" where you're feeling especially close... and you're at least fairly certain the other person isn't going to say "thank you."

3. Do you think it is a good idea to live with a significant other before you are married?
For me, moving in would take away a lot of the excitement of finally being married and getting to set up a home together. I also don't like the idea of a "trial marriage." To each his own. I might have lived with Jeff if it had served some practical purpose, like to save money on rent while we were engaged or something.

4. How soon is too soon to move in together?
If you don't know the person's last name- definitely too soon. Or if, like Kimberly, you don't know their first name after four weeks (Ty... not Todd... oops! ROFL).

I wouldn't advise people who are casually dating to move in together. If they've at least discussed a committed future, then maybe it could work.

5. When do you think you will get married? OR Favorite Vegetable? :) 
asparagus

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She Wore What?!

Sofia Vergara wore an unflattering outfit this week on Modern Family. I'm serious. Who would have ever imagined there even is such an outfit in existence?

Don't believe me? Here it is:

Yep, even the exceedingly gorgeous SV couldn't pull off those pants. (Obvious male follow-up comments duly noted.)

Spent the morning in Westlake, sitting amongst the trees by the water with tiny birds fluttering all around. It is absolutely beautiful today! Everyone should take off and enjoy it!

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Fun at the Library

The kids who hang out in the library a lot are typically big readers... and very bright and creative young people. Also, VERY CHATTY. (Not that the librarian and I aren't chatters ourselves, mind you. We chatted about that just today.) They sound like little adults sometimes. I've recently gotten very animated movie reviews, emotional commentary on 9/11 which happened when they were two, and lengthy accounts of their summer travel plans. Today I had a music chat with one of them, where I actually came out looking fairly cool with my knowledge of Linkin Park's discography (Minutes to Midnight wasn't a great album, the newest one is much better, etc.) It's non-stop talk there. Not the typical quiet library.

Also at the library... Every so often an adult library patron comments how good I am with names. And I'm pretty sure one teaching assistant thought I was stalking him when I remembered his name from several months before. Yesterday, I got the additional, "Well, you have a librarian brain. You remember everything!" Actually, I have a scientist brain. I just figure I can save a good 1.56 seconds checking someone out by entering their name without asking.

In other news...

My new favorite link of the day:

IKEA Hackers

Some of the ideas aren't as awesome as others, but many are downright inspiring! Be sure and take a look at the "top hacks" on the right side, too. Those are the best of the best from past years.

I may do this vanity in Lauren's bedroom. Too cool!

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Not Quite a Spa Day

Yesterday, I got the chlorine treatment for the hot tub and opened it up to weigh out 1.4 ounces of the powder. (Um, why on earth can't any spa chemical packages give me a measurement in teaspoons? Yeesh.) As soon as I opened it, it started sort of clumping together in the jar. Very weird. I watched for a second and then gave it a little shake.

I  breathed in a face full of deadly chlorine fumes, plopped the thing down on the table and tore out of the room, before I even realized what had happened. I found myself in the kitchen, coughing. The back of my throat and nose were burning.

I wasn't throwing up or coughing too much and I didn't pass out (all bad signs). It was just a lot of irritation in my throat and nose. Google told me that I probably had nothing to worry about, because of my mild symptoms and brief exposure, but I was very careful for the next couple of hours, as "fluid may build in your lungs" over that time. (It didn't.)

SCARY. I won't be using that chemical anymore. Back to Dichlor. We never had a problem with that stuff.

We watched all the coverage of the bin Laden thing last night, switching from channel to channel. It's amazing how much misinformation is out there in the early stages of an event. One channel kept saying he was killed a week ago and they were just now saying because the DNA tests were finally back. Another said he was killed yesterday morning and the DNA had already been confirmed (is it that fast?). Yet another said he was killed yesterday and the DNA wasn't back yet. I haven't seen any news today. Hope they got it all figured out!

Meet Me on Monday

1. What is your favorite kind of muffin?
cranberry-orange

2. What was the first car you ever owned?
a 6- or 7-year-old Mazda GLC- maroon. Got it when I was 20 for $1200. My mom paid half and I paid half.

3. Which TV Show were you sad to see end?
most recently- FlashForward

4. What is your lucky number?
I don't really have one. My favorite number is 3.

5. Pretzels or Potato Chips?
pretzels!

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Sunday Sneezing

Why is it that I buy sixteen boxes of Kleenex to stash around the house, yet when my nose starts running like a six-year-old's from all this Austin pollen, there is not a single tissue around?

OK, don't ask me how I even found this...

http://xkcd.com/730/

It was one of those semi-random series of clicks from site to site that sometimes gets me into trouble, but this time was a path straight to a very amusing little circuit diagram. Or maybe only amusing to people who remember high school physics... or took a nightmare circuit theory class in engineering school.

From the diagram: "...Oh so you think you're such a whiz at EE 201?" Ahaha!


Patrick's Sunday Seven

You’d think being happy is pretty easy. At least, when you come across a list of 21 Simple Ways to Be Happy.

THIS WEEK’S QUESTION:
Name seven of the 21 Simple Ways to Be Happy that you think would be most effective for you.

1. Smile.
2. Sing out loud.
3. Count your blessings daily.
4. Let the sun shine in.
5. Catch happiness from others.
6. Pencil in quiet time.
7. Accept what you cannot change.

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