random log

OK Go - This Too Shall Pass

2010-01-12T14:45:00.000+02:00

I have to take a moment to pimp out the best University Marching Band in the country. I may be a little biased as I’m somewhat of an honorary member, but this is awesome.

Three years ago, the Band of the Fighting Irish at the University of Notre Dame had an awesome halftime performance at the November 10 football game against Air Force. If anyone keeps up with ND football, they’ll remember that the band was the highlight of the 2007 season as students didn’t see a home game win until the team played Duke the next weekend. The band didn’t disappoint with shows featuring music from the movie Top Gun, the play Jersey Boys, the band Chicago and a Super Mario Brothers Medley – and the highlight of the Air Force halftime, OK Go’s “Here It Goes Again,” complete with the leprechaun on a treadmill.

The next year, when the full band traveled to USC for the first time, they knew they needed to put together a killer halftime show (which was only reinforced when the team abysmally failed to get a first down until seconds before the fourth quarter) so they brought out “Here It Goes Again” which won over the entire crowd.

OK Go saw that performance and hatched the idea of including members of the ND marching band in their most recent video, which was released last Friday!

The video can’t be embedded, but can be viewed on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJKythlXAIY

The song is decent, but the first appearance of the marching band is awesome, and Aaron Hernandez, the drum major, gets a prominent feature of himself.

The most amazing part of this video, though, is the fact that it’s one continuous take – as most of OK Go’s videos are. It’s impressive that they were able to get so many people in just the right places to make this video a masterpiece.

Take a look for yourself and Congrats to all my friends still in band!

[Via http://ramblingsofawriter.wordpress.com]

Now News Corp Has Started Blocking Some Sites, No Excuse Not To ...

Do you remember?

2010-01-12T06:45:00.000+02:00

Cave of the Golden Rose……

If you do, then admit it~ you’re old. Haha~~ I remember watching this when I was at a phase where I thought kissing can make babies. Silly me~

Huhu…..my youth! my oh so precious youth~ I still remember how I use to drool over King Romualdo. I even think he was hoter than Prince William back then. (maybe I still do now). ahaks~

To my donsaengs who have yet to watch this very old and classic story, you can do so here…

Fantaghiro

and here for the synopsis

Romualdo

I was bored so I did a few photo editing and screen capturing just to fill the time….lets reminisce our youth together…some are quite blurry. I couldn’t find HQ pics from this show….sorry.

~drools~

Remember this face?

The legendary Princess Fantaghiro

The ever-so-worth-to-drool-over villain...Tarabas

Aaw~~ the sweetest couple in fairy tale

Pretty~~

Oho~~

With the white knight~

again....hehe

Going to watch the series again~~~ tudeluuuu~~

[Via http://nana2202.wordpress.com]

NBC's Olympics news team: Colbert a 'genius'--The Live Feed | THR

The different Love Letter

2010-01-03T22:51:00.000+02:00

- A love letter from my husband to me -

I love you from the very depths of my soul. A love so deep, that pulls you in…like a twister…a big twister of love!

A love with the force of a hurricane and more powerful than ten Supermans combined and maybe Spiderman too.

A love that goes beyond the universe, maybe even past the parallel universes that co-exist within ours.

A love that is so pure, that a virgin who is dressed in pure white would look like a prostitute with STDs when compared to us.

A love that hits you harder than a train colliding into a nuclear explosion with a fireworks factory setting off in the middle.

A love more exciting than a rollercoaster ride while watching a dare devil attempt to jump through a ring of fire.

A love so sweet that a cake stuffed with brownies stuffed with cookies stuffed with ice cream would be tasteless compared to us.

In conclusion, I love you a lot.

[Via http://sanshiru.wordpress.com]

Vanguard News Online

Fun in a Blizzard

2010-01-02T22:43:00.000+02:00

~ Dec. 21, 2009 ~

So we had a fantastic blizzard this past weekend. Like… LOADS of snow – between one and two FEET. It started Friday night and didn’t stop until Saturday night. I spent Friday night at my apartment, but then got a call around 8:15am Saturday morning. It was my brother asking if he could come get me so that I could spend the day/night/weekend at their house with them. He thought that if he came later he might not be able to get through, as it had already been snowing all night and when I stepped out my front door (which is also my only door), I already sank in it up to my knee.

So he came and got me and we (he, his wife, and I) had a grand ol’ time making cinnamon rolls all day.

Sometime in the late afternoon we got a call from The Architect, who is neighbors with my brother/sister-in-law. He was just asking to borrow a shovel, but then my sister invited him over for dinner. That made me happy, because he is good company.

THEN…

Not too much later we get another call. This time from…

The Teacher.

He was asking about getting together for games in the evening. My sister explained that The Architect was already coming over for dinner, so why didn’t he as well.

He said yes.

What luck! Both The Architect and The Teacher coming over!

I was kinda nervous then, but excited too. Maintaining a calm presence though, per usual.

The Teacher walked over from his house in all the snow. My sister-in-law, I know, is still trying to hook us up, because at this point she keeps leaving me alone with him after his arrival. That was weird. Oh, well, it was fine. Of course, I probably said stupid things though.

Anyway, we had dinner, all five of us and it was just too surreal. There we were with two of my favorite people in the world (bro and sis), and then my friend The Architect and my budding interest, The Teacher.

Then we played a card game for like, three hours. It was fun. We laughed a lot. Me in particular, because all four of those people are hilarious. HILARIOUS, I tell you. Of course, though, I probably made a fool of myself. I didn’t – and still don’t – care. It felt so good to laugh after so many months of such unhappiness for me.

Right between supper and games me and my sister went outside, because we hadn’t gotten to play/be in the snow yet like the guys all had. We decided we were just going to take flying leaps into the snow in our T-shirts (among other things, of course). The Teacher took pictures and then a little bit later, while my sister was in the shower, decided it had looked like fun and he wanted to do it too. So he did and had my brother took pictures.

He posted them on FB later that night after he walked home. So how random is that? There are now pictures of ME on The Teacher’s FB page. Random.

Anyway, I didn’t get the sense at all that The Teacher had any interest in me. He was totally chill and relaxed the whole evening. He was fun and funny.

So oh, well. It was just lots of fun.

[Via http://thesecretnarrative.wordpress.com]

Ball dropping in Times Square video,Happy New Year 2010! | ABH News

Looking forward

2009-12-31T22:52:00.000+02:00

Happy New Year! May this year be one filled with love and hope and joy. I pray that God will grant our needs in this year, as He has in the past. I pray that this year will be an easier, less painful year for me, and that He will strengthen me, and show me what He wants me to be. I pray that you will all be guided by His word, and by faith in Him. I pray that no matter what, He will be the centre of our lives. I keep being reminded of how little we are, and how we cannot succeed without Him, now I just need to stick with that. I pray that you will all realise this and experience it.

Have a blessed 2010, my friends. xoxo

[Via http://thepittfamily.wordpress.com]

'World News' ratings steady under Diane Sawyer--The Live Feed | THR

So it's Eric

2009-12-31T06:47:00.000+02:00

So Valerie Kimani’s baby daddy is Eric Wanaina.

After the story I did jana – some of you wrote to me calling Val a tramp and a home wrecker. Well what about Eric, men initiate just about 90% of relationships. So why is it people are ganging up against Val? What about the father of two, the husband, the man the corporate world loves to bits, the man who commands respect among his peers, what about Eric?

I’m a little disappointed in Val also, seriously a MARRIED MAN??? Her pals tell me since TPF she’s gone out with just about anyone who’s anything in this town, her flings extend all the way to TZ and SA.

[Via http://frankierants.wordpress.com]

Apple's January 26th Event Confirmed by Fox News - Apple Event ...

Christmas recap: In a nutshell

2009-12-29T14:46:00.000+02:00

We left for KC on Thursday morning and for once we got out-of-town on time and even a little bit early! The weather and traffic were decent. No accidents to delay us (which is usually a constant on our road trips to KC) It only rained. We reach my father-in-law’s house about 3pm and it had just started to snow. We were going to have a white Christmas!! YAY!

I went to Christmas Eve service with the family, while Mike stayed home because JonJon was sleeping. Got to hear Alyssa sing a solo and Melanie also sang with the rest of the choir!

Wake up Christmas morning and enjoyed time with family. Opened presents! Didn’t do much else on Christmas day.

Saturday, the 26th, we were suppose to go to Omaha to see Mike’s brother and mom and step-dad. Well we didn’t make it for 2 reasons. Iowa had closed I-29 because of all the snow and ice on the roads. And JonJon woke up throwing up. He had a really bad head cold. He was not himself and just rotated between me and Mike for sleeping. He finally started feeling better about 12. I went shopping with Sue(Mike’s step-mom), and her parents. After we got back, just hung out the rest of the evening.

Sunday we wake up and JonJon is feeling MUCH better. We decided to not go to Omaha again because of roads and because of travel time. We didn’t want to drive a total of 6 hours on Sunday then turn around and drive home 6 hours. Too much time in a car! Papa and Nana Sue watched JOnJon for us so Mike and I could get out for a bit. The truck decided to stop heating the cab of the truck. Got that problem fixed thankfully! (needed antifreeze) That evening, Papa, Nana Sue, and her parents and MM went out to celebrate Hal and Nancy’s anniversary (Sue’s parents). We stayed at their house and ordered a pizza and just hung out!

We woke up Sunday morning. Mike wasn’t feeling good. We drove home. I ended up driving 5 hours home. We got home last night about 5:30pm. Unpacked. Got J to bed. Cleaned up the house a bit.

Oh, did I mention that we’re going to be having some house guests? Yeppers! Mike’s mom and step-dad will be staying with us for a little while. Long story, and don’t feel like rehashing. So, we’ll be happy to see them! We’ve not seen them since May!

[Via http://mhjinich.wordpress.com]

Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 12/27 - Arrowhead Pride

a very burton christmas.

2009-12-27T22:51:00.000+02:00

last sunday, the people of burton and the program invited our dealers and close friends down to the showroom for some good holiday fun. did i say holiday fun? i meant open bar. dude. (party came complete with a dancing john d santa claus, a pinata of old st. nick, and free facebook photos for all).

heres a splicing of what went down (check out burton colorado’s community page for more photos):

happy holidays from damiano, inc.

[Via http://leftwithnothing.wordpress.com]

Vanguard News Online

Sticks and stones may break my bones but words really wind me up

2009-12-27T14:47:00.000+02:00

This is my first post and I haven’t thought it through, so it’s likely to be self-indulgent nonsense of no interest to anyone else, except perhaps mental health care professionals. Just like most of the other blogs out there.

If you’re still there I’ll take the opportunity to get some things off my chest. Words and that. Sometimes certain words or phrases become overused. Over the last few years it has been impossible to listen to any news report about Afghanistan or Iraq (or in the case of Heather Mills, Strictly Come Dancing) without hearing the phrase hearts and minds - yes I realise it sprung from the U.S. Vietnam campaign and I understand what it means but please stop saying it. Blah blah blah blah hearts and minds. It’s as if all politicians have been briefed to use the phrase and are living in fear of a Malcolm Tucker-style bollocking if they don’t. As a result I’ve stopped listening to the content of news reports. I just hear disconnected words swirling and echoing against a loud tick-tick-ticking until the inevitable we-have-to-win-over-the-hearts-and-minds bit arises. And then I scream.

But the word which is really getting right on my tits at the moment is the word random. It’s fashionable to say random. I know this because everyone says it. All of the time. With various meanings. People often say random when they don’t mean random, they sometimes say random when they sort of mean random, very occasionally they say random when they mean random but most of all they say random when they mean ooh look at me I say random I’m like totally random I just said random random random random. It’s like a virus. I was having a random drink. A random drink. Eh? When I hear it I have competing physical reactions, one to throw up and one to assault the person who says it. I have to fight both and it’s not easy. The other day I was out with some randomers. You what?… must not throw up… must not batter them with a random object… don’t play into their hands. At the weekend I heard a radio presenter hand over to coverage of The London International Horse Show by saying it was being held randomly in London. And this was on the BBfuckingC. One of the reasons 5Live’s Colin Murray said it was to be funny – because where else would a London event be held – but to my ears it was obscured by the other reason which was oooh I just said random I say random I’m so random I just randomly said random don’t you say random random random random.

Anyway I need to er lie down.

To make up for my ramblings, here are some videos from 2009 featuring the Vivian Girls, Camera Obscura, The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, God Help The Girl, Atlas Sound, Grizzly Bear, Beck, Crystal Stilts, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Midlake, Animal Collective, Richard Hawley, Super Furry Animals, Wooden Shjips and Broadcast & The Focus Group. None of them were chosen at random, nor with the intention to win over any hearts and minds. I hope they work, as it’s my first go at embedding widgets.

If it doesn’t work, you can watch them here:

http://www.yubby.com/i/twothousandandfine/channel/player/20518

[Via http://sonicspanner.wordpress.com]

ABC News: Americans Are Hoping for More Layoffs | NewsBusters.org

45 Lessons You'll Never Learn in School

2009-12-27T06:49:00.000+02:00

I found this list from Matters of the Heart and decided to apply these lessons to my closest friends, as well as myself.

One may think it’s silly doing this, some may find it offensive or rude, but I feel I should take a new spin on things.

*If anyone disagrees with this post, send me a comment and I will happily remove it*

Alex

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree. (On many occasions, he does this very well)

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

44. Yield (you stopped, waited, and watched, now it’s your turn )

Jessica

7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile. (I know no other person this best applies to, and I would never change that for the world)

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow. (haha, in terms of her essays)

27. Always choose life.

32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

Melina

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present. (Working towards this is a long hard road, at least you’ve taken a few steps on this road)

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.

19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

27. Always choose life.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

Slava

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young. (My dear friend, I fear your unhealthy habits will harm you more. But hey, you’ve survived so far stay strong Mr!)

44. Yield.

Jennifer

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind..

23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.

35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now. (She seems to do it every day, and just getting better at it)

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck. (I need a get a move on with this because saving is definitely NOT my forte)

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

27. Always choose life. 30. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.

32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

These lessons apply to all

Whether it be friends, acquaintances, family members, strangers, everyone:

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.

17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ”In five years, will this matter?”.

28. Forgive everyone, everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

33. Believe in miracles.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.

42. The best is yet to come.

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

Below is the complete list of 45 Lessons You’ll Never Learn in School:

1. Life isn’t fair, but it’s still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

4. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It’s more healing than crying alone.

8. It’s OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present.

12.. It’s OK to let your children see you cry.

13. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn’t be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don’t worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind..

17. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It’s never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don’t take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don’t save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don’t wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words ”In five years, will this matter?”.

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time.

31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

32. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn’t do.

35. Don’t audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative — dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else’s, we’d grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42. The best is yet to come.

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44. Yield.

45. Life isn’t tied with a bow, but it’s still a gift.

[Via http://midnightescapade.wordpress.com]

AMERICAblog News: BREAKING: White House reportedly calling flight ...

Against it All.

2009-12-26T22:49:00.000+02:00

Ever had moments of self-pity?

The moments where you wished things just went your way for a bit.

I suppose this is what dreams are for.

However.. you know you’re suppose to slap yourself and shake it off when even in your dreams you cannot find that self pity, and that even in your dreams you’re going against it all.. everything.

Even in your dreams, it’s not right.

Good sign and wake-up call though.

[Via http://sukari89.wordpress.com]

Vanguard News Online

Christmas has been wonderful

2009-12-26T06:26:00.000+02:00

Christmas is almost completely over and today was a pretty great day. There was an absolute ton of food and everyone seemed to have a good time. Unfortunately Ryan’s dad and his step mom were not able to make it because the highways and interstates in Oklahoma were shut down due to the weather. Of course they couldn’t completely shut them down but they insisted that unless you had a four wheel drive vehicle you should not be on the road. Jamie was not able to leave town so she joined us for our Christmas lunch and everything was great. Last night we opened our Christmas presents from one another so we would have a few less things to open and because we’re just a tiny bit impatient.

Ryan attacking his present

Ryan’s present was Rock Band 2, which he was extremely excited about. I received a pair of knee high chuck taylors as well as some knee high socks. I also received Weezer’s Raditude on both cd and vinyl. It was definitely a nice surprise. After we opened presents we put together our table for Christmas which was constructed out of MDF and two by fours. It was also 6 inches too tall when we got done putting it together and so we ended up having to cut the legs off. It was definitely eventful and when we had everything all put together it was definitely worth it.

Out Christmas table (please disregard the mismatched chairs)

I did use the original candle holders from one of my previous posts, but I decided that it wasn’t quite enough for the table and decided to make two more candle holders. Since everything was closed I just what I had around and so there are two tall glasses that were layered with cranberries in the bottom and then blue glass beads in the middle and then the berries from our Nandina bushes in the front yard surrounded the candles. They ended up looking very pretty especially when they were added to everything else. Since we didn’t have eight matching plates or eight matching napkins we alternated them and put the patterned napkins with the solid plates and the patterned plates with the solid napkins. It turned out very pretty in the end. Everyone seemed to enjoy the meal and their presents. From the rest of Ryan’s family I got congratulations, and welcome to the family, as well as baking utensils and the set of hexagonal Wilton cake pan sets that I’ve had my eye on for some time now. I’m very excited to be able to use them eventually.

In addition to all of the wonderful Christmas fun and presents the

Once the snow stopped falling this was my front yard

weather decided to dump somewhere around a foot of snow on us. It has definitely made a white Christmas, but the cat hasn’t taken to kindly to it and neither have the people who actually needed to go somewhere. Walgreen’s actually closed today because only two people had been able to make it into work. I have never seen Walgreen’s close for anything. So before I go I decided that I would leave you with a picture of how our front yard looked by this morning. I do hope that everyone’s holiday went well and if it didn’t then it probably will get better by the time new years rolls around or at least we could hope so.

[Via http://punknpie.wordpress.com]

FT.com | FT Energy Source | Spot news

Look what I got for Christmas...some "merry"

2009-12-24T22:39:00.000+02:00

My kids all in one place! It’s been about…oh, 8 years or so since they were all together. I don’t think I could’ve asked for a better Christmas. We left on our 18 hour (you read right) trip at 4 am and after a grueling drive, we got here. Soooo worth it. Doug’s parents are taking care of all of us so graciously, and I’m pleased to show you some photos and this with wishes of LOVE and PEACE and your own “MERRY” this Christmas. To me, it aint so much about presents. It’s the love of Christ and family surrounding you. When you get to be a middle age mom or dad, and you have grown up children, your kids getting to come and see you all together at once is worth more than a present.

*Morning breaks somewhere over Missouri, the day of our trip. I can thank Big A for pointing out this photo op. I think I would have slept through it.

*Doug concentrates on the road and yes, it was 31 degrees.

*there was a lot of this going on in the car! I loved having 25 year old Joe, my oldest on the trip. He’s so laid back, he didn’t even mind riding in the back with the girlz, who weren’t the best passengers the whole time!

[Via http://sweetiegirlz.wordpress.com]

Closing bell: up on bad news (C, AAPL) - BloggingStocks

PECULIAR COMICS: VORTEX #62

2009-12-24T06:42:00.000+02:00

Number sixty-two: Reminds me of college.

[VORTEX COMICS occur once per day Monday through Friday. VORTEX COMICS do not occur on weekends. VORTEX COMICS is made by selecting five images (photos I've taken, made grayscale, and inked after printing) and five phrases (taken from things I've written in the past), pairing it down to three phrases, and leaving the connection up to the reader. VORTEX COMICS have no defined story...for now.]

[Via http://peculiarcomics.wordpress.com]

Brittany Murphy's Sad Days Revealed | Fancast News

Space Ghost Christmas Special

2009-12-22T22:51:00.000+02:00

I’m about to head to my first Christmas party so in the spirit of the season I thought I’d post the Space Ghost Christmas Special. If you’ve never heard of Space Ghost Coast to Coast it’s probably because it ended it’s run way back in November 2004. A talk show spoof, it used to play on Cartoon Networks Adult Swim pretty late at night. Always random and always funny Space Ghost provided awesome characters like my favorites Zorak and Brak. I miss this show but am happy to share a little bit of the crazyness with you guys!

Happy Holidays everyone!!!

[Via http://ctesdahl.wordpress.com]

Dallas Cowboys Blog | Sports News | News for Dallas, Texas ...

Forth Sunday of Advent

2009-12-22T14:47:00.000+02:00

This weekend it was sooo cold so that we decided to de-frost our freezers. We just had to put the stuff in our garden . But now the temperatures are getting higher and I deeply hope that the snow stays until christmas.

Dieses Wochenende war es so dermaßend kalt, dass wir auf die Idee kamen, die beiden Gefrierschränke abzutauen. Einfach das Zeug in den Garten gestellt . Aber warum muss es jetzt gleich soviel wärmer werden?!? Ich geb ja die Hoffnung nicht auf, dass sich der Schnee bis Weihnachten hält. Bitte, bitte, bitte….

Later the day we also had a long walk outside. I took the camera with me and this is how it looked like:

Warm eingepackt haen wir dann noch einen langen Spaziergang gemacht. Diesmal hatte ich die Kamera mitgenommen und ein paar Fotos geschossen:

[Via http://milchstern.wordpress.com]

Video: McIntyre-McKitrick on Fox News Global Warming Special ...

how to speak with a British accent

2009-12-22T06:42:00.000+02:00

I found this video about British accents that I really enjoyed. In it, a British woman divulges her opinions on an American dialect coach teaching people how to speak British, and points out the American woman’s…stupidity, basically.

I don’t think this video is just about imitating dialects. It’s obviously more or less about the way I think a lot of Brits think about Americans and their habits, beliefs, and confidence.

This video is almost 7 minutes long, so don’t watch it unless you have a lot of time on your hands or if your life is going nowhere and you like British accents and want to hear a British accent.

[Via http://kimberlysays.wordpress.com]

ARRA News Service: Democrat Senator Malign 61% Of Americans Who ...

a christmas miracle

2009-12-20T22:52:00.000+02:00

Back in 2007, I was given a Christmas miracle, or so I thought… I recounted the happenings to my family and friends in an email. Here is the story of my 2007 Christmas Miracle:

Christmas was amazing! It was filled with peace, joy, prayer, family and plenty of laughter. I couldn’t have asked for more, except maybe that my Christmas miracle would have actually happened. One night during the third week of Advent I was practically asleep before I climbed into bed. I woke up at one point worried that I had overslept my alarm. Concerned as I was about over-sleeping, I spent few moments debating whether or not I should sit up and look at the time. It always amazes me how my groggy, sleep-filled mind can rationalize just about anything for a few extra minutes of sleep. I finally sat up and peered across the room at the clock. I squinted and strained my eyes trying to make out the glowing green blob. I squinted again and thought something didn’t seem right. Then it registered. My eyes flew open. I could see the time – clearly. There was no need to squint. It’s a miracle, I thought! I can see! And I still have an hour before my alarm goes off! I’m going back to sleep. With a happy sigh, I curled up and dreamt about my miracle.

So much for that! When I finally got up (after jumping out of bed and running across the room to hit snooze a couple times) and was no longer under the influence of “sleep-rationale”, I realized that I had forgotten to take my contacts out the night before. Ah yes, my Christmas miracle that never was. Maybe God was trying to tell me I should get my eyes lasered. I know I don’t need to remind the Lord that I prefer the most economical route which would be the miracle not the surgery. Perhaps next Christmas…

Well, it didn’t happen last Christmas and I doubt it will happen this Christmas, but at least it was good for a laugh!

[Via http://ceciliamschwartz.wordpress.com]

Monster Hunter PSP heads online News | PSP | Eurogamer

The Saga Ends

2009-12-20T14:42:00.000+02:00

note: it must be tough being typecast.

double note: at least he’s not bothering us on infomercials.

triple note: R2 Detour.

notes to yourself #87

You don’t go to Jedi College when you get older … but you’re good at using The Force when opening pickle jars and stuff.

[Via http://planetross.wordpress.com]

Meet AOL's Fresh-Faced Future Of Local News

Up to my tits in snow

2009-12-20T06:52:00.000+02:00

Charlie had to pee and I won’t lie, I wanted to see the snow at night. Here’s my wolf and I out on our evening constitutional.

[Via http://mysweetmusings.wordpress.com]

Atari sued over D&D licensing agreement // News

People passing, meeting smile after smile

2009-12-19T22:41:00.000+02:00

I’m feeling pretty accomplished. I made a list this morning so that I could check things off. And I’m over halfway finished with it.

The things that I checked off have been on the list in my head for quite some time. Wrapping presents, finishing up Christmas cards, mailing packages — it took almost all day, but now they’re all checked off my list, and I feel ready for Christmas!

This afternoon I went to the post office. I knew it was closed, but I just needed to use the little mail-it-yourself kiosk in the corridor. When I got there, I wasn’t surprised to see a line of several people. I mailed my Christmas letters, then stood in the line.

Perhaps you’ve noticed something about people around this time of the year. They aren’t happy. They’re impatient in traffic, tired of waiting in lines, and sick of the weather. They’re either coming down with a cold, suffering through a cold, or recuperating from a cold. I’m sure they don’t intend to be Mr. Scrooge or the Grinch, but they are.

Today at the post office, I was expecting nothing different. I knew there would be a line, and figured it would be full of grouchy people, angry that the post office was closed and impatient that they had to wait.

Boy, was I wrong. There were two ladies in front of me, and while they waited they asked me a few questions. I could mail my package like that? (I was reusing an old Amazon box.) Were they just going to print their postage and then put it in the big bin? What about if they were using one of the flat-rate boxes?

I answered their questions, until the lady using the machine started to leave. Her card wasn’t working, and she had decided to abandon her quest to mail her package. One of the ladies encouraged her to try again. She did, reluctantly, apologizing for holding us up.

The card worked. The woman thanked us profusely for encouraging her to persevere. She left, wishing us all a Merry Christmas.

Now it was the questioner’s turn. She began the process, asking questions the whole way. The woman behind me chimed in, helping her through the process. Then that lady began asking me questions about the flat-rate boxes.

Everyone was SO NICE. Everyone in line was talking, sharing stories. Two women behind me began talking about the snowstorm on the east coast. As it turns out, they both have cousins that live in D.C., and they swapped stories.

The questioner was getting frazzled because she felt like she was taking too long. One woman reassured her that she was fine — “We’re all human, honey.” I’m not sure what she meant by that, but it was nice.

Everyone wished each other a Merry Christmas as we all went on our way.

As I left the post office with the cold rain chilling me to the bone, entering the crazy traffic … the world was a little merrier.

[Via http://joanallegretti.wordpress.com]

News Round-Up: The Tools of Ignorance - Pinstripe Alley

I didn't find you. I was always there.

2009-12-19T14:05:00.000+02:00

“I’m not a princess.

This ain’t a fairy tale.

I’m not the one you’ll sweep off her feet.

Lead her up the stairwell.

This ain’t Hollywood.

This is a small town.

I was a dreamer before you went and let me down.”

What’s with ’I find you’? You know I’ve always loved you. Do you think I’m stupid? Cause I started to think I am now. :’(

[Via http://ayamgemokreveals.wordpress.com]

ABC News Advertising Review May Explain Why Conservatives Were ...

On stage with his friends

2009-12-19T06:42:00.000+02:00

Mateus’ preschool puts on an annual Winter Holiday Celebration and this year was his first. Xavian still wasn’t feeling 100% so Martin agreed to stay home with him while I took Mateus. It was a joy to watch. His little foam Rudolph nose kept falling off, but he kept picking it up and putting it back on. He really enjoyed being up there. It was fun to see a room full of parents recording each moment. He got to see Santa and I got to see him sing. It couldn’t have been better.

Watch this video on YouTube

[Via http://growingodoms.com]

MGS: Peace Walker demo on PSN News | PS3 | Eurogamer

I has a tired...

2009-12-17T22:52:00.000+02:00

This is how I feel sometimes:

Meh. But at least I’m not this guy:

WTF am I supposed to do about Christmas?! I had a bah-humbug in my butt but it went away before we stopped talking. Apparently it jumped ship and found a new host. I WAS TIRED AND A LITTLE DELIRIOUS!

[Via http://247sixtynine.wordpress.com]

PS3 sells over 4 million units in Japan // News

Peter Brady Syndrome

2009-12-17T14:52:00.000+02:00

This is a story I’ll tell at my oldest son’s expense. He is a sophomore attending the local Christian high school and has inherited my introverted personality. Early in the fall, I started bugging him about attending the formal dinner the school puts on at Christmastime. He mumbled something about how boring it would be and that nobody would go with him, so I’d drop the subject but keep bugging him occasionally.

My oldest daughter, who graduated from the same school last year, got into the act and tried to persuade him to go. All she got was the same stone wall. She was going to attend by herself as they had asked her to record the evening to video. So the time came to make a decision but he was still sitting on the fence. All the girls had been asked out and he (along with another guy who had just broken up with his girlfriend) would be the only stags attending.

Word got out to the student association at the school and needless to say, there’s nothing like a good dose of peer pressure to change one’s mind. They convinced him to go by giving him a free ticket and promising that he wouldn’t be ignored. Knowing that his sister would also be there probably helped.

The night of the big event came and they dressed to the hilt, climbed into the limo and were swept away to as exciting of an evening as a Christian school could have.

Tangent time. Do you remember the Brady Bunch episode where Peter is having personality issues? In the end, he has a party to show off his comedic skills and bombs. Feeling sorry for himself, he sits on the steps and mopes that he’s dull. Girl after girl comes up to him to offer support and consolation. In the end, he’s surrounded by every girl at the party and ends up having a great time.

Well that’s exactly what happened to the sophomore. He ended up being the star of the banquet and in the end, had his picture taken surrounded by every girl at the event.

I still haven’t quite figured this dynamic out. Is it the pity women feel for men who are down, or is it an interest in a man who isn’t attainable? Don’t know. Go figure. Word on the street is that my son has been seen actually talking to girls in the hallway at school beyond merely saying hello.

Maybe this whole thing was brought on when they served pork chops and apple sauce that night.

[Via http://christianranter.wordpress.com]

Microsoft: Hardcore games easiest to sell // News

Staccato by Deborah Ledford -- Excerpt #1

2009-12-17T06:49:00.000+02:00

Three world-class pianists.

Two possible killers.

One dead woman.

Who is her murderer?

Who will be next?

When acclaimed pianist Nicholas Kalman discovers his lover’s dead body, he sets out alone to find her killer. During his journey, he meets an unwitting female accomplice who soon becomes determined to help Nicholas wield his retaliation. Following a parallel path for justice, Steven Hawk, the deputy of a sleepy Southern county, is assigned to the case. Pursuing the investigation, Hawk finds himself entangled in a world of vengeance, greed and manipulation.

Performed against the backdrop of the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina, Staccato transports readers to a behind-the-scenes glimpse of professional musicians, the psychological twists and turns of its characters, and in the end, retribution that crashes in a crescendo of notes played at the literary pace of a maestro’s staccato.

Staccato is the first novel of the Steven Hawk/Inola Walela thriller trilogy.

Excerpt:

No. It can’t be . . .

He didn’t have the courage to look at her closely, so he repositioned the body, then dragged the cloth sack beyond her shoulders.

The sweet scent of gardenias and rosewater hit him with blunt force. His gut churned, a lump formed in his throat, strangling his whimper.

Mind racing, he swept the hair from the corpse’s face. He cupped her head in his hands and bent inches from her. Blood slammed to his brain, ringing in his ears deafened him. He managed to utter a guttural growl.

God, no, not Elaine. The one person he trusted completely. She, who had unselfishly relished his triumphs and filled his days and nights with excitement and passion.

He could do nothing but stare at her beautiful, porcelain face, now turned ashen, expressionless. She had been his salvation. He mourned every time they were apart, rejoiced once they reunited. He would never see her again, be with her, love her.

Nicholas wrapped his shaking arms around Elaine’s body and rocked her. Tears coursed down his cheeks. He mumbled her name again and again. After a long time, he lifted her from the tumble on the floor, swept the bag from her body and crumpled the cloth into a ball at her feet. Placing her carefully in a seated position on the passenger seat, he smoothed her hair and took her limp head in his hands. He kissed his lover’s waxen forehead and released her limp body. Pulling the seat belt tight, he snapped her securely in place.

His entire body shook as he shut the door, then paced in front of the car and raked his hands through his hair. Thoughts of retribution filled his raging mind. Vows of revenge rocked the core of his being. He opened his arms and lifted his head to the misty sky. A wail of anguish emitted from deep inside him, rising in intensity until he expelled no more sound. He thrust himself forward and crashed his fists down on the hood of the Porsche.

The cacophony of sound echoed throughout the parking lot, mixing with his strangled sobs.

Deborah J Ledford is a three-time nominee for the Pushcart Prize. Her award-winning short stories appear in the print publications Arizona Literary Magazine, Forge Journal, Twisted Dreams Magazine, AnthologyBuilder, and two Red Coyote Press mystery anthologies. Her latest stories appear in the Gulf Coast Writers Association anthology “Sweet Tea and Afternoon Tales” and the Sisters in Crime anthology, “How Not to Survive the Holidays.” A flash fiction piece is presented via podcast at Sniplits.

Click here to read the first chapter: Staccato

[Via http://dragonmyfeet.wordpress.com]

Dallas Cowboys Blog | Sports News | News for Dallas, Texas ...

Random Things That Have Made Me Smile Today...

2009-12-15T22:49:00.000+02:00

* my corgi waiting outside my door for me this morning and jumping on me.

* talking about nerdy photo stuff with people

* snowflakes

* getting to spend time with my Dad

* Dansko’s

* New Sagaya

* Compliments on my bookbag

* A few moments set aside for reading

* Organized files and slides

* My awesome, awesome friends who show up at my work with CHAI! FOR ME! IS that not the greatest thing or what? I know, I am way too excited about it. My coworkers did tease me and complain a lot about the fact that their best friends don’t bring THEM chai at work, but they don’t have the same friends as me, now do they?

* Plans for an upcoming photo shoot with a friend

* Knowing I have successfully kicked butt and finished my internship with flying colors. I did it… I survived for 3 whole months in an office without killing anyone! I didn’t think it was possible. But I did it! And now, to be honest, I’m kinda sad it’s over. I’m gonna miss it. But, new adventures await me, and so I will go forward from here having learned much and experienced much. Being an itern could not have been more challenging, stretching, or even, as rewarding as I had thought… and I’m excited to take what I’ve learned here into the next chapter of life, wherever that takes me.

[Via http://lamiavitabella.wordpress.com]

Uncharted 2 wins at Spike awards // News

My funny girl

2009-12-15T14:51:00.000+02:00

Star Wars is a big thing in my house- my husband, my son and now my daughter love Star Wars! Recently while talking with Anwen about something she refered to a person called Handsome Lo-Lo, I thought she was talking about a friend of ours who’s daughters name is Lola. I thought she was saying that Lola was handsome, I was a little confused but I went with it. Then Ewan walked into the room and translated what Anwen was saying for me which he often does. He tells me that she is saying Han Solo. I just about fell over laughing, Handsome Lo-Lo, it makes perfect sense and it is hilarious. I must admit that she has hit the nail on the head Mr. Lo-Lo certainly is handsome:)

I will now forever think of this guy above as Handsome Lo-Lo and it will always make me smile:)

[Via http://clangrant.wordpress.com]

Good News/Bad News/Good News For Disenfranchised Dealers - The Car ...

I'm A Blessing!

2009-12-15T06:44:00.000+02:00

Recently while doing my blogroll shuffle, I found myself both excited and shocked when I visited my friend Luisa at Believe In Yourself. Excited because I was awarded this bitchin “You’re A Blessing” award and as an award slut, what could make me happier? Shocked because I’m used to being called a lot of different things, but a blessing is not one of them. That was until I was awarded this little gem.

Thank you Luisa for thinking I am worthy of such an awesome award and passing it along to me!

If you have never had the pleasure of visiting Believe In Yourself, please do! Luisa’s blog is full of her awesome poems, jokes that are sure to make you laugh and thought provoking posts. You will be hooked on her blog like I am!

Luisa informed me that I am to present this award to five friends so without further ado.

Would the following please stand up and accept this award?

Sherri @ Bloggin’ Sherri Style

Jean @ Jean Has Been Shopping

Lisa @ Just For The -ell Of It

Heather @ The Eyes In The Back Of My Head

Terri @ Terri Terri Quite Contrary

[Via http://wideworldofgary.wordpress.com]

Brad Friedman: Fox 'News' Fans Flood Anti-U.S. Chamber Campaign ...

Mmm cookies... just use your imagination

2009-12-13T22:40:00.000+02:00

I started baking my annual Christmas cookies today. I decided to improvise a little bit with the recipe (always dangerous) and I threw in some orange and lemon zest, some candied peel and a teeny tiny pinch of ground cloves and cayenne pepper.

I met up with my ex-consultancy colleagues earlier today. I’ll write more about that tomorrow in another post (too tired now) but it involved three gin and tonics, and when I got home I had a glass of wine, so, as well as experimenting with my recipe I was also drunk-baking. This could go one of two ways:

fabulously innovative and unusual
train wreck

Thankfully, from the taste of the dough (I ate lots), I could tell that the cookies would taste amazing. However for some unknown reason one of my baking trays has gone walkabout. I suspect Boyfriend has used it for something car or bike related. Anyway, one baking tray down I found I had a lot of dough (half of it is still in the fridge!) and not much space.

From what I remembered the cookies didn’t spread much, but because the baking soda was out of date I added perhaps a smidge more than I usually would. We’re talking an extra pinch here, not an extra teaspoon. Anyway, I cut out lots of cookies with my festive cookie-cutters (comprising shapes of a christmas tree, an angel, a reindeer, Father Christmas, a holly leaf, a candy cane and a snowman) and lined them up as usual and put the trays in the oven.

I poured myself another glass of wine and sat on the floor in front of the oven to watch the cookies bake (experience has told me that this is the only way to bake Christmas cookies – they go from undercooked to burned in a microsecond so constant surveillance is necessary). After about five minutes I noticed they were getting fat. Uh-oh. After eight minutes they were all merging into one giant shape.

When I took them out of the oven at 1o minutes the cookies had become a giant mass of spiced Latvian gingerbread. I used a knife to try and cut the shapes back in, but they look fairly odd. The taste however, yum yum. I have surprised myself with my culinary innovation. The candied peel and zest makes the spiciness of the cookies a bit more palatable.

The cookies are stacked up on a cooling rack just now, waiting for tomorrow evening when I will try and make them into reasonably pretty Christmas cookies using coloured designer icing. Wish me luck.

As I said, I still have half the dough in the fridge. I think I will buy another baking tray tomorrow so I don’t have deformed cookies out of the second batch too!

They taste fab, and, as long as you use your imagination, will look fab too. It’s almost Christmas!!!!

[Via http://ohmywords.wordpress.com]

Apple countersues Nokia for 13 alleged patent infringements ...

a race against...

2009-12-13T14:34:00.000+02:00

…mold.

Two nights, we came home from looking at neighborhood Christmas lights to the site of water gushing out of our garage. Josh opened the garage door to find water, literally spraying over the entire area. The cold weather had caused a pipe to burst, and which boxes took the brunt of the explosion? The ones full of years and years and years worth of old paper memories, including tons of love notes (from Josh ), awards, "remember when" items, and this…

My Mom

I think my mom is the best mom in the world because every time she bakes a cake she lets me lick the beaters afterwards. She also washes my clothes for me to wear. I really appreciate that. And she cooks breakfast for me.

by Joshua Williams

So, I was in bed too late and up too early, laying piles and piles of things like this in front of the fireplace, hoping not to lose some of these. Its all worth it…

[Via http://willbecontinued.wordpress.com]

LBP going all Pirates of the Caribbean News | PS3 | Eurogamer

Like a train coming into the station.

2009-12-13T06:20:00.000+02:00

Okay, so today is Sunday. Cal comes back on Wednesday. Gosh i’m missing her.

Anyway, the weekend with the guys was pretty good. Just hanging out, playing the xbox, kicking the ball round, and just talking about random stuff. It was a good change of pace to my normal boring days at home, or my quiet days with Cal. Although, nothing can top those days with Cal.

Today, i found out something new about my friend Thomas. But i can’t tell anyone, so don’t even bother asking.

Anyway, carols tonight with the group. Should be alright, seeing everyone again. Hopefully mother and father allow me to go down. And that will bring an end to the week. Everything is getting closer.

[Via http://flameorange.wordpress.com]

Microsoft: Xbox Live central to Modern Warfare 2 success // News

This Christmas; Let's Believe

2009-12-12T22:46:00.000+02:00

We’re near Christmas and this time always brings some far-fetched ideas and memories into my mind. The last Christmas was spent roving around warm bookshops and discovering a new energy in both of us; sitting in a park after hours (for us) after this nice ‘chai’ at our favourite tea place in Connaught Place. It was spent looking at creatures of all shapes and sizes, and looking at each other just to understand what went on in the other’s mind. Oh, it was one amazing experience. Not Santa Claus or big Christmas trees, but yes, the spirit was lived.

This Christmas, I see around and I see a pattern emerging. With this Christmas, comes a reminder of belief. Belief, in everything. From the tiny elves working their ass off at the North Pole to the beggar who suddenly vanished from right in front of your eyes. I wonder about the strength of a belief. How it makes the world go around. You see, it’s not just the feeling that comes with believing, it’s much more. There are whole lives connected to this one word, this one effect. I personally, have seen what amazing work belief in one small thing has done. Just believing that it’s going to work out because you did that thing or you completed that ritual or you offered this much money, is one wonder in itself. You put so much on that thing, that ritual, that offering.

I won’t go into the details of what believing and unbelieving really is. Nor am I going to contest either of them or go into details of how and why everything can’t be left on destiny and faith alone. I won’t do all that here, because his one’s for the people out there, all of you, who believe. All of you who have that tiniest bit of or the most huge amount of faith and belief in anything. And who believe that so much can happen if you just trust it. Believe in it. Because sometimes, all that a person or a thing or an existence needs, is some sort of belief in its capabilities.

After all, Tinkle Bell came back to life only when the children chanted the statement- ‘I do believe in fairies’ over and over again. She lived, she existed only because someone believed she did.

Merry Christmas!

[Via http://queerchachki.wordpress.com]

News From Across The Pond: Madonna dropped by Louis Vuitton; Hugh ...

Why?

2009-12-12T14:50:00.000+02:00

“Do you ever get that feeling where you don’t wanna talk to anybody? You don’t wanna smile and you don’t want to fake being happy. But at the same time you don’t know exactly what’s wrong either. There isn’t a way to explain it to someone who doesn’t already understand. If you could want anything in the world it would be to be alone. People have stopped being comforting and being alone never was. At least when you’re alone no one will constantly ask you what is wrong and there isn’t anyone who won’t take ‘I don’t know’ for an answer. You feel the way you do just because. You hope the feeling will pass soon and that you will be able to be yourself again, but until then all you can do is wait.”

Why is this so true?

[Via http://blessedfaith.wordpress.com]

HMV losses narrow as sales rise // News

J R R Tolkien

2009-12-12T06:44:00.000+02:00

All that is gold does not glitter,

Not all those who wander are lost;

The old that is strong does not wither,

Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,

A light from the shadows shall spring;

Renewed shall be blade that was broken,

The crownless again shall be king

[Via http://myspacebox.wordpress.com]

Hot Air » Blog Archive » Fox News poll: Opposition to ObamaCare ...

Revenge in Action

2009-12-10T22:48:00.000+02:00

This is what happens when you (a) let David the IT guy read your writing and (b) give him sass over a sustained period of time :

It’s too good not to share. Thanks, David

Note: no children were harmed in the making of this scurrilous image.

[Via http://angelaslatter.com]

Kojima Productions composer joins 343 Industries // News

Food-related musings

2009-12-10T14:50:00.000+02:00

* I should not commit to recapping Top Chef when I often find myself unable to actually stay up and watch it at its scheduled time. Cut me some slack, I get up at 5 AM. Anyway, I will write up some closing thoughts once I actually watch the finale, and I will try to keep my bitterness regarding spoilers (come on, major newspapers, can you PLEASE not announce the results on your websites’ front pages????) in check.

* Relatedly, I had a happy little dream last night involving BOTH of the Voltaggio brothers. I think that is because I read this hilarious and brilliant post yesterday, and I also tuned in to this WaPo chat. Both are definitely worth checking out.

* I don’t think I could justify an entire post on Little Barn, the first truly local joint we’ve tried in our new Gwinnett County surroundings. However, here are some initial thoughts: first off, it really is a little barn, with inside seating for about 20 (ish) and a drive-through window (definitely the more popular choice, while we were there at least). The biscuits, which are highly lauded and the reason I wanted to visit, are as big as my head and very, very good. I ordered a chicken biscuit ($2.29) and a sausage biscuit ($1.79), and I couldn’t finish them. The meats on my biscuits were just “meh.” Jason ordered a breakfast platter, which included scrambled eggs, a biscuit, gravy, and country ham, all for $4.59. The gravy was delicious–great texture, and incredibly flavorful. The country ham was awesome, too. Counter service was quick and friendly, and prices are definitely reasonable (I think our breakfast for two, with OJ and TONS of food, was about $13). I think that once you figure out what you really like on the menu, Little Barn is a great alternative to fast food or chain breakfast places.

* My hubs and I are hosting a little housewarming/holiday get-together on Saturday night. I am serving heavy appetizers, and I think I’m pretty set on the menu, but I’m always up for suggestions. Does anyone have just a KILLER h’ors d’oeuvres recipe that they’d like to share? Leave it in the comments!

[Via http://troublewithtoast.wordpress.com]

Charles Warner: The Dallas Morning News Is On the Right Track

Ramlings: I'm back...

2009-12-10T06:49:00.000+02:00

…and I’m so sorry I was away so long! I could recount the tale of technical woe that left me unable to login to my precious little blog for 5 whole days. Or perhaps the one about the sadness that came with the realization that all my scheduled posts were missing. Instead I’ll just get back to blogging because I’ve missed sharing my crafts!

[Via http://craftysmurfette.com]

Kojima Productions composer joins 343 Industries // News

Bits and Bobs: in the theatre

2009-12-08T22:41:00.000+02:00

And in my dream we were running through this massive complex and we couldn’t find our seats for the Zefron Movie Marathon. And B.W. was there dressed like a slutty storybook character. And M.L. was wearing the most beautiful John Galliano gown that she wore at prom. But I’ve never been to prom with her. And P.M. gave up while we were running through velvet-wallpapered corridors because he simply didn’t care about Zefron. And none of us really cared but we kept running because it was a dream. That’s just what you do.

[Via http://soursusie.wordpress.com]

AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth: 56 newspapers ...

One Marine's View: You Heard What?

2009-12-08T14:42:00.000+02:00

Tired of the biased reports from the media on how our troops are doing in Afghanistan? Here’s One Marine’s View:

—————————————————————————————————————-

I was able to get my weekly shower today, if I needed it or not. Your Marines continue to take the fight to the enemy and keep them off balance. Thanksgiving has come and gone and we all have a lot to be thankful for as young studs keep the bad guys away from innocent civilians throughout the area.

Your warriors are hooking and jabbing with bad guys that believe they can scare off your fighting Marines. ….well, they have another thing coming! Patrols are relentless, the weather is getting colder and morale is high. If I have to hear another news article about how your warriors morale is bad I’m gonna puke. Apparently they aren’t talking to warriors here in country because your Marines work their butts off daily and then go out for more. Thousands of miles away from home, equipped with the best gear possible on the planet, they march directly into the bad guys and make them have a very bad day. So if you happen to read some tree-hugging report about this and that and boo hoo they don’t have this or that, its BS….and most importantly, the ones doing the fighting, are feeding off of it.

The dirt is everywhere, showers are over rated and sleep is a crutch. Having a bad day? Just think of the 20 yr old out doing America’s great work over here, day after day and kicking butt! Yer day just got a whole lot better huh? Before you jump on the finger pointing parade, write one of these warriors and get it firsthand….otherwise keep quoting some reporter who is stating his opinion about morale vise facts.

Time for another cigar–Semper Fi

via One Marine’s View: You heard what?

[Via http://mountainrepublic.wordpress.com]

Sales continue to decline at GAME // News

The Princess and the Dragon: Part 1

2009-12-08T06:46:00.000+02:00

I apologize for not having written in so long. I offer you, for your patience, a story. Just for fun.

** ** ** ** **

There was, once upon a time, in a land far away, a princess who was overtaken with the greatest sadness. She had discovered, on her 16th birthday, that she would be claimed by a handsome prince, who would slay a dragon for her.

In this kingdom it was customary when a princess became a young woman, to tell her this. This way, she would begin her initiation into the rites of womanhood. She would begin, for instance, to wear her hair down, and to learn womanly arts, and to practice how to emit delicate, appealing shrieks when faced with such unspeakable horrors as dragons.

This is not to suggest that dragons are truly unspeakable horrors. But tradition is tradition, and so each time a prince was to claim the hand of a princess from this kingdom, he would have to slay a dragon. The father of the princess was generally kind enough to procure a dragon for this purpose.

Our princess’ father was a man who believed in planning well in advance and so had procured a dragon for this purpose quite some time ago. The dragon had been hatched from an egg in a large garden off in one corner of the royal gardens that bordered on forest. No one besides the game keeper went there, and princesses were certainly not allowed there.

Alas, our princess was a plucky sort of girl and not very given to following rules. She was barely six when she discovered a hidden path leading behind the peacock gardens, past the Royal Fountains, and into a strangely unkempt, pleasingly wild corner of the grounds. She followed, curiously, the sounds of snuffling to discover, in what looked like a large ring of light hovering a few inches above the ground, a small, grumpy-looking dragon.

She knew it was a dragon because she had begun reading picture books quite early. This dragon wasn’t majestic-looking like the ones in the pictures. It was mostly gray, with bluish undertones, and its wings were tiny, useless things perched ludicrously on a bumpy, scaly back. Nor was this dragon very large; it stood now with its back to the princess, and she could see that it was perhaps a few inches shorter than herself. There was no evidence of fire-breathing; the sniffling gave rise to morose little puffs of smoke, but that might have been only because the air was so cold. The princess sniffed experimentally, and sure enough, she saw little clouds in front of her nose. Some dragon this was turning out to be.

The princess, disappointed, began to turn away, when the dragon emitted a particularly disdainful sniff and muttered under its breath, “Typical.”

She stopped short, surprised. “You talk,” she said, somewhat unnececessarily.

“You talk,” countered the dragon.

“Yes,” she admitted. “But I”m a princess.”

“And so I should excuse yu for being ill mannered?”

“Ill mannered!” Now she was indignant. “Am not!”

“You just spent five minutes staring at me and were about to walk away without so much as a how-do-you-do!”

It was true! The princess felt abashed and dropped an apologetic curtsey. “How do you do,” she mumbled.

“Hmpf,” said the dragon.

[Via http://noteventherain.wordpress.com]

The Dallas Morning News pulls down the wall

Good luck in studying for finals my friends

2009-12-06T22:46:00.000+02:00

엇그제 시작됬었던것 같은 가을 세메스터가 벌써 끝나가고 있다. 인제 남은건 파이널 시험 뿐. 허나 유종의 미를 거두는 것이 중요한 법. 여러분들 모두가 꼭 유종의 미를 거두었으면 하는 바램이다. 제목에 시험을 잘보라고 했을수도 있겠지만, 왠지 공부를 하면서 준비하는 과정이 중요하다고 생각했기에 제목을 저렇게 정한것 같다. 항상 끝이 왔다 생각되면 게을러지기 마련이지만 꼭 여러분들이 자신에게 주어진 해야할 일들을 할수 있는 용기를 지닐수 있기를 기도하겠다. 모두 Good luck!

Its already end of the semester even it feels like it started only few days ago. Only final exams are left. But it is important to finish well. I hope that all of you will be able to finish this semester well. I could have titled this post something like good luck on exam, but I felt like studying and getting prepared for final, so bascially that step is important so I titled it like this I think. It is always easy to become lazy when the end is near but I will pray that you all will have courage to do the task that has given to you all. Good luck everyone!

[Via http://sayone.wordpress.com]

Introducing The Next Web Podcast! Worldly Tech News and Banter!

STAT ATTACK

2009-12-06T14:47:00.000+02:00

i must admit, i heard this stat on one of the many football podcasts i listen to with surprising regularity.

the World Cup draw has been quite interesting, and as expected, there has been so much discussion about the draws and the seedings. like yesterday at FJ just before Grad Nite, when we were talking about who we expected to go through. some of the groups are fairly straightforward to call, but others, not so. Group of Death, G, is particularly difficult, although I do want to see how the DPRK’s team reacts after they get tonked 195-0 by Brazil in their first game.

when was the last time the DPRK got to a world cup? 1966, where they managed to give Eusebio’s Portugal a scare in a 5-3 loss, going down after being 3-0 up. what else happened in 1966? England won the World Cup, after the hosts were put in Group 1 with Mexico, Uruguay, and France.

wait.

South Africa (the hosts) are in Group A (formerly known as 1) with Mexico, Uruguay, and France. so now, either England or South Africa have to be favourites to win the World Cup next year.

another personal favourite statistic of mine :the champions league final in 1999 (26th May 1999) would have been the 90th birthday of Sir Matt Busby, the Manchester United manager who won the European Cup in 1968.

i want to find out all these funny coincidences. just for kicks.

[Via http://fanboyfandom.wordpress.com]

Dallas Cowboys Blog | Sports News | News for Dallas, Texas ...

blood heart

2009-12-05T22:41:00.000+02:00

Yea someone requested this picture awhile ago xD

Finally uploaded it.

My leg started to bleed cause… well it was itchy and apparently I picked at something -.-

So I wiped it off with a napkin!

And it came out as a heart xD I tried making others like it but it didn’t work xD lol

So it was a one time thing I guess.

Cute … in a way… lol

Other than that, don’t expect much from me today. I’ll be studying most of the day.

As well as sketching cosplay stuff. But thats all.

Homework? I doubt it.

I should start printing things out for finals next week. If you count today as the week coming up that is.

Sooo… everyone hope you have a nice day and stay happy!

–Kimiko–

[Via http://kimikokotomi.wordpress.com]

Новая рецензия: Парфюмер: История одного убийцы

Be quiet! You Englishmen... You're all so fucking pompous and none of you have got any balls.

2009-12-05T14:51:00.000+02:00

So spoke The Grim Reaper in Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life. Englishman: yes; balls: still there when I last checked, but by this time tomorrow they could well resemble two shrivelled raisins and be as hard to locate as Osama Bin Laden. Perhaps not the most sensible of fiftysomething pastimes, tomorrow I am about to undertake what is known as The Grim Challenge, an eight-mile run over hills, through mud and deep water on land used to test army vehicles.

Extremely grim, especially for the bald-headed man just left of centre that found a pothole.

Apparently it helps if you wear a luminous hat.

If running the Grim Challenge is not mad enough, a group of fellow runners I would loosely describe as friends are dressing up as 1980s wrestlers, group-leader Andy planning to make an appearance as Brutus “The Barber” Beefcake, apparently so called as he would knock his opponents out with a sleeper hold and then cut their hair. No disrespect to gay men, but having taken a look at his costume the name Brutus “The Bender” Beefcake comes to mind.

I personally will be drawing the line at a luminous hat.

The not-at-all-gay-looking "Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake.

...And his not-at-all-gay-looking doll.

[Via http://to55er.wordpress.com]

I Love To Watch - NY Daily News

Things I Don't Like

2009-12-05T06:48:00.000+02:00

loudness war
money
cats
realizing you’ve gone the whole day with your fly open.
not being able to listen to music loudly
staying up late when having to get up early
contracts
mistrusting parents
teachers who feel their subject is more important than the others, and than important things like sleeping and not going insane..
blogging
being hypocritical
idiots
Y chromosomes
small talk
people who put on façades..
people with facial hair
people who spend most conversations complaining about something.
putting things off, and not getting to them
poor spelling/grammar/typing
fences

Don’t get me wrong, I love most things in life… well, no, I really only care for two things, but they’re so monumental, that listing trivial things seems.. well.. trivial. [:

-juan.

[Via http://himynameisjuan.wordpress.com]

ABC News: Prius one of Top 10 Innovations of the Decade — Autoblog ...

My Twitter about WoW...

2009-12-03T22:51:00.000+02:00

No idea if I’ll update it much at all… as I don’t use Twitter for RL stuff typically, but I rather enjoyed wowtwitter. Since they’re shutting wowtwitter down, I figured I’d try the real thing for wow stuff.

http://twitter.com/uyankitutankit

uyankitutankit… wonder where that came from?

LOL, anyway, if you have a twitter for wow stuff n such and you’re interested, feel free to friend me.

[Via http://youyankityoutankit.wordpress.com]

Riccitiello: Digital market will overtake consoles next year // News

Yes, you should all be jealous...

2009-12-03T14:49:00.000+02:00

want mijn examenrooster is perfect!

Voel even hoe ik het er in wrijf.

Ik heb mijn eerste examen pas de 13e januari, en mijn tweede de 26e, en that’s it.

Komt ook mooi uit, want dan kan ik nu rustig aan mijn groepswerk werken dat ik volgende maandag moet presenteren, daarna werk ik rustig aan mijn paper die ik anderhalve week later moet afgeven. Dan is het al weer kerstvakantie, en kan ik mij volop concentreren op mijn paper voor 4 januari, en daarna heb ik lekker tien dagen tijd voor mijn eerste examen. en dan nog eens twee weken voor mijn tweede en laatste examen.

En als alles goed loopt, ga ik daarna nog een dagje of 4 naar Wenen voor quality-time met Lisekarel! Ik hoop alleen maar dat Ryanair niet te snel duur gaat worden.

On another note – men heeft mij gisteren gehypnotiseerd. Maar dan echt. No joke.

Okee ja, ik sta inderdaad nogal open voor zo’n dingen, maar dan nog! Er waren genoeg mensen die er helemaal niet in geloofden en iets later toch ook in volle hypnose stonden te shaken alsof ze Michael Jackson waren. Of good old Brenten die lekker van een citroen – iets wat hij totaal niet lust – zat te smullen omdat het in zijn hoofd een zalige zoete perzik was.

Het vreemde er aan is wel dat je constant wisselt tussen volledig bewustzijn en half bewustzijn. Zo was het toch bij mij, want op sommige momenten was ik echt wakker en wou ik totaal geen Michael Jackson zijn, maar bij andere momenten kon ik mijn eigen naam niet meer uitspreken puur omdat men mij had gezegd dat ik deze was vergeten. Je voelt je stom, omdat je wéét dat je je naam kent, maar wanneer je gevraagd word om aan de mensen te vertellen wat je naam is, komt die dan toch niet uit je mond.

Het was trouwens te doen in Theater ‘t Klokhuis, voor een testopname van Tomtesterom. Achteraf werd iedereen die gehypnotiseerd was geïnterviewd, dus misschien zie je me eens op televisie. Het gaat blijkbaar om de aflevering waar Tom gaat proberen om haaien te hypnotiseren. Tja, ik ben benieuwd!

Ik ga nu even langs de bib lopen, want anders was vandaag weer zo’n waste of a day. Laterrrr!

[Via http://banannanas.wordpress.com]

Digital publisher Easy Tiger launches // News

No (pout). I have the best coverage.

2009-12-03T06:44:00.000+02:00

Wireless networks in America have been dominated by two main companies for the past few years. Verizon Wireless and AT&T, which used to be Cingular, have been fighting for the “top dog” position in wireless coverage for years. Both companies advertise as have the best coverage in America, both in quantity of area, and quality of coverage. The most recent battle ground for these two companies is a series of advertisements for Verizon’s 3G coverage showing map of why AT&T does not have the best coverage. AT&T filed a lawsuit against Verizon that sited misleading information saying the AT&T 3G network is worse than it really is. This lawsuit was dropped after a Consumer Reports survey in wireless customer satisfaction came out citing AT&T as the worst company in service and coverage. The worst wireless provider out of four national wireless providers. So who has misleading advertising now, the company with “more bars in more places” or the company with “a map for that?”

[Via http://nicolaimac.wordpress.com]

Rupert Murdoch: Feds Should Stay Out Of News Business, Except, Of ...

Open your eyes and love-soon all you know will become a memory

2009-12-01T22:35:00.000+02:00

Thanksgiving break was good. I spent a lot of time with Lesley and Alli, and worked a little bit. It was both relaxing and productive.

Thanksgiving really got me thinking this year. I don’t know why. It seemed like the whole week I was home I felt like my eyes were being opened. I saw just how much I had to be thankful for. I have a great family that I’m proud of, and friends who make me laugh and I can talk to about anything. And, even though it’s not always fun, I am blessed to have a job. Two, actually. I’m lucky to be in school. I am very fortunate, and the whole week I was reminded of that. But, there was something kind of depressing behind it as well. I started to realize that the perfection I have in life right now isn’t going to last forever. You know how you can remember when you were a little kid and you didn’t know anything about money and responsibility and such? Your life is completely different than it is right now, and you didn’t realize your life would ever change when you were 5 years old. It’s like that now, but I’m starting to see that things WILL change. My best friend will move away, my sister will grow up, my parents will get older, people will die. Not to get all depressing, but that’s honestly what was going through my mind. Things are changing before us right now, and we won’t even see how that piece of us was a real part of our life until it’s in the past. So, I started to realize that I was taking for granted a lot of things in my life. Being in a room surrounded by my family, just hanging out singing in a car with my friend, and everything. I was suddenly very aware that it wasn’t going to last forever.

“Life as we know it today will soon become a distant memory that we long for-just like when we were kids. So live every minute of every day, and fall in love with the little things, like being in a room with people you love. They won’t be there forever” -Just something I typed up on my phone.

On a lighter note, Christmas is upon us, and now my diet will consist of hot chocolate and candy canes. Yummm.

[Via http://andrealeachman.wordpress.com]

Organizing for America | Cloe Axelson's Blog: Morning News

Messes

2009-12-01T14:48:00.000+02:00

One day, one day – I will finally get around to cleaning up the three major messes of my life:

My room
My computer
My brain

But for that (the first two, especially), I’d need an extended break at home to even begin consider making it happen. Presently, only two obvious dates pop out: in two weeks time, or next August (and by then, maybe not even the latter). What to do, what to do…

[Via http://speedcuber.wordpress.com]

WaPo Feminist Says Palin News Was Sexist, But Palin Children ...

Entertainment stuff I cannot wait for/ 기다릴수 없는 엔터테인먼트 관련 것들

2009-12-01T06:45:00.000+02:00

인제 학기가 끝나가면서 슬슬 놀 생각이 머리를 스쳐가고 있는데. 특히나 내년에 뭘할까 생각이 나기도 하고 내년을 생각하면 자연스럽게 뭔가 손꼽아 기다리는 그런것들이 생각나기 마련이다. 그래서 오늘은 내가 기다리고 있는 것들 몇가지를 소개하려한다. 그러나 엔터테인먼트 관련으로 축소시켰다. 엔터테인먼트라고 하는 단어를 영화나 만화나 게임같은 이런것들을 의미하는 생각으로 사용했다.

As this semester is about to end, lot of thoughts about what should I do during break dominates my mind. Also due to this, I also think about stuff that I cannot wait for. So today, I will introduce some of these stuff to you guys. But I limited these things to entertainment stuff. I am using entertainment as movie, games, and those kind of stuff.

아 그리고 그냥 숫자를 나열한거지 랭크 순으로 쓰는것이 아니다.

Oh and I am not listing them based on rank. Just random order

1. 기동전사 건담 더블오 극장판/ Mobile Suit Gundam OO the Movie

아 진짜 기다릴수 없는 극장판이 아닐수가 없다. 애니메이션을 너무 재미있게 본 나로서는 애니매이션 후의 이야기를 다루는 이 극장판을 손꼽아 기다리고 있는 중이다. 2010년 언젠가 나오게 될 작품인데, 이거 또 구할려면 얼마나 기다려야 할지 참으로 애간장 탄다.

I cannot wait for this movie. Since I enjoyed the animation so much, I cannot wait for this movie which takes place after few years of what happened in the animation. It is suppose to come out some time during 2010 but in order for me to get this I will have to wait even more which will be annoying.

2. 스타크래프트 2/ Starcraft 2

뭐 알만한 사람은 다 알만한 게임이지 않겠는가? 난 솔직히 이 게임들의 스토리를 좋아하는 편이기 때문에 (이건 영화나 책이나 똑같다 나는 역사를 좋아하기 때문에), 스타 2 의 스토리가 어떻게 진행될지 정말 궁금하다. 아마 이 게임이 나오는 날 조지아텍 학생들의 평균 성적은 바닥을 기어다니지 않을까 생각한다.

I am pretty sure most people know this thing. I love studying stories of games (this goes same for movies and books. I love studying history in general) and this is main reason i cannot wait for SC 2. I bet when this game comes out, the average GPA of Georgia Tech gonna fall down like mad.

3. 포켓몬스터 소울 실버/ Pokemon Soul Silver

ㅋㅋ 몇사람은 아주 나에게 실망했을지도 모르겠다. 허나 진심으로 생각하건데 포켓몬 만큼 사람의 상상력으로 만들어낸 것 중 뛰어난것도 없다고 생각한다. 지금까지 나온 모든 포켓몬들의 수만 총 493마리가 되는데. 진짜 대단하다는 말 밖에는 안나온다. 포켓몬이 왜 위대한가는 논문을 쓸수있을정도니 생략하도록 하겠다. 근데 이것뿐이랴, 포켓몬은 사람들이 대게 만화로 친숙하지만 원래 게임이 원조인 작품이다. 특히 나는 실버버젼을 정말 재미있게 했는데. 이게 DS로 리메이크 된다고 하니 참으로 기쁘기 짝이 없다. 2010년에 나오게 될터인데 참으로 기대된다.

Some of you might be like “Oh my Sae Won, you are such a kid” blah blah blah. But seriously, I really think that there are not many things in this world that is as creative and original as Pokemon. There are total 493 Pokemon so far and I just cant say other than its impressive. I can write paper about why Pokemon is so great but I will stop here for now. Not only that, people mostly know Pokemon through the animation but actually the game is its original. I really enjoyed Silver version among these games and it is being remade in DS. It is suppose to come out in 2010 and I cannot wait.

4. 황금의 태양 DS / Golden Sun DS

흠 아마도 이 게임을 모르는 사람들이 많을 것이다. 허나 이 게임은 엄청난 찬사를 받았던 게임보이 용 게임인 황금의 태양의 후속작이다. 이 황금의 태양은 내가 지금까지 해본 게임들중 가장 뛰어난 5개 작품중에 하나에 들어갈 정도로 재미있었던 작품인데, 처음에 E3에서 DS용으로 후속작이 나온다고 했을때 진짜 전율을 느꼈다. 아직 발매일도 안잡히고 여러가지 정보가 부족한 작품이지만 이래서 그런지 정말 기다릴수가 없다.

Most of you might not know this game but this game is the sequel of famous gameboy game called Golden Sun. This game is in my top 5 best game list because it was just such an awesome game. When I first heard from E3 that the sequel is coming out I got so excited. Even the release date is still unknown and not many information has been give, due to this reason it makes me cannot wait for this game.

5. 젤다의 전설: 대지의 기적/ The Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks

언제나 나를 설래게 하는 작품. 젤다의 신작이 이번달 7일에 나온다. 내 인생 최고의 게임 시리즈인 젤다 언제나 나를 기다리지 못하게 만들기에는 부족함이 없다.

It always excites me. New Zelda title is coming out on 7th. The best game series of my life Zelda and just because of that reason it is enough to make me cannot wait for it.

정작 써놓고 보니 거의 대부분이 게임들인데, 뭐 이것말고도 해리포터라던지 다크나이트 후속작이라던지 여러가지 다른 것들도 기대되지만 역시 이 위에 있는 5가지가 가장 지금으로썬 기대되는것 같다. 여러분들은 뭔가 기다릴수 없는것이 있는지?

Haha seems like most of them are games. Stuff like next harry potter and Christopher Nolan batman movie could be candidate but I think these five things are as of now things I cannot wait. Do you guys have anything that cannot wait for?

[Via http://sayone.wordpress.com]

Ex-CBS News producer Bernard Birnbaum dies

The BoredPoetess' ULTIMATE Christmas List!

2009-11-29T22:50:00.000+02:00

Oh, hello again. It’s me, the BoredPoetess. It’s OK if you’ve forgotten me, as I haven’t written in some time now. I only have myself to blame.

THOUGH, I could blame my professors, for giving me all these papers and projects to do. But now I am done with most of said papers and projects, I may forgive and forget. (and let me tell you, this semester’s professors are VERY lucky I’m such a forgiving person…)

I am glad to say that it is that wonderful Christmasy time of the year again; barely done with Thanksgiving leftovers, and yet our little apartment Christmas tree is up and shining, and houses are being decorated, and iPods are being filled with Christmas song playlists, and Christmas sales are going on at every department store across the globe! And as such, I have decided to make up a Christmas list – I already have a real Christmas that I have submitted to those who care, but I also wanted to make a list of the things I want that I am quite sure no one will ever get me.

So here it is, the BoredPoetess’ Ultimate Christmas List:

1) Lifetime supply of chocolate (I want a plastic shoot in my room, so I can shout up into it what sort of chocolate I want, and whoever operates the silly thing sends it right down to me!)

2) My very own house-elf. (Because even though it only takes a minute to make my bed, that’s one minute of my life everyday that I will NEVER get back)

3) A life-size Batmobile with a live Batman (Complete with kung-fu grip!)

4) A complete symphonic orchestra and choir to follow me around everywhere I go in order to provide my life’s soundtrack as I live (Its one thing to have an iPod on wherever I go, but I want OTHER people to hear the music too)

5) A Wikipedia page about ME (I could probably do this myself, but then it would seem like I was bragging or something, and my ego is big enough as it is)

6) Another arm, with hand (Now that’s what I call a handy gift – get it? A HANDY gift? Oh, never mind…)

7) Personal movie theater, with snack bar stocked with vanilla Frosties from Wendy’s and Panera bagels (Who doesn’t want one of those? No lines…)

8 ) No homework for the rest of my life (And this is how we know that the things on this list are unrealistic…)

9) A lump of coal (Just so that I can say I got a lump of coal for Christmas)

10) Oh, and world peace and all that sort of stuff too, I guess (Though some very nasty people around the world are going to be disappointed at that one)

So there it is! My ultimate Christmas list. Gift wrap is not necessary, but if you do put it on, please don’t use any of those weird neon gift wrap. I think its icky.

[Via http://theboredpoetess.wordpress.com]

Good News Pilipinas » Pinoy couple in Finals of Thailand travel ...

Last Night

2009-11-29T14:50:00.000+02:00

It was 1.07a.m last night (or was it this morning?) when I came to a conclusion. I did this with R.E.M on replay, watching wispy shapes on the ceiling made by the passing headlights of cars.

The conclusion is (drumroll please)…

…no one really knows the real me.

Nothing particularly revelatory there. It’s the kind of thing people sing about. We all think we know the truth to that statement. And so did I. But it was only last night that I acutely felt the reality of it.

I’ve always been an intensely private person. I knew that right from the start, I was different in so many ways. I was aware that my skin colour differed from my peers, that my hair was curly and not straight. I was overweight. My family was different too—my father never signed my report card. I felt the need to conceal all these from people. I became ashamed about my unique situation and resolved never to reveal too much about myself to others.

While I’ve had firm friendships, I’ve never a friend whom I’ve bared my soul to. It hurts me to say this, but that’s the truth. Everyone gets a piece of me, but then again, it’s just a piece. While in recent years I’ve become more comfortable about talking about my dysfunctional family, there’s still so much I’m hoarding inside. I’m afraid that no one will really understand.

My mother thinks she knows me, but at last she doesn’t. This is particularly sad as she’s my closest friend, and yet my closest friend barely treads the tip of the iceberg that is me.

This became apparent after a short argument I had with her. I wanted so much to shake her and say, “But I’m not like that!” And then I realised that by doing so, I would be destroying her image of me. The person that she wanted me to be, all her life. So my temper deflated and I let it pass. In those few minutes, the space between the both of us widened into a gulf. She seemed a few light-years away.

At 1.07a.m last night, with R.E.M on replay, my relationships with people felt as insignificant as the shapes on the ceiling.

For the first time, I felt very much alone.

[Via http://jennyspeaks.wordpress.com]

Sunday news show guests to preview impending Afghanistan decision ...

PMPC Star Awards for TV 2009

2009-11-29T06:47:00.000+02:00

Bukod sa mga beauty pageants, mahilig din akong manood ng mga Award Ceremonies. Basta mga events na once a year lang kung ganapin, name it….pinapanood ko yan. At hindi lang ako basta nanonood. Meron din akong listahan ng mga predicted winners ko. Medyo mali nga lang madalas. Mas reliable ang hula ability ko sa mga pageants kesa sa mga award ceremonies.

Pero gagawin ko pa din yun. Maglilista pa din ako ng mga predictions ko. And this is my first time na i-blog ito. Hindi ko na ilalagay kung bakit yun ang predictions ko. Basta yun lang ang gustong manalo. Well siguro hindi nga prediction. Sila lang ang gusto kong manalo.

Here are the nominees for the 23rd PMPC Star Awards for TV 2009 (my choices in bold):

Best Primetime TV Series Codename: Asero (GMA-7) Eva Fonda (ABS-CBN-2) Iisa Pa Lamang (ABS-CBN) Kahit Isang Saglit (ABS-CBN) Luna Mystika (GMA-7) May Bukas Pa (ABS-CBN-2) Tayong Dalawa (ABS-CBN) Best Drama Actor Gerald Anderson, Your Song Presents: My Only Hope, ABS-CBN) Christopher De Leon (Kahit Isang Saglit, ABS-CBN) Baron Geisler (SRO Cinemaserye Presents: Suspetsa, GMA-7) Coco Martin (Tayong Dalawa, ABS-CBN) Albert Martinez (May Bukas Pa, ABS-CBN) Diether Ocampo (Iisa Pa Lamang, ABS-CBN) Jericho Rosales (Kahit Isang Saglit, ABS-CBN) Best Drama Actress Claudine Barretto (Iisa Pa Lamang, ABS-CBN) Agot Isidro (Tayong Dalawa, ABS-CBN) Angel Locsin (Only You, ABS-CBN) Angelica Panganiban (Iisa Pa Lamang, ABS-CBN) Gina Pareño (Tayong Dalawa, ABS-CBN) Cherry Pie Picache (Iisa Pa Lamang, ABS-CBN) Cristine Reyes (Eva Fonda, ABS-CBN) Best Single Performance by an Actor John Lloyd Cruz (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Pedicab” episode, ABS-CBN) JC de Vera (Obra Presents: JC de Vera, “Pretty Boy” episode, GMA-7) Vice Ganda (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Bola” episode, ABS-CBN) Joross Gamboa (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Bisikleta” episode, ABS-CBN) Richard Gomez (Obra Presents: Katrina Halili, “Bayaran” episode, GMA-7) Albert Martinez (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Bisikleta” episode, ABS-CBN) Diether Ocampo (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Lambat” episode, ABS-CBN) John Wayne Sace (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Chess” episode, ABS-CBN) Best Single Performance by an Actress Gina Alajar (Obra Presents: JC de Vera, “Pretty Boy” episode, GMA-7) Gretchen Barretto (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Salamin” episode, ABS-CBN) Alessandra de Rossi (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Pedicab” episode, ABS-CBN) Sunshine Dizon (Obra Presents: Sunshine Dizon, “Butch” episode, GMA-7) Judy Ann Santos (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Lason” episode, ABS-CBN) Lorna Tolentino (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Chess” episode, ABS-CBN) Carmina Villarroel (Maalaala Mo Kaya: “Reseta” episode, ABS-CBN) Best Children Show Art Angel (GMA-7) Batang Bibbo (GMA-7) Kiddie Kwela (TV 5) Kids On Q! (Q 11) Sine ‘Skwela (ABS-CBN) Best Children Show Host Pia Arcangel, Tonipet Gaba, and Krystal Reyes (Art Angel, GMA-7) Roxanne Barcelo (Batang Bibbo, GMA-7) Bayani Agbayani (Kiddie Kwela, TV 5) Tonipet Gaba, Ella Guevarra, Romina de Jesus, David Hubalde, Sam Turingan, Renford Alano, and Aria Cariño (Kids On Q, Q 11) Tado Jimenez, Bombi Plata, and Shiela May Junsay (Sine’Skwela, Studio 23) Best Educational Program Born To Be Wild (GMA-7) Convergence (Net 25) Kabuhayang Swak Na Swak (ABS-CBN) Matanglawin (ABS-CBN) Quickfire (Q 11) Best Educational Program Host Kim Atienza (Matanglawin, ABS-CBN) Rosebud Benitez (Quickfire, Q 11) Paolo Contis (Bilib Ka Ba Nights Presents: World Records, GMA-7) Amy Perez and Gilbert Remulla (Kabuhayang Swak Na Swak, ABS-CBN) Dr. Ferdie Recio and Kiko Rustia (Born To Be Wild, GMA-7) Ramon “Bong” Revilla, Jr. (Kap’s Amazing Stories, GMA-7) Best Travel Show Balik-Bayan (Q 11) Bread and Butter (UNTV 37) Biyaheng Langit (IBC 13) Landmarks (Net 25) Trip Na Trip (ABS-CBN) Best Travel Show Host Drew Arellano (Balik-Bayan, Q 11) Arlene Razon, Kitt Meily, and Rodel Flordeliz (Bread and Butter, UNTV 37) Rey Langit (Biyaheng Langit, IBC 13) Faye de Castro (Landmarks, Net 25) Uma Khouny, Katherine de Castro, Jayson Gainza, Kian Kazemi, and Franzen Fajardo (Trip Na Trip, ABS-CBN) Best Reality Program Dare Duo (Q 11) Day Off (Q 11) OMG! (TV 5) Pinoy Records (GMA-7) Best Reality Program Host Ryan Agoncillo (Pinoy Fear Factor, ABS-CBN) Paolo Bediones (Survivor Philippines, GMA-7) Toni Gonzaga, Nikki Gil, and Billy Crawford (Pinoy Dream Academy – Season 2, ABS-CBN) Marc Nelson and Rovilson Fernandez (Dare Duo, Q 11) Manny Pacquiao and Chris Tiu (Pinoy Records, GMA-7) Best Lifestyle Show Events Incorporated (Q 11) Fashionistas By Heart (Q 11) House Life (Q 11) Life And Style (Q 11) Urban Zone (ABS-CBN) Us Girls (Studio 23) Best Lifestyle Show Host Tim Yap and Sam Oh (Events Incorporated, Q 11) Heart Evangelista, Jocas de Leon, and Schinina Juban (Fashionistas By Heart, Q 11) Tessa Prieto-Valdes (House Life, Q 11) Ricky Reyes (Life And Style, Q 11) Daphne Osmeña-Paez (Urban Zone, ABS-CBN) Angel Aquino, Iya Villania, and Cheska Garcia (Us Girls, Studio 23) Best Morning Show Good Morning Kuya (UNTV 37) Home Page (Net 25) One Morning (NBN 4) Umagang Kay Ganda (ABS-CBN) Unang Hirit (GMA-7) Best Morning Show Host Daniel Razon, Aida Gonzales, Allan Encarnacion, Rene Jose, Ryan Ramos, and Tony Arevalo (Good Morning, Kuya, UNTV 37) Ros Olgado, Eunice Mariño, and Weng dela Fuente (Home Page, Net 25) Aljo Bendijo, Bobby Yan, Claudine Trillo, JM Rodriguez, Charlene Lontoc, and Veronica Baluyut-Jimenez (One Morning, NBN 4) Edu Manzano, Pinky Webb, Bernadette Sembrano, Rica Peralejo, Donita Rose, Kim Atienza, Alex Santos, Anthony Taberna, Winnie Cordero, and Ginger Conejero (Umagang Kay Ganda, ABS-CBN) Arnold Clavio, Susie Entrata-Abrera, Lyn Ching-Pascual, Rhea Santos, Jolina Magdangal, Winnie Monsod, Drew Arellano, Regine Tolentino, and Eagle (Unang Hirit, GMA-7) Best Public Affairs Program Harapan (ABS-CBN) Probe Profiles (ABS-CBN) Y-Speak (Studio 23) Best Public Affairs Program Host Korina Sanchez and Ted Failon (Harapan, ABS-CBN) Cheche Lazaro (Probe Profiles, ABS-CBN) Bianca Gonzales (Y- Speak, Studio 23) Best Magazine Show Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho (GMA-7) Mel And Joey (GMA-7) Moments (Net 25) Rated K (ABS-CBN) The Beat (Q 11) Best Magazine Show Host Jessica Soho (Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho, GMA-7) Mel Tiangco and Joey de Leon (Mel and Joey, GMA-7) Gladys Reyes (Moments, Net 25) Korina Sanchez (Rated K, ABS-CBN) Ivan Mayrina, Valerie Tan, Tonipet Gaba, and Miriam Quiambao (The Beat, Q 11) Best Documentary Program I Survived (ABS-CBN) I-Witness: The GMA Documentaries (GMA-7) Kalye: Mga Kuwento ng Lansangan (ABS-CBN) Reporter’s Notebook (GMA-7) The Correspondents (ABS-CBN) Best Documentary Program Host Ces Oreña-Drilon (I Survived, ABS-CBN) Kara David, Jay Taruc, Sandra Aguinaldo, and Howie Severino (I-Witness: The GMA Documentaries, GMA-7) Atom Araullo, Sol Aragones, and Anthony Taberna (Kalye: Mga Kuwento Ng Lansangan, ABS-CBN) Maki Pulido and Jiggy Manicad (Reporter’s Notebook, GMA-7) Karen Davila, Abner Mercado, and Bernadette Sembrano (The Correspondents, ABS-CBN) Best Documentary Special Kidnap (ABS-CBN) Mega Tatlong Dekada (ABS-CBN) Newsmakers (GMA-7) Summer Sarap (GMA-7) Walang Iwanan (ABS-CBN) Walang Pera? (GMA-7) Best Public Service Program Bitag Live (UNTV 37) Imbestigador (GMA-7) Reunions (Q 11) Wish Ko Lang (GMA-7) Wonder Mom (ABS-CBN) XXX: Xklusibo, Xplosibong Xpose (ABS-CBN) Best Public Service Program Host Julius Babao, Henry Omaga-Diaz, and Pinky Webb (XXX: Xklusibo, Xplosibong Xpose, ABS-CBN) Karen Davila (Wonder Mom, ABS-CBN) Mike Enriquez (Imbestigador, GMA-7) Vicky Morales (Wish Ko Lang, GMA-7) Jessica Soho (Reunions, Q 11) Ben Tulfo (Bitag Live, UNTV 37) Best News Program 24 Oras (GMA-7) Balitanghali (Q 11) Bandila (ABS-CBN) IBC Express Balita (IBC 13) Saksi: Liga Ng Katotohanan (GMA-7) The Evening News (TV 5) TV Patrol Linggo (ABS-CBN) TV Patrol World (ABS-CBN) Best Male Newscaster Martin Andanar (The Evening News, TV 5) Julius Babao (TV Patrol World, ABS-CBN) Ted Failon (TV Patrol World, ABS-CBN) Ivan Mayrina (News On Q, Q 11) Henry Omaga-Diaz (TV Patrol World, ABS-CBN) Alex Santos (TV Patrol Linggo, ABS-CBN) Best Female Newscaster Karen Davila (TV Patrol World, ABS-CBN) Vicky Morales (Saksi: Liga Ng Katotohanan, GMA-7) Precious Hipolito-Castelo (IBC Express Balita, IBC 13) Ces Oreña-Drilon (Bandila, ABS-CBN) Korina Sanchez (Bandila, ABS-CBN) Mel Tiangco (24 Oras, GMA-7) Best Youth-Oriented Program Ka-Blog (GMA-7) Lipgloss (TV 5) Best Horror/Fantasy Program Komiks Presents: Dragonna (ABS-CBN) Komiks Presents: Flash Bomba (ABS-CBN) Komiks Presents: Nasaan Ka Maruja? (ABS-CBN) Komiks Presents: Tiny Tony (ABS-CBN) Komiks Presents: Varga (ABS-CBN) Midnight DJ (TV 5) Best Talent Search Program Shall We Dance: The Celebrity Dance Challenge (TV 5) Talentadong Pinoy (TV 5) Best Talent Search Program Host Lucy Torres-Gomez, Jon Avila, Victor Basa, and Arnell Ignacio (Shall We Dance: The Celebrity Dance Challenge, TV 5) Ryan Agoncillo (Talentadong Pinoy, TV 5) Regine Velasquez and Ogie Alcasid (Celebrity Duets – Season 2, GMA-7) Best New Male TV Personality JR de Guzman (Midnight DJ, TV 5) Zyrus Desamparado (Lipgloss, TV 5) Zaijian Jaranilla (May Bukas Pa, ABS-CBN) Xian Lim (Your Song Presents: My Only Hope, ABS-CBN) Guji Lorenzana (Precious Hearts Romance Presents: Bud Brothers, ABS-CBN) Jose Sarasola (Only You, ABS-CBN) JC Tiuseco (Unang Hirit, GMA-7) Best New Female TV Personality Maritoni Francisco (Kiddie Kwela, TV 5) Schinina Juban (Fashionistas By Heart, Q 11) Cheska Ortega (Lipgloss, TV 5) Queenie Padilla (Totoy Bato, GMA7) Patani (Ful Haus, GMA-7) Maricar Reyes (Precious Hearts Romance Presents Presents: Bud Brothers, ABS-CBN) Carmen Soo (Kahit Isang Saglit, ABS-CBN) Best Celebrity Talk Show Boy And Kris (ABS-CBN) Ruffa And Ai (ABS-CBN) Sharon (ABS-CBN) Sis (GMA-7) Spoon (Net 25) The Sweet Life (Q 11) Best Celebrity Talk Show Host Boy Abunda and Kris Aquino (Boy And Kris, ABS-CBN) Ruffa Gutierrez and Ai-Ai delas Alas (Ruffa And Ai, ABS-CBN) Sharon Cuneta (Sharon, ABS-CBN) Janice de Belen, Gelli de Belen, and Carmina Villarroel (Sis, GMA-7) Janice de Belen (Spoon, Net 25) Lucy Torres-Gomez and Wilma Doesnt (The Sweet Life, Q 11) Best Variety/Game Show All Star K!, The P1M Videoke Challenge (GMA-7) Pilipinas, Game KNB? (ABS-CBN) Wowowee (ABS-CBN) You And Me Against The World (TV 5) Best Game Show Host Kris Aquino (Kapamilya: Deal Or No Deal, ABS-CBN) Janno Gibbs (Kakasa Ka Ba Sa Grade 5?, GMA-7) Richard Gomez (Family Feud, GMA-7) Allan K and Jaya (All Star K! The P1M Videoke Challenge, GMA-7) Edu Manzano (Pilipinas, Game KNB?, ABS-CBN) Best Gag Show Banana Split (ABS-CBN) Bubble Gang (GMA-7) Goin’ Bulilit (ABS-CBN) Lokomoko High (TV 5) Nuts Entertainment (GMA-7) Wow Mali (TV 5) Best Showbiz-Oriented Show The Buzz (ABS-CBN) Entertainment Live (ABS-CBN) Juicy! (TV 5) Showbiz Central (GMA-7) SNN: Showbiz News Ngayon (ABS-CBN) Startalk (GMA-7) Best Male Showbiz-Oriented Show Host Boy Abunda (SNN: Showbiz News Ngayon, ABS-CBN) Joey de Leon (Startalk, GMA-7) Raymond Gutierrez (Showbiz Central, GMA-7) Luis Manzano (Entertainment Live, ABS-CBN) Mo Twister (Showbiz Central, GMA-7) Best Female Showbiz-Oriented Show Host Kris Aquino (The Buzz, ABS-CBN) Toni Gonzaga (Entertainment Live, ABS-CBN) Bianca Gonzales (Entertainment Live, ABS-CBN) Pia Guanio (Showbiz Central, GMA-7) Mariel Rodriguez (Entertainment Live, ABS-CBN) Best Comedy Show Everybody Hapi (TV 5) Ful Haus (GMA-7) Parekoy (ABS-CBN) Best Comedy Actor Ogie Alcasid (Bubble Gang, GMA-7) Joey de Leon (Nuts Entertainment, GMA-7) Jayson Gainza (Banana Split, ABS-CBN) Pooh (Banana Split, ABS-CBN) Vic Sotto (Ful Haus, GMA-7) Michael V. (Bubble Gang, GMA-7) Best Comedy Actress Eugene Domingo (Everybody Hapi, TV 5) Alex Gonzaga (Everybody Hapi, TV 5) Angelica Panganiban (Banana Split, ABS-CBN) Pokwang (Banana Split, ABS-CBN) Rufa Mae Quinto (Bubble Gang, GMA-7) Sharlene San Pedro (Goin’ Bulilit, ABS-CBN) Best Daytime Drama Series Ligaw Na Bulaklak (ABS-CBN) Pieta (ABS-CBN) Precious Hearts Romance Presents: Bud Brothers, “Stupid Cupid” episode (ABS-CBN) Precious Hearts Romance Presents: Bud Brothers, “Pepper Roses” episode (ABS-CBN) Sine Novela Presents: Saan Darating Ang Umaga? (GMA-7) Best Drama Mini-Series SRO Cinemaserye Presents: Ganti (GMA-7) SRO Cinemaserye Presents: Suspetsa (GMA-7) Your Song Presents: Boystown (ABS-CBN) Your Song Presents: My Only Hope (ABS-CBN) Your Song Presents: Someone Like You (ABS-CBN) Best Drama Anthology Maalaala Mo Kaya (ABS-CBN) Maynila: Larawan Ng Bansa (GMA-7) Obra (GMA-7) Best Musical Variety Show ASAP ‘08 (ABS-CBN) SOP Rules (GMA-7) Walang Tulugan with the Master Showman (GMA-7) Best Male TV Host Ogie Alcasid (SOP Rules, GMA-7) Allan K (Eat Bulaga, GMA-7) Luis Manzano (ASAP ‘08, ABS-CBN) German Moreno (Walang Tulugan with the Master Showman, GMA-7) Vic Sotto (Eat Bulaga, GMA-7) Best Female TV Host Julia Clarete (Eat Bulaga, GMA-7) Valerie Concepcion (Wowowee, ABS-CBN) Toni Gonzaga (ASAP ‘08, ABS-CBN) Pia Guanio (Eat Bulaga, GMA-7) Regine Velasquez (SOP Rules, GMA-7) Best TV Station ABS-CBN GMA-7 IBC 13 NBN 4 NET 25 Q 11 RPN 9 STUDIO 23 TV 5 UNTV 37 Breakdown: ABS-CBN - 35 GMA - 9 TV5 – 6 Q11 – 3 IBC – 0 NBN – 0 NET25 – 0 RPN – 0 Studio23 – 0 UNTV – 0 TOTAL: 53 The 23rd PMPC Star Awards for TV will be held tonight at the Pagcor Grand Theater, Ninoy Aquino Avenue, Paranaque City at 7PM. ABS-CBN will air the late telecast.

[Via http://sifranzaypinoy.wordpress.com]

Dallas Stars Blog | Sports News | News for Dallas, Texas | Dallas ...

stop!

2009-11-28T22:33:00.000+02:00

it’s another early morning that i reached home at..

i didn’t stay at home like i plan to, last sat and this sat.

i’m definitely stopping such weekend lifestyle.

no more drinking !

there was a huge movement in office..

all i can hope is that monday will be a good day for us.

life is REALLY unpredictable.

we should never take anything for granted.

[Via http://paperlulu.wordpress.com]

Microsoft patents viral gaming plans // News

Ed Hochuli

2009-11-28T14:49:00.000+02:00

It’s amazing how anyone in the NFL outside of players, coaches or the commissioner has managed to achieve rock star status. However, we’re not talking about any random person here! We’re talking about Ed “I’m jacked out of my motherf*ckin mind” Hochuli! Seriously, just Google the guy and all kinds of sh*t pops up. It’s crazy!

A few years ago, when I first learned of the tour de force that is Ed Hochuli, I stumbled across WhatWouldEdHochuliDo.com. This site is pure genius! On there, they list 50 True Facts About Ed Hochuli. They are flippin hilarious!

However, as a warning, if you’re not familiar with Ed Hochuli or other random bits of pointless f*ckery, they probably won’t be as funny for you as they were for me. Regardless, I’ve harnessed the power of Copy and Paste and brought the 50 True Facts About Ed Hochuli here to YAKWII and added my own special touch to them. Enjoy.

1. Ed Hochuli invented apples

2. Ed Hochuli calculated Pi to the 300th digit and the declared it ENOUGH.

3. Ed Hochuli wrote a thirteen volume, complete history of the Yukon and gave it away for free.

4. Ed Hochuli owns Mokena, Illinois

5. Ed Hochuli knows exactly how to dance about architecture

6. Ed Hochuli gets an 80% discount on overnight shipping with Fed Ex

7. Ed Hochuli uses 65% of his brain

8. Ed Hochuli can resist all viruses with the power of his mind

9. Ed Hochuli gets a peppermint oil pedicure every Saturday morning

10. In 2012 Ed Hochuli will be carved into Mount Rushmore, just over to the left.

11. Ed Hochuli appears with a golden aura in every color photo

12. Ed Hochuli has a normal to dry T-Zone

13. In May of 1962, Ed Hochuli predicted the advent of satellite radio

14. Ed Hochuli gives Roadhouse 3 out of 4 stars

15. Ed Hochuli wants to get to know your mom better.

16. Ed Hochuli destroyed the remaining 73 cases of Crystal Pepsi by throwing them out of the stratosphere

17. Ed Hochuli rides rollercoasters without strapping himself in.

18. Ed Hochuli filled his lungs with pure air and exhaled a mighty wind that expelled the bird flu from all of North America.

19. Ed Hochuli eats the heart.

20. The weights in the penalty flag of Ed Hochuli are pure platinum.

21. Ed Hochuli has been the roller in an ongoing craps game since April of 2003

22. Ed Hochuli translated Leviticus into Russian

23. Ed Hochuli knows what it’s like to be the sad man, to be the bad man, behind blue eyes

24. Ed Hochuli is hoping you’ll be his Valentine

25. Ed Hochuli has won 23 Source Awards

26. Ed Hochuli completed the Tour De France in three days.

27. Ed Hochuli predicts the eruption of Volcanoes by measuring his navel.

28. Ed Hochuli is the ghost writer for the last five years of NANCY cartoons

(used to love this show back in the day!)

29. Ed Hochuli can get blood from a turnip…AND HOW.

30. Ed Hochuli developed Minnetonka’s Greatest Patty Melt

31. As a youth, Ed Hochuli walked the great plains of the USA scattering apple seeds throughout the land.

32. Ed Hochuli is the Majority Whip

33. Ed Hochuli prefers rainbow sprinkles

34. Ed Hochuli beat Smarty Jones in a foot race

35. Ed Hochuli is not above the law…but who is?

36. Ed Hochuli wrote the third verse of the Star Spangled Banner

37. In Greece, Ed Hochuli is a unit of measurement

38. Ed Hochuli loves the tuck rule

39. Ed Hochuli serves as Secretary of The Crackback on George W. Bush’s cabinet

40. Ed Hochuli needs more cowbell

41. Ed Hochuli can skeletonize a cow inside of three minutes

42. Ed Hochuli wrote Shakespeare’s later plays

42. Ed Hochuli has perfect pitch

43. Ed Hochuli has been to Mars. His assessment? No biggie.

44. Ed Hochuli has your mom’s secret Chex Mix recipe.

45. Ed Hochuli keeps a living giant squid in his basement

46. Ed Hochuli’s biceps change with the barometric pressure

47. Ed Hochuli won Luxemburg Idol

48. Ed Hochuli saw mommy kissing Santa Claus

49. Ed Hochuli cures cold sores with love

50. Ed Hochuli can cross stitch to beat the band!

[Via http://youalreadyknowwhoitis.com]

Perez Hilton: Ed Begley, Jr. Freaks Out On Fox News!

123 saosin

2009-11-28T06:45:00.000+02:00

寧惠 says: *lol *okay *hmm *talk about deshun’s traumatic experience with flying cockroaches thn -unчςәp says: *Hmm 寧惠 says: *LOL -unчςәp says: *Okay! 寧惠 says: *because you didnt know they exist anyw -unчςәp says: *I heard cockroaches don’t die if you cut off their head. 寧惠 says: *thn end with it was a dream -.- *thn end with actually you were dreaming tt it was a dreAM *okay forget it i am lame *anyw *REALLY? *EEEEEEE -unчςәp says: *Really? 寧惠 says: *tt they dont die even if you cut off their heads -unчςәp says: *Yeah it’s so cool. 寧惠 says: *eeeeeeee -unчςәp says: *They die only after 1 week because they can’t drink. 寧惠 says: *….. *omg. *sick *i swear i hate flying cockroaches -unчςәp says: *I think they talked about it in primary school. 寧惠 says: *o.o -unчςәp says: *Déjà vu. I think I heard you say that before. 寧惠 says: *but i rather 2 flying cockroaches land on my head thn fly away *thn one tiny worm land on my head and continue crawling -.-l -unчςәp says: *Wow. How?! 寧惠 says: *how ? *how wad? -unчςәp says: *The worm got onto your head. 寧惠 says: *it didnt *i was talking about a simulation *i mean like *i rather *not that it did happen *lo *lol -unчςәp says: *Oh haha. *I’m scared of everything. 寧惠 says: *of what? o.o -unчςәp says: *I’d rather nothing happens. 寧惠 says: *LOL -unчςәp says: *Creepy crawlies. 寧惠 says: *not like you will scream if one lands on you *lol *I FKING HATE THE CRAWLIES. *i am like okay with non flying cockroaches andlizards *but i JUST HATE CRAWLIES *THOSE WITH NEVER ENDING LEGS *OMFG *the tought of it fully digusts me -unчςәp says: *I’m scared. *You’re scaring me. 寧惠 says: *o_o -unчςәp says: *Are there flying lizards in the first place? =o 寧惠 says: *you ARE not serious RIGHT. o.o *LOL *NO *LOL *LOL *LOL *LOL -unчςәp says: *Right. 寧惠 says: *LOL

-unчςәp says: *I’m outside now by the way. 寧惠 says: *o.o *oh *maybe a thousand locusts will fly your way -unчςәp says: *Maybe… *Maybe a polar bear will start flying past me. 寧惠 says: *LOL *I LOVE POLAR BEARS -unчςәp says: *They’ll die. =o 寧惠 says: *you should totally call me if one flies by *i wna hug them! -unчςәp says: *I heard pandas are coming from china. 寧惠 says: *after plunging a knife into them *before they start killing me *really -unчςәp says: *You wouldn’t say that when they actually start hugging you. 寧惠 says: *why? o.o *so cute and fluffy -unчςәp says: *They are strong. our weird convo about animals. ._. LOL. one flying cockroach landed on my head for a second ytd =’( i had to wash my head at 2plus am in the morning because of that… and all keyi did was LAUGH AT ME. whatttt! lol. it’s quite funny actually. cause i was like wtf-ing. went to meet amanda at amk ytd. headed to amk at 1plus. brought her to meet deshun & co. = sean/shaun/shawn + zhisheng + jeckie. went to play pool for like a few hours. after that went bowling. they count payments by frame ._. which ended up around 40plus? yeah sean/shaun/shawn went home early. thn deshun left us in the mist of bowling. so he left us in the awkward presence of 2 of his friends. haha. but they are funny. so yeah, its okay. walked together to the MRT station. went home~ suppose to meet Jo for our photo thingy today. but it rained in the morning so we decided to cancel. going to meet the 6/3 guys and play bball in some hougang court. they are suppose to book it? lol. Jo coming along. meeting manda tmr for whatttt. giving out flyers? omg. i guess i just have to do that for a day. need some cash man -.- i want my micro SD card. Deshun is not replying me! must have drown when he was swimming. RIP ;D lol kidding xD btw, www.dhism.com wont die if you click it ya. lol. yeah. so gotta stop here~ bye.

[Via http://christinaoh.wordpress.com]

Fox News Makes the Best. Pie Chart. Ever. | The Big Picture

Zombie invasion?

2009-11-26T22:31:00.000+02:00

I don’t know about you, but ever since the whole “2012″ thing started up, there have been ALOT of articles on the web about how to survive a zombie uprising.

Now I myself feel quite prepared because of this (I have my head shots timed to perfection and a year’s supply of Mike and Ike’s). But I can’t help but wonder why there has been a rush of these survival guides.

I don’t know if the ancient Mayan civilisation predicted an undead army who would strike the earth rendering it lifeless…if they did, that would be impressive. Perhaps they predicted that they would come back…maybe we should be preparing for a Mayan takeover?

Then again, this could all be some overly dramatic ruse, we tend to go through these every so often…like economic recessions.

Stay safe!

fear teh zombie kitteh

[Via http://lovedrunk11.wordpress.com]

Organizing for America | Cloe Axelson's Blog: Morning News

WELCOME TO MY PLACE*

2009-11-26T06:48:00.000+02:00

My doors are always open

For all of you to see

All of the happiness and laughter

You are always wished from ME!

So, I just want to thank you all

For everything you say

that brings a smile to my face

each and every day!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Believe in Yourself;

Luisa Doraz

[Via http://dorazsays.wordpress.com]

Hot Air » Blog Archive » Great news: Oprah to host primetime Obama ...

I Moustache You A Question

2009-11-24T22:44:00.000+02:00

Movember (a portmanteau of the words ‘Moustache’ and ‘November’), is an annual month-long event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November. The event has been claimed to have been invented in 1999 by group of Australian men from Adelaide.

Since 2004, the Movember Foundation charity has run Movember events to raise awareness and funds for men’s health issues, such as prostate cancer and depression, in Australia and New Zealand. In 2007, events were launched in Ireland, Canada, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

I’ve went unshaven for pretty much the whole of November. The reason? I had an agreement with a few friends that we would let our facial fuzz grow for a few weeks and then shave it into some form of moustache for the last week in November so we could do our own little contribution to the Movember Campaign. Well the beginning of the last week in November started yesterday. So on Sunday afternoon i blew the dust off my razor and had a shave, i must admit i was tempted to shave the whole beard off as it was getting itchy as hell BUT i stuck to the agreement and shaved myself a Lemmy style moustache/beard effort. Today i’ve came to the decision that for each remaining day this week i’ll have a different style. Basically i’ll gradually shave the moustache off bit by bit. So Sunday, yesterday and today i sported the Lemmy style. Tomorrow will be the simple yet overwhelmingly camp handlebar, Thursday will be a “normal”, casual moustache and on Friday it comes off. I realise that technically that means i’ve only sported a moustache for 5 days and not a week. But Sunday to Thursday is enough for me! Plus, i’ve got a night out on Friday and there is no way that i’m heading into the Glasgow nightlife with a hairy top lip!

Tom Selleck's gotta be in there somewhere!

This Friday, i’ll do a special post about my 5 days living with my moustache and also a special “Top Lip Music Top Ten” List that’ll include the best ten moustaches in music. I’ll also stick up some pictures of my own fuzz so everyone can have a laugh at my hairy lipped expense.

Until then though enjoy two classic moustaches……technically these two dudes have beards but seeing as i’m saving the Moustache Brigade for Friday they’ll do for the moment.

MP3: Motorhead – Ace Of Spades

MP3: Kris Kristofferson – Closer To The Bone

And as a little taster of what to expect from my own facial creations have a look (and listen) at this….

S.I.T Wolf X

[Via http://someonesinthewolf.wordpress.com]

Microsoft - News Corp. deal could face legal challenges ...

Something we forgot

2009-11-24T14:45:00.000+02:00

There are some things that are meant to be stay in your system. But there are some things that are just too painful but we still want to let it have some room in you. Why? Because we feel that we will lose one of the best things in life that have ever happened. But ever wonder why you still feel that pain? Admit it, you’re still not over that issue. Yes, I admit there are some things that I couldn’t let go so easily. Call me a wuss or sentimental but if I were to tell you I’m over everything in the past, you can be sure I am lying. Perhaps lying to you or lying to myself.

This don’t apply to me, it applies to everyone. If he/she is able to erase all memories, then he/she is not human afterall. Its just a matter of whether you are able to get the lesson out of the pain you’re still keeping.

Ps; This has got nothing to do with the JeanGrey issue. So guys, stop it k? HAHAHAHA.

Oh, let me end with something that has got nothing to do with what I typed earlier on,

I used to play and have fun at the end of the day.

Now if you were to ask me, “Khai, are you still playing this game?”

I’ll answer, “I still am… But now, I play to for the thrill and for me to keep for end of the day.”

Go figure.

[Via http://khrl.wordpress.com]

Fox News to Go 'Error-Free' In 2010 - Fox News - Gawker

Random text message

2009-11-24T06:48:00.000+02:00

Day 9: Today I received a text from my hubby, just to say hi and love you. It probably took him all of 20 secs, not much time out of a day to let someone know you are thinking of them. I am grateful for his effort and acknowledge sometimes we can all overlook showing gratitude to the people closest to us.

Day 9: Text message

[Via http://latteaddict.wordpress.com]

Blog: Petrino Withdraws From WKU Mix | Arkansas News

Poor Turkey

2009-11-22T22:46:00.000+02:00

By Timo Cerantola

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, I guess many of you are looking forward to a traditional Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings of course. Naturally, you’ll have turkey. You always have turkey on Thanksgiving. It’s a family tradition.

Poor turkeys, they don’t care much for this family tradition. Let’s face it, they have absolutely nothing to be thankful for on Thanksgiving.

To a turkey, Thanksgiving must be the quintessential nightmare from hell – sort of like a spooky Stephen King novel, the one where all your friends slowly disappear one by one. You ask around, but everyone is clueless. No one seems to know where they’ve gone. You search everywhere for them – until the end when you discover your best friend tits up on a table in front of a bunch of smiling, creepy, hungry fat people.

OK now, before all you budding vegetarian tree-huggers out there start feeling remorseful and ashamed of your carnivorous ways. Before you even think about switching your Thanksgiving menus to tofu turkey or vegetable lasagne, I have one thing to say. Turkeys are to blame for their own sad predicament.

What, you may ask, could those poor turkeys have done to deserve the November death sentence?

Well, let me tell you.

After some extensive turkey research and analysis, I have come to the conclusion that their serious image and public relations failures are a direct result of turkey incompetence and mismanagement. Here are just a few of my findings and the five most likely reasons why turkeys will once again be a Thanksgiving casualty.

Reason #1: The name “Turkey!”

OK, this nerdy sounding name almost screams, “Kill me and eat me, I’m just a stupid bird.” In fact, among humans, the word ‘turkey’ is now commonly associated with losers.

Case in point: remember that weird kid in the schoolyard with the odd name – Millard, Heathcliff, Brewster or Schmedley?

These guys were every bully’s number one target; mercilessly teased and pushed around mainly because of their odd or peculiar names.

Well, turkeys have the same problem. They need a name change. Something proper sounding – perhaps an elitist type name would work. A dignified sounding name that implies wealth and power – names like Churchill or Eisenhower. Names such as these get a lot of respect among humans. Somehow, stuffing and roasting an Eisenhower seems unappetizing, not to mention, unpatriotic.

Reason #2: The turkey call.

“Gobble. Gobble.”

Is it me, or does this sound kind of suggestive?

Seriously, turkeys might as well wander around the world’s barnyards screaming, “Bite me, bite me!” I think turkeys should stop with the “gobble, gobble” and change it to “Veggie plate, veggie plate.” The subliminal suggestion alone may start some humans on the path to vegetarianism.

Reason #3: The turkey walk.

OK, that lopsided turkey trot of theirs is pathetic. Seriously, when I think of a trotting turkey, I picture an awkward oafish creature running across a barnyard, teetering back and forth with all the grace of a malformed pumpkin on legs – which then haplessly loses its balance and impales itself on a fence post. Really, you might as well eat one; they’ll probably manage to kill themselves anyways.

Reason #4: Turkeys can’t fly.

Turkeys have wings but they can’t fly. So, they’re perceived as failures.

True, go out to the farm and see for yourself, turkeys cannot fly. And to make matters worse, they’re not even trying to fly. Really, who cares about a failure that never even tries? So, why should we care?

Think about all those people who have things that they can’t operate. Those with computers they cannot use or electronic equipment that endlessly flashes 12:00 a.m. That’s why we call these people “turkeys.”

Finally, reason 5: The goofy red sack.

What is that goofy red sack that flaps around on their heads?

What exactly is the purpose of that thing?

Is this where a turkey keep its brains?

Sorry, but in this ever-increasing superficial world, that red sack thing has got to go. It is not a very attractive feature. If turkeys were at least trying to hide that thing by covering it up with make-up or perhaps looking into plastic surgery options, we might be a little more understanding. But no. “Turkeys” just wobble and gobble around the barnyard with that red thing flapping all over the place not even trying to fly – which all leads to one unavoidable conclusion.

This year, when people start thinking about their Thanksgiving menus, it’s very likely that some edible barnyard type is going to take a dirt nap and, 99 out of 100 times, turkey is number one on their hit list.

I imagine in time, perhaps a million years from now, as the ‘turkey’ species moves up the evolutionary ladder; they will rise up and take control of their own destinies with a well-funded lobby in Washington; PR firms working on pro-turkey ad campaigns to bolster their sullied public image – they may even get a turkey elected to Congress (granted, not the first turkey in congress).

But not this year; no, sadly this year like last, those poor dumb turkeys aren’t going anywhere but great with stuffing, cranberry and gravy. Happy Thanksgiving. Cheers.

[Via http://blogoffanddie.wordpress.com]

Bad News: Newspaper Circulations Going Up! - Circulation Rates ...

it's almost bordering on my earlier threat to quit.

2009-11-22T14:48:00.000+02:00

Reasons YOU need to get your ass in gear and send your thankfulness to me.

NOW.

(dearbooshy at hotmail dot com)

1. The deadline is Tuesday…I think we’ve procrastinated enough.

2. You probably need to remind yourself why you married him…or her.

3. It’s like free advertising…just without the super-massive-fifty-million-views-exposure…but we’re *almost* there (that just made me laugh…a sardonic, never-in-your-lifetime-keep-dreaming laugh)

4. There isn’t a test at the end…so think of it like major extra credit…or something…with chocolate.

5. A day of thankfulness would be really depressing without any well, thankfulness. Which is completely circular and the result of such a catastrophe would probably send me on a downward spiral into crazyville, and I know you don’t want that on your conscience.

6. Babs just told me to shut the hell up all, “Don’t be a brat. You can’t force anyone to DO anything.” I simply reminded her that the reason she didn’t run off, “sayonara, asshole” was because of my super-stealth plan called Moxie. Follow the logic? No? Let me help: you don’t want to be the recipient of my super-stealth plan.

7. It’s the right thing to do.

8. You’ll need an escape for when you’ve reached the in-law/child/random uncle exposure maximum all, “I need to go meditate and remind myself why I didn’t just strangle you.”

9. It will probably make your bloggy-friends realize they need to stop being all whiny and mopey…or at least give them one day of, “Wow! I love everything…The trees! The thorny bushes! The carpet fibers! The cat’s ass!”

10. You’d be the start of a tradition…and who doesn’t like to be able to say, “I STARTED THAT. I participated the FIRST DAMN TIME…I’ll bet you can’t say THAT. Exactly. I’m awesome.”

And we all like to be awesome.

Like the awesome people who have already sent their thankfulness.

At least they’ll be able to breathe easy come Thursday…

(and if you’re one of those few breathing easy…feel free to leave lots of chiding, guilt-inducing comments)

[Via http://booshy.wordpress.com]

Organizing for America | Cloe Axelson's Blog: Morning News

Patriotism is Alive!

2009-11-22T06:42:00.000+02:00

In a time in which is seems patriotism is dead, I observed last night that it is very much alive. I was so moved that it brought me to tears. I think the fact it was my last game as a student also played into my emotions, but that is beside the point.

It was during the half-time show that I noticed that people still overwhelmingly love America. Every home game our band performs a themed show and this week was a ‘Salute to America and our Armed Forces’ show. They had a member of our armed forces from each branch that proudly carried their flag across the field and a member of each branch was honored during the performance. When the booming voice on the speakers asked everyone to ‘please stand,’ everyone that I could see did without blinking or thinking twice.

What really got to me about this performance was when the announcer asked everyone to continue standing as we took a moment to honor those who were lost at Fort Hood. It was amazing to see over 100,000 people silent and paying their respects. Well, except for the couple of drunken guys behind me. I almost turned around and told them to have some decency.

After the performance, a few members of our armed forces walked by our section. It was quite astonishing to see so many of my fellow students stand up, cheer for them and yell out ‘thank you.’

This whole thing reminded me that there are people out there who still love our country and that respect the men and women who sacrifice so much to ensure that we may all retain our freedoms. It also solidified the notion in my mind that I will do whatever it takes to make sure that America stays who she is. I refuse to lie down and let some radical politicians change everything that I love about the land I am so blessed to be a part of. I know I’m not alone in this way of thinking. We need to band together and show these Washington cronies that we won’t stand for this. It needs to stop, and it needs to stop now.

Oh, and if you were wondering, we beat Vanderbilt (31-16)!

[Via http://kfredspeaks.wordpress.com]

Fox News Just Can't Stop Responding to Jon Stewart's Comedy ...

Why women are like food

2009-11-21T22:49:00.000+02:00

You’ve heard it a million times before, and probably done it a few times yourself. At restaurants, movie theaters, at work and pretty much everywhere else in public. Now get your mind out of the gutter, I’m talking about terms of endearment.

You know, when you call your better half, “Honey-bun” or “‘lil lamb chop” or “sweetie-pie” or the countless other sweet/salty snacks/foods you like or can think of. But did you ever wonder where these terms originated from? Or phrases like “You look good enough to eat”. Well yes, porn…. but they get their material from some place too. No prizes for guessing but all this terminology stems from the human-desire to consume…food.

Ergo, thought it would be only too fitting to relate women to food.

So without further delay….

Empire Butter Chicken

Health rating: 6/10

Usually makes an appearance after a very drunken night, succulent, usually tender, and generally, very satisfying after a night of binge drinking. But just like the actual dish, you kind of regret you had some when you wake up the next morning. Ends up giving you unexpected problems, like making you spend extended periods in the loo and seeking treatment later.

Daal Rice

Health rating: 8/10

Staple food of most Indian men. Just like the dish, these women are there whenever you need, and are ready at a moments notice. Also just like the dish, gets boring and mundane if consumed everyday for long durations of time. And this results in a yearning for the occasional “Butter chicken”, after which you want it again. Gave birth to the adage of “Can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em”

“Healthy” Tandoori Chicken

Health rating: 3/10

Wrong on so many levels. These are the kind of women who will take something fun and suck the life right out of it. Just like the dish, the promise of the meaty-goodness of legs & breasts is laid out right under your nose and then taken away while reminding you sternly, “That this much rich food is not good for you” instead “have a modified version of it, just like the original, but without the masala or the flavor, told you just like the original” I’ve been told by a fellow researcher, that there is a name for this variety of woman, “wife”.

Chateaubriand

Health rating: 4/10

Definitely an acquired taste. Just like the dish, will run up quite a bill at restaurants. Goes best after expensive wine or scotch. Comes in a portion just big enough to satisfy but leaves you craving for more. Definitely can’t afford to spend time with this woman everyday. Unless you have very, very deep pockets.

Raas Malai

Health rating: 3/10

Made popular by the BBC programme “Goodness gracious me” This term is constantly used by British-Asians (notably punjabis) and Brits who wanna hang with the asian kids. Literally stems from the term “eye-candy” more often than not, these women do turn out to be just that, candy, the kind that makes you wish you had tooth-ache just so you’d be distracted enough by the pain, not to hear her silly rambling!

Maggi Noodles

Health rating: 8/10

Similar to the daal rice variety in so many ways. This is the very epitome of the comfort variety. There by your side to give you solace when the world is against you. Doesn’t mind being there when every other varienty is scarce or non-existent. And ready in just 2-minutes (a lil overboard I know). Just like the dish, this woman is great to spend time with in the morning, afternoon, night or even in-between meals. Again just like the daal rice variety, looses it’s appeal if consumed too often.

There are, of course, numerous other varieties, because just like the endless, wonderful world of cuisine, the varieties of women are also limitless.

Which is why the “Doshi’s Institute” is recruiting the most brilliant minds (i.e. you) to contribute your findings and help further the boundaries of science and human understanding. If you do want to share your research, do get in touch.

[Via http://latenightmadness.wordpress.com]

Organizing for America | Cloe Axelson's Blog: Morning News

How AFA affects my weekend

2009-11-21T14:49:00.000+02:00

Basically, I would be too tired and busy to blog this weekend, as can be seen today when I spent my entire day @ AFA buying merchandise, having fun commenting on how the meido cafe doesn’t seem like a real meido cafe, and snapping my camera away at cosplayers. My thanks and apologies to j1m0ne who was frequently abandoned without notice as I followed my lens to the cute/kakkoii girls and guys and forgot about her.

Photos will be up later, while I attempt to track down the K-ON seiyuuz in the airport. In short, it is a camping effort on my part with no guarantee that I’ll be able to find them. Good luck to me. With AFA continuing for one more day tomorrow, I wish someone could give me a much-needed massage on my back and feet. I need a waifu, and not a 2D one.

So, ja mata ne!

[Via http://rinerei.wordpress.com]

News – Critics Slam New Moon – Movies, TV & Music – UsMagazine.com

butterfly

2009-11-21T06:33:00.000+02:00

Today was a fun day xD

Quite tiring actually >.<;;

But went to class in the morning. Had a yummy cookie. Talked an hour with a friend. That was okay.

Then went to class in which I just watched a movie for extra credit.

Basically I didn’t even haev to go today >.<

But went to the mall. expecting to find something I like but I didn’t >.<

Had cheesecake! And chipotle! Omgsh and chips a guac. Today was such a food day. A yummy food day.

LEts see…

Explored mroe of campus…

hence the picture.

I took that picture! *ish very proud*

That butterfly liked me~ So did the ducks… but meh. The ducks can be scary… I think they were laughing at me -.-;;

–Kimiko–

News Ticker: DJ AM, John Mayer, Imeem, Lil Wayne : Rolling Stone ...

Thermometer

2009-11-19T22:41:00.000+02:00

Seems like I am the human thermometer in the office- with workmates oftentimes trying to figure out if it’s hot or cold with the kind of jacket I’m wearing , or if I’m wearing any at all, the length of the sleeve, the texture of what I’m wearing, even the colour.

Of course- they exaggerate, but they must notice something, as they most definitely do comment.

I wore my white cotton summer top today, short sleeved and a colourful butterfly embroidered in the front, no jacket and three quarter jeans. Seeing me walk in- they decided it must be warm today.

I played around, too. Dude, its casual Friday and it was a pleasant 26 degrees this morning. Who needs to see the mercury rising to feel that?

That makes me think- I must put a lot of thought in my attire without even realizing it! I must be a girl

AdMob intros interactive iPhone advertising unit | iLounge News

mon.

2009-11-19T14:48:00.000+02:00

monday will be a bad day. cause i can’t come home until 11pm. auntie have some cleansing the house christian thingy until 10plus. and only adults allowed. =.= poor aidan and faith will be send to their cousins’ home. while the poor me will have to camp at tracy’s house until i get a call from them. lol. she have to work on that day. so i think will be helping her to close shop first then happy happy walk to her house, open the tent and camp. first time in my 7 years with them that i want to be home =.=

co rehearsal today was okay. co practice will always be good when the female conductor is not here. she was only here for a while. bitchy asshole. i hate her. and today suddenly got a few parts of the songs i can’t play. its bad ): tmr performance alr lehh! my dizi in school now, can’t practise =.=and ohh, i had great fun laughing at sungchang’s uncle shoes and his ‘house’ that is filled with ginger smell. lol.

okay, drama time. ep 22 alr! anyway, i got my books alr. HAPPY!

Global Voices Online » Azerbaijan: News of IRI departure met with ...

Is School REALLY Cool?

2009-11-19T06:49:00.000+02:00

Tomorrow is the date I’ve been waiting for. I get to register for my Spring semester classes. Last semester I was all messed up with my registration time and I didn’t plan out my schedule before hand. So far, I’ve got a math class, an english class, a vet tech class and hopefully an animal handling class if it opens up. For some reason it’s not allowing anyone to register into it. Oh well, we’ll see what happens.

In other news, Ridge and I are applying for jobs non stop. Work around here is almost impossible to find. I’m going to be helping Ridge study for the GED test. He really needs it to improve his chances of getting a job. I hate that neither of us can get a job just because I’m young and he didn’t finish school. Sometimes life really sucks. Ridge isn’t a drop-out, he’s going to start college soon. But he can’t put that down on any applications until he actually starts classes. I hate that, but it’s the law and I’d rather he didn’t get charged with perjury. That would suck.

Speaking of the law and all the crappy legalities, I hate that almost every place around here doesn’t hire under 18. It’s completely unfair. I know, everyone says “Life’s unfair,” but this is stupid. Anyways, this is stupid. I’m going to continue being a lazy child, sitting at my house watching a movie. Maybe I’ll apply for some more jobs and then take a bath. Tune in next time for more fun stuff.

News – Miley Cyrus: I "Don't Want Anything to Do" With 'New Moon ...

New book, Muhammad: The "Banned" Images

2009-11-17T22:39:00.000+02:00

A new book being published that, unlike Yale University Press, will include the Muhammad cartoons. The Volokh Conspiracy has the news:

I’m pleased to be the first to report that the newly founded Voltaire Press at Duke University has just published Muhammad: The “Banned” Images. The book includes all the images that were omitted by the Yale University Press from Jytte Klausen’s The Cartoons That Shook the World — including the 12 Mohammed cartoons — plus many more historically significant items (a total of 31), together with brief discussions of the context behind each work. The images, reproduced in high quality and in full color, include works by William Blake, Gustave Dore, and Salvador Dali, as well as Muslim artists from the Ottoman, Safavid, and Mughal empires.

The book includes an Introduction by Prof. Gary Hull, Director of the Program on Values and Ethics in the Marketplace at Duke University, who has been the driving force behind the book. It also includes as an afterword, a Statement of Principle, which I am honored to have been asked to sign. (The Statement is followed by a disclaimer that “The above signatories agree with the ideas expressed in the Statement of Principle. However, they were not involved in the creation of Muhammad: The “Banned Images”, and have no responsibility for its contents.”

The disclaimer to the Statement of Principles wreaks of dhimmitude and is obviously a wink and a nod to Muslims who will cry blasphemy as they charge forward, effigies and ‘Death to Voltaire’ signs in hand. Read the Introduction:

From the Introduction by Dr. Hull:

Muhammad: The “Banned” Images is a “picture book” — or errata to the bowdlerized version of Klausen’s book as published by Yale University Press. It is of course more than that. It is a statement of defiance against censors, terror-mongers, and their Western appeasers. It is a rallying cry for free speech, freedom of the press, and for open scholarship unfettered by fear.

The Statement of Principles is also interesting. The creators seem to go out of their way to not single out or offend Islam or Muslims, while equivocating violence and stifling of speech across religions and groups, and they even seem to support freedom of speech for terrorists like Bill Ayers. Anyway, in an age of almost total submission to Islamic sharia law, two steps forward and one step back, is better than three steps back.

There is a wonderful quote on the website as well:

If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter. ~ George Washington

Halal slaughter? There is also an excellent supplement to the book, in PDF, titled “Murder, Mayhem & Self-Censorship A timeline of reactions to images and descriptions of Muhammad.” Here is a sampling:

1955 – April: Eight-foot sculpture on the Appellate Division of the First Department of the New York State Supreme Court (at Madison Square Park), in place since ca. 1900, is identified during renovation as Muhammad, and removed after the Egyptian, Indonesian and Pakistani ambassadors to the United Nations protest its presence. See Muhammad: The”Banned” Images p. 13.

http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,866187,00.html

http://www.meforum.org/pipes/5487/destroying-sculptures-of-muhammad

1988 – September 26: Publication of Salman Rushdie’s Satanic Verses

1988 – October (early): Satanic Verses banned in India

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/jan/11/salman-rushdie-satanic-verses

1989 – January 14: Satanic Verses publicly burned by Muslims in Bradford, England

http://students.stlawu.edu/theweave/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=712&Itemid=39

1989 – February 14: Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issues fatwa against Salman Rushdie

1989 – March 1: Cody’s Books and a branch of Waldenbooks in Berkeley, CA, are firebombed after their managers assert that they will continue to sell Satanic Verses

http://www.nytimes.com/1989/03/01/world/2-bookstores-in-berkeley-are-firebombed-rushdietie-is-explored.html

1989 – April: Collets and Dillons in London are firebombed for stocking Satanic Verses; bombs also at High Wycombe, on London’s King’s Road, in the Liberty department store, and the York Penguin bookshop. Unexploded devices discovered at Nottingham, Guildford, and Peterborough

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/jan/11/salman-rushdie-satanic-verses

1989 – August 3: Unidentified 21-year-old Lebanese man dies priming a book bomb he intended to use to kill Rushdie

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article531110.ece

1991 – July 3: Ettore Capriolo, the Italian translator of the Satanic Verses, is beaten and stabbed in Milan, after death threats by Muslims

http://www.hrw.org/reports/pdfs/g/general/general3926.pdf

1991 – July 12: Hitoshi Igarashi, professor of comparative culture and Japanese translator of the Satanic Verses, is stabbed to death at Tsukuba University, near Tokyo

http://www.nytimes.com/books/99/04/18/specials/rushdie-translator.html

1993 – July 2: Attack targeting Aziz Nesin, a translator of the Satanic Verse, kills 37 Alewi intellectuals at the Madimak Hotel in Sivas, Turkey

http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/english/domestic/9331717.asp?scr=1

1993 – October 12: William Nygaard, publisher of the Satanic Verses in Norway, was shot and injured

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/jan/11/salman-rushdie-satanic-verses

http://www.nytimes.com/1993/10/12/world/publisher-of-the-satanic-verses-in-norway-isshot.html

1997 – Council on Inter-American Relations (CAIR) objects to the figure of Muhammad in Adolf Weinman’s frieze of lawmakers in the Supreme Court, Washington, D.C. Chief Justice Rehnquist replies that it is unlawful to remove or injure any architectural feature of the Supreme Court, but that the Supreme Court will change its tourist literature to be more sensitive to Muslim religious beliefs. (See Muhammad: The “Banned” Images, p. 13 and no. 28.)

http://www.cair-net.org/pdf/10th_anniversary_report.pdf, p. 22.

2002 – June 24: Police foil plot by fundamentalist Muslims to bomb the Cathedral of Bologna, which contains a 15th-c. fresco depicting Muhammad in Hell. (See Muhammad: The “Banned” Images, p. 13 and no. 6.)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2002/jun/24/arts.artsnews

2006 – January 30: Former President Bill Clinton, speaking in Qatar of the Danish cartoons: “None of us are totally free of stereotypes about people of different races, different ethnic groups, and different religions … there was this appalling example in northern Europe, in Denmark … these totally outrageous cartoons against Islam.”

http://www.jihadwatch.org/2006/01/clinton-warns-of-rising-anti-islamic-feeling.html

2006 – February 3: Kurtis Cooper, spokesman for the U.S. State Department, announces: “We all fully recognize and respect freedom of the press and expression but it must be coupled with press responsibility. Inciting religious or ethnic hatreds in this manner is not acceptable.”

http://www.redorbit.com/news/politics/379434/us_backs_muslims_in_cartoon_dispute/index.html

2006 – February 7: New York Times states, “The New York Times and much of the rest of the nation’s news media have reported on the cartoons but refrained from showing them. That seems a reasonable choice for news organizations that usually refrain from gratuitous assaults on religious symbols, especially since the cartoons are so easy to describe in words.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/07/opinion/07tue2.html

2006 – February 17: Two editors of the University of Illinois’ student newspaper, the Daily Illini, are suspended (one is later fired) for reprinting the cartoons

http://thephoenix.com/BLOGS/bigblogoncampus/archive/2006/02/17/editor-suspended-overcartoons.aspx

2006 – February 17: Italian Minister Roberto Calderoli appears on TV wearing a T-shirt depicting one of the Danish cartoons. Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi demands Calderoli’s resignation. Calderoli states, “What happened in Libya has nothing to do with my T-shirt. The question is different. What’s at stake is Western civilisation.” He later quits under protest.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/19/international/europe/19cartoon.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4728188.stm

2006 – February 28: one or more of the cartoons have been printed in at least 143 newspapers in 56 countries.

www.boston.com/news/world/worldly_boston/chronology.doc

2006 – March 7: From November 4, 2005 to March 7, 2006, 28 American periodicals published some or all of the cartoons; 10 of these were university newspapers.

2006 – March: Studi Cattolici publishes a cartoon that pokes fun at Italian politicians who cave in to Muslim pressure. Even though Muhammad does not appear in the cartoon, Italian Muslims profess outrage, and the Catholic organization Opus Dei (one of whose members publishes Studi Cattolici) promptly issues an apology.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2006/apr/17/pressandpublishing.italy

http://sixthcolumn.blogspot.com/2006/04/new-muhammad-comic-printed.html

http://alemaniasociedad.blogspot.com/2006/04/opus-dei-on-studi-cattolici-cartoon.html

2006 – April 6: Police foil another plot by fundamentalist Muslims to bomb the Cathedral of Bologna, which contains a 15th-c. fresco depicting Muhammad in Hell (see also 2002). Today the public is denied access to the part of the church where the fresco is situated. (See Muhammad: The “Banned” Images, p. 13 and no. 6.)

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Sky-News-Archive/Article/20080641217873

2006 – April 27: Dutch judge rules that Ayaan Hirsi Ali must abandon her home, since neighbors complain that her presence is an unacceptable security risk to them.

http://www.slate.com/id/2141276/

2006 – April 1: Borders and Waldenbooks refuse to stock the April/May 2006 issue of Free Inquiry magazine, because it includes the Danish cartoons: ”For us, the safety and security of our customers and employees is a top priority, and we believe that carrying this issue could challenge that priority,” says a spokeswoman for the Borders Group. Paul Kurtz, editor in chief of Free Inquiry, says, ”To refuse to distribute a publication because of fear of vigilante violence is to undermine freedom of press – so vital for our democracy.”

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9504E2D71230F932A35757C0A9609C8B63

2006 – September 17: Pope Benedict XVI apologizes to Muslims twice in 2 days for quoting (in a discussion of reason vs. violence) a 14th-c. comment by Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus: “Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aKbMHhuvCE6A&refer=home

(again, this is just a sample, it is a long, long list that continues to grow)

Help test new Shattered Horizon maps News | PC | Eurogamer

When Squirrels Go Bad (yeah...like THAT'S a stretch!)

2009-11-17T14:46:00.000+02:00

As my friends know, I DESPISE squirrels.

Well, as if my feelings towards these nasty little vermin needed any prodding, I stumbled upon a video of a squirrel dropping the false pretense of “cute little acorn eater” and going full-blown, Wild Kingdom carnivore on a blue jay. (Due to the nature of the video and some language therein I won’t post a link, but it isn’t that hard to find the video in question on YouTube.)

Now, before anybody starts yacking about “he was only defending his nest”….nope, that argument doesn’t work. To kill the blue jay as an act of self-preservation is one thing, but the bushy-tailed rat EATS the blue jay! There’s even a follow-up video that shows what was left of the bird when ol’ Squirrelly McNutjob got finished chowing down.

So think about that the next time you’re tossing crackers to a squirrel in the park. He may be nibbling away on that saltine, but the whole time he’s doing that, he’s also scoping you out and thinking, “Mmmm-mmmm….fresh meat!”

Mother Of All End-Of-The-World Movies, “2012″ Tops Box Office ...

Film Cliches & Donnie Darko

2009-11-17T06:44:00.000+02:00

Hey Gang,

Hope you had a marvelous Monday (alliteration and all).

I accidentally clicked the Stumble button on my StumbleUpon toolbar (which is one of the most fantastic things available on the grand interweb as well as one of the largest ways to realize four hours has gone by and you’ve accomplished next to nothing) and found this link to common film cliches.

On the topics of films. I just finished rewatching Donnie Darko for the fourth time or so. I finally am able to piece a lot of it together. I read the director’s interpretation on wikipedia (which, by the way, makes me an expert) and finally feel like I can understand a lot of what’s happening.

From the quote that Rotten Tomatoes provided from Richard Kelly one can start to see why certain references might have been made:

“Maybe it’s the story of Holden Caulfield, resurrected in 1988 by the spirit of Phillip K. Dick, who was always spinning yarns about schizophrenia and drug abuse breaking the barriers of space and time. Or it’s a black comedy foreshadowing the impact of the 1988 presidential election, which is really the best way to explain it. But first and foremost, I wanted the film to be a piece of social satire that needs to be experienced and digested several times.”

And experience and digest it several times I have. Most films I do not like to view a second time and it is even more unusual for me to want a watch a film four or five or six times. Donnie Darko is an exception. I thoroughly enjoy this film and believe that it gets better every time you watch it again.

On a side note I feel bound to inform anyone who will listen that the supposed sequel to Donnie Darko (in which visionary author of Donnie Darko, Richard Kelley, had no say or creative input) is a pitiful waste of time. If you’re a die-hard cult fan of Donnie Darko, you’ll rent it anyways, but it’s truly not worth your time.

Back to the topic of cliches. It’s how we deal in film. While some deviation from the normal “cliched” shots is necessary (or maybe isn’t) to keep an audience engaged, without the standard plethora of shots we already understand and can take almost instant meaning to it would be harder to convey certain emotional moments or tensions. We have become so used to situations such as this one from the website:

“Two people will often converse while one stares out the window, with their back to the other. When an emotional point is made, the first person will turn around.”

Many people turn up their noses at cliched scenes and motifs, however with the number of films being created every day (especially with the dawn of new content delivery systems such as YouTube, Hulu, Netflix, Vimeo) it becomes more and more difficult, if not impossible, to create unique genuine emotional moments. Let’s face it, if a writer knows they can evoke a certain emotion by using a convention you’ve already been trained to acknowledge, they’re just speaking in your visual language. The only problem becomes then, obviously, if cliches are so pronounced, forced, or strong that they achieve the opposite effect than intended and distract from the immersion of the audience and any possible suspension of disbelief. An overused cliche can be a bit like noticing a boom-mike sneak in to view on the edge of the screen. The fictional world we are convinced is real becomes fake again and our interest drops significantly.

Anyways. Just thoughts of the evening.

Cheers,

-Jack

autosport.com - F1 News: Dennis hails new Mercedes agreement

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

2009-11-15T22:50:00.000+02:00

Happy Sunday, everyone!

I don’t know about elsewhere, but it’s a gorgeous day here in NYC! I am astonished because here we are, mid November, and I was able to wear a short sleeve t-shirt outside (plus puffy vest that I now live in, that is) without fear that my arm would freeze and break off like an icicle. Last year at this time, I was literally freezing, and I do believe my feet had already frozen a couple times while gallivanting outside. Mother nature, I could kiss you! She’s really redeemed herself for our days and days of gloomy rain.

I had some brunchy goodness this afternoon with my mama at a neighborhood spot. I have been craving some French toast, so that’s exactly what I ordered!

whole wheat french toast!

I hope my pancakes weren’t jealous, but I’ve been wanting some squishy French toast dripping with syrup lately, and this platter totally did the trick. Me and syrup used to be bff, and as a child I would basically eat a pool of syrup accompanied beside some waffles/pancakes/French toast. The syrup to carby bfast food ratio was sort of unreal. I am amazed I didn’t have cavities. I’ve cut back majorly on my syrup usage, but I still love to dunk!

In case you care about my recent protein uppage plan, I’m still trying- this brunch was served with a scrambled egg white (unpictured bc I’m a lazy blogger).. plus some fruit and a LOT of coffee. Holler.

Today was spent doing some grocery shopping, completed with the help of my mama after brunch. I currently have a massive amount of bananas and wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if my roomie starts accusing me of hiding a family of monkeys under my bed.

these are mutantly-large bananas, too.

Though that could be fun, the truth is that I just tend to go through fruit at the speed of light. Also in my fruit collection of the moment: apples (as seen), blueberries, strawberries, kiwis, 2 bags of grapes (red + a nearly empty bag of green), and a lone pear… Yep, think that’s it. Totally normal, right?

Come summer, my fruit bowl gets a little out of control.

For a snackie today I decided to try a combo I’ve seen often on the blogosphere.

i prob could have sliced the naner more attractively..

A pumpkin butter + peanut butter sammie, with 1/4 of a huge banana on a whole wheat sandwich thin.

After eating it, I’ve got to say for the life of me I can’t figure out what the hype’s been all about. I’m not into the combo of pumpkin butter and pb in sandwich form- it tasted sort of …weird. Alone completely on a toasted sandwich thin has proven to be quality, but mixed with other ingredients its best in a liquidy concoction (read: yogurt mess, oats, etc.), in my opinion.

Alright, I’m off to get ready for din-dn with my darling friend Erica, who I haven’t seen in a flippin’ month! Far too long.. AND I’ll be walking to the restaurant, boooya!

Have a looovely night, ya’ll! xo

Food for thought: Dunkin Hines sells enough frosting to frost the tip of Mount Everest… hmm.

Good News/Bad News - Amazon Deforestation Reaches Record Low, But ...

talk of town

2009-11-15T05:46:00.000+02:00

APEC of cos.

and here’s something amusing which i got off NYtimes.com.

APEC summit meetings are not known for accomplishing much that is substantive. The most memorable moments often involve the photo opportunities, in which leaders wear colorful matching shirts. And often communiqués issued on dismantling trade barriers are undermined by the attending countries almost as soon as they are signed.

hahahahhahhaa.

Stocks in the news: Walt Disney, J.C. Penney, Abercrombie & Fitch ...

my motivation for applying for jobs is slowly dying now...

2009-11-14T22:49:00.000+02:00

I want to look back in year time and see what i have achieved and what i have lost and see how i can develop into better , fulfilled person. So this blog will represent my life as it is.

For those who dont know me! My name is Salma and I’m in my twenties and still clueless about my life as i was 10 years ago. I have been job hunting for ages now, my motivation for applying for jobs is slowly dying now… I can’t give up i better keep moving on…

Saab buyer rejects 81 U.S. stores - Automotive News

Duct tape fashion!

2009-11-14T14:45:00.000+02:00

I just realized I haven’t been on here in what seems like ages. I totally apologize for that, and I will try to keep my blog a little more up to date,

One type of fashion I have been seeing more and more of is made from Duct tape. My little sister recently created the coolest belt and pair of clogs out of lime green duct tape. And did you know that they make every color duct tape you can think of now??? It’s totally sweet

Some people have taken this hobby to a whole new level…check it out!

This lovely alien made from duct tape isn't exactly fashion, but was so creative I couldn't resist putting it up

These people really have too much time on their hands. It’s not like they are going to continue to wear this stuff, there is no way it can be comfortable!

Duct tape kilt....ummm...ok

Hey! It's my knight in shining duct tape!

Ok, here are the last two

Wow! That's actually really pretty!

Fox News Responds To Anita Dunn Again — This Time With More Spice

Fresh Air, Fresh Perspective?

2009-11-14T06:15:00.000+02:00

“If we don’t change, we don’t grow. If we don’t grow, we aren’t really living.” — Gail Sheehy

Freedom from school, finally!

And on to having no free time for the next few weeks to come … O_o

This weekend I’m off to a friend’s cottage; he’s having a get-together of a group of friends. The reason I’m posting about this in this blog and not a more vanilla-based one? It’s a group of kinky people. Now I have definitely been associating myself with my kinky friends more often, seeing them every week or two, so I can say I’ve been immersing myself in the kink-culture a lot more as of late. But this is a weekend away with a group of them, and vanillas need not apply.

I’m not planning to play or anything, but I just find I’m getting comfortable around this group. I’m coming out of my skin a bit more, being more vocal and less inhibited about what I think or what I’m into. However I’m slightly nervous that people might decide to play, and the fact that I am not a voyeur will possibly work against me in this case. Enter discomfort and awkwardness, especially since my usual support system will not be there.

Bah, I shouldn’t be worrying about these things, I should just relax and go with the flow. Within reason, ahem.

On a similar vein, I’ll likely be going to my first play party next month. *little excited bounce* The same friend who invited me to his cottage is going to be celebrating his birthday and the post-dinner locale is a fet-night. It is a slight squee-worthy thing for me because, though I have been to play parties and fet nights before, it’s the first one in which I’m actually somewhat excited. Again, not to play, but it gives me an excuse to dress up and wear my pretty pretty corset.

One thing about the situation that I’m on the fence about — inviting a friend. As I mentioned in a prior post my random co-worker might actually not be so vanilla. A part of me considers inviting him to (a) introduce him to the local scene, (b) have a security blanket of sorts, and (c) have someone to drive me so I don’t have to. But on the other hand, I don’t want to invite him because I don’t want to mislead him into thinking this is something I want to explore with him. Also watching him hook up with one of my friends might be a little .. weird. Over the last few weeks I’ve re-thought the ‘friends with benefits’ situation and I don’t know if it’s something I really want. I’m not sure what page he’s on, but that’s how I feel. I know I need to talk to him about it, but since we haven’t hung out since I’ve decided this I figure I can put it off a little longer … but yeah. So it makes me a little more comfortable with the idea of inviting him along, but introduces the possibility of misleading him. Conundrum.

ArtsJournal: Daily Arts News

Aww!

2009-11-12T22:42:00.000+02:00

There’s always something that makes you go aww even if you’re not that kind of person:

HEY JUDE!

Come on, the kid is holding a guitar bigger than him

Aw rating: 6

video credit: virvid

What is it about small fluffy animals and youtube?

Aw rating: 7

video credit:N3OS3R

More Cool (and yummy) than Cute. Mine look NOTHING like these -_-”

Aw Rating: 4.5

video credit: mariahee

She’s right: The Best Laugh.

Aw rating: 8

video credit:gkandel

Youtubes definition of cute: Kittens/cats, babies, small fluffy animals (rabbits, puppies) and japanese things.

Not cute but I came across it and found it really funny:

video credit:schmoyoho

New Casio Exilim EX-FS10S Camera will let you swing better ...

Atlanta-area mayor to sell personal land for mosque - shrine to Islamic warrior?

2009-11-12T14:42:00.000+02:00

The mayor of Lilburn, Georgia, a suburb 20-some miles outside of Atlanta, owns most of the land that area Muslims want to buy to build a new mosque – that will be a replica of a shrine to a Muslim holy warrior in Iraq (where more than 4,000 U.S. soldiers have been killed).

Is it a coincidence they chose land owned by the mayor, and will she be pressured into selling it, during one of the worst real estate markets in U.S. history, for a mosque?

By Shane Blatt in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, excerpts via ajc.com:

Lorraine Lobos bought her Lilburn house in 2003 for the idyllic charm and tranquility.

“Our house is behind 4 acres of land with beautiful trees,” said the 36-year-old homeowner in the St. Albans subdivision. “You see birds. You see Bambis. It’s so beautiful.”

That beauty will be destroyed, Lobos said, if the city approves plans for a 20,000-square-foot mosque, gymnasium and cemetery on about 8 acres of land — some of which is currently owned by Mayor Diana Preston — at U.S. 29 and Hood Road.

Residents say the mosque is simply out of place. They say it would pose parking, traffic, drainage and noise problems, and disturb the community’s small-town way of life. And then there’s the issue of the cemetery.

“We might be having barbecues in our backyards, and they might have a funeral going on,” said Ilene Garry, a 14-year homeowner. “It’s just the wrong space.”

But Wasi Zaidi, a founding member of the 11-year-old congregation, said the group has outgrown its two 2,000-square-foot buildings on the same property. It needs the additional space to accommodate Lilburn’s growing Muslim community and the 90 families who worship there.

Traffic and noise would be minimal, Zaidi said. The main services are Friday night, and the mosque would front U.S. 29 — away from residences — he stressed.

Besides, he added, the two-story mosque — a replica of a shrine of the Islamic hero Hazrat Abbas in Karbala, Iraq — would help beautify the city and is smaller than the 27,000-square-foot Hindu temple less than a mile down the road. As for the cemetery, passers-by wouldn’t be able to see it from the road, he said.

//

//

Doug Dillard, the attorney for the congregation, said the proposal is not inconsistent with other churches in the area, most of which back up to residential areas. He said if city leaders reject the plans, “our recommendation would be to file a lawsuit, challenge it as arbitrary, capricious and unconstitutional.”

The congregation owns 1.4 acres of land and is looking to buy an additional 6.5 acres. Preston, the mayor, owns four of those acres. To avoid a conflict of interest, Preston will not attend the City Council meeting or vote in the event of a tie.

Just a couple of things jump out, based on the cultural, stealth jihad waged by other Muslims in the U.S.

1. Barbecues near the mosque? Everyone knows that pork and alcohol are BBQ favorites, and pork and alcohol are forbidden in Islam. How long before a fatwa is issued banning such activities near the mosque as we’ve seen elsewhere?

2. Once again, zoning laws have to be changed for a mosque to be built in a residential area.

3. Once again, if the Muslims don’t get their zoning change, land and mosque, the litigation jihad will be waged against the infidels – with the help of an infidel. That large numbers of area residents are opposed is not even a consideration (see Saudi Islamic Academy).

4. The mosque will be a shrine to a Muslim holy warrior who fought for the cause of Islam according to islamicoccasions.com:

The Life of Hazrat Abbas is an example of unflinching loyalty and love for a brother. It is also the story of a warrior who sacrificed his life for the cause of Islam, which, according to Hazrat Abbas, was a just cause.

The towering form of Abbas and his fame as a warrior throughout Arabia, had created much tenor amongst the enemy. When this ‘Dauntless Lion’ made his appearance on the field, the enemy tried its best to prevent him from reaching the river.

Slow lede - get to the news faster | MetaFilter

Magical man! Ohh magical man! ROFL!

2009-11-12T06:35:00.000+02:00

I wish for a magical man to come into my life that can make me ____. If I’m really lucky he’ll be able to help me market my business and book too. Or maybe he’ll just be rich enuff to buy me an entire marketing team. LOL Ugh,.. all’s I know is,.. I’m new to social networking and using it as a marketing tool is key to success, but it’s sooo challenging for me to grasp. Blah blah,.. Anyways,.. If the magical man was hot enuff then we could just take my mind off of my stuff and do some other stuff

Jon Bon Jovi On NBC Nightly News: Making A Difference Through ...

why i love birthdays...

2009-11-10T22:44:00.000+02:00

Excitement would have to be the word.

This month is my favorite month… cliche as it may seem, because it happens to be my birthday month. I have always enjoyed birthdays and have looked forward to them. whether it be mine or someone else’s, i find there is no better day.. then a birthday. Waking up and feeling like it’s YOUR day… to spend the way YOU want! On that day, everyone takes a momment to to keep you in their thoughts. Thoughts that would otherwise be preoccupied with some other more important thing. You have an excuse to go out and eat cake, or other sugary caloric items. You pamper yourself and take care to make sure you look and feel your VERY BEST.

There is no better day then a birthday. I truely believe this. So Why cant everyday be my birthday? Ok maybe the cake and extra food would be overkill… but the other side of things. what about that??

The waking up and feeling like it’s YOUR day?
Going about life the way YOU want to?
Having people that want the best for you?

Why must it only be on birthdays that we feel so great about ourselves?? I want this for my DAILY life. I think thats the biggest realization I’ve had in the past few days.

Since my birthday is so close, I think it will be fitting if I make a resolution: This next year… I am going to focus on being the best me. I am going to make strides in feeling good about myself because enough time has been wasted feeling the opposite. Enough time has been lost waiting for my birthday to feel special. I know that I have a lot of good things to give and I have to stop short-changing myself and give myself some credit here. I deserve that…

Not News: South Korean woman passes driving test. News: On 950th ...

Relationships, Trust & the Internet

2009-11-10T14:47:00.000+02:00

I decided to write this one because one of my friends is dealing with a guy who apparently she is feeling and they are trying to work on getting thing together. I kind of understood both sides but I was just wondering if it was too soon.

The situation:

My friend reunites with this guy she knew from way back when. To kind of sum things up they end up wanting to be together which is all fine and dandy. But I see a lot of red flags on both sides, but if she’s happy then I’m cool.

Apparently, the guy got his heart broken so he has trust issues. She says when anyone calls her, he wonders who it is. If it’s one of us, he says she talks to us too much. Mind you we barely hear from her when he’s around. Only, one of us has met him. Not me (Red Flag), because I think she knows I’d be on my P’s and Q’s to make sure she was being treated right.

But at any rate, they were talking about them furthering their relationship and getting on the path of being together and the internet came up. He called her an “Internet Whore”. He said if he’s going to “wife a chic, he doesn’t want her on the internet”. He also went on to say how she had a lot of males on her facebook and she didn’t need her co-worker as friends either.

As she’s telling me this, I’m like what the hell? I mean I understand how sometimes the internet and some site can get you in trouble. But I think it depends on the person and the level of trust. I have been in a committed relationship and still had a facebook and myspace page. Plus, he had a facebook page and wasn’t offering to delete his.

For what I was hearing he was asking her to do all of this and only after that would he decide to continuing trying to further their relationship and deciding whether she was in fact “Wifey Material”. That just didn’t sit well with me. She asked my advice and I told her “If you’re going to delete all your pages do it because you want to… not because he wants you to and how do you know it won’t be something else down the line?” I didn’t want to sound like I was hating, I have just seen her sacrifice so much for a man and the man is unwilling to do the same for her.

My question: What would you do if someone you we talking to and trying to building something with asked you to erase your internet ties and they will then decided whether you are the one for them? Have you ever asked someone to cut their internet ties? If yes, then please explain why?

**It’s not that I have a problem with it…but every situation is different. **

Page-Turning News

They Always Say Time Changes Things

2009-11-10T06:43:00.000+02:00

I find myself daydreaming far too often. I could simply sit for hours and let my thoughts wander. I think about the future, I think about the present, but more often than not I think about the past.

I like to present myself as an individual who doesn’t dwell on the past or think too much on how different things could be, but my behaviors exhibit the antithesis to that disguise.

Today, on my drive home from school, I began thinking about all the things that have changed in such a short time. Some things have, of course, been for the best. For instance, I graduated high school and moved on to college. I am in my second year now and am well on my way to acheiving my academic goals. That is a great feeling. There are others things though that kind of make me sad. Mostly the way some of my relatioships have changed. There are certain in particular that I just miss so much! I want to give them a big hug and sit and talk for hours catching up on all that has happened since the last time we spoke. It saddens me that I probably will never get that opportunity. It also saddens me that these people will never know any of this.

…My heart's in Accra » Why we fall for fast news

Pulling the bits and pieces together...

2009-11-08T22:43:00.000+02:00

I’m embarking on a little experiment. I, like many of you, have been feeling really fragmented lately – pulled in too many different directions, and wondering at the end of each day, “Where did the hours go?”.

There are lots of things I love to do, and I’ve been indulging in many of them over the past few days: long walks in the woods with my dog, writing, cooking yummy things from scratch, having friends and family over for dinner.

And then there are the days that just feel eaten up by little technological moments, like the hour I spent dinking around on facebook last night before bed. This had the dual purpose of wasting an hour of my time AND firing up my neural synapses so my dreams were weird and disjointed. Not good.

I also spend a lot of time swapping voice mail messages with people rather than actually talking to them. So our relationships become tiny sound bites instead of connections of substance. That feels pretty poopy, too.

And the last thing is, I’m feeling the need to get back in touch with my grounding – I’ve been looking to others a lot lately for advice, and it’s time to turn inside to the wise critter that is me. I read this quote by Eve Ensler and it just grabbed me:

“Cherish your solitude. Take trains by yourself to places you have never been. Sleep out alone under the stars… Go so far away that you stop being afraid of not coming back.”

I need to do more of those things, at least in the metaphysical sense.

So here’s what I’m doing: for the rest of the year, I’m going on a technology diet. What this means for me:

* I’m ditching facebook until 2010.

* I’m cutting back on my social phone calls (friends of mine, stop snorting. I know I’ve never been a phone person, but you get my drift).

* I’m cutting back on TV (one hour per day max)

* No more random googling of ex-boyfriends, myself, or questions best answered by god/goddess/universal truth (such as “why am I here?”. I have googled that. You have too, admit it. )

So if I’m dieting, that implies hunger. To fill me up:

* 1000 words of writing every day.

* 10 minutes (minimum) of meditation every day.

* Walking and/or showshoeing daily, weather dependent.

* Home-cooked meals. Hot things, not just breakfast cereal.

* A retreat over Thanksgiving to the hermitage.

This is the plan. I’m announcing it here because I know you’ll hold me to it, and mock me shamelessly if you find me on facebook killing hours.

I don’t want to kill any more time. I want to live it, inhabit it.

SNL Skewers Fox News (and Glenn Beck!) on Election (VIDEO) | TV ...

NFL Predictions: Week 9

2009-11-08T14:47:00.000+02:00

Okay, so last week was probably the worst I have ever done with predictions, but THIS WEEK will be good. Upsets are in BOLD. Haha!!

BALTIMORE over CINCI by 10 INDIANAPOLIS over HOUSTON by 3 SEATTLE over DETROIT by 7 JACKSONVILLE over KANSAS CITY by 6 MIAMI over NEW ENGLAND by 3 GREEN BAY over TAMPA BAY by 18 NEW ORLEANS over CAROLINA by 15 SAN DIEGO over NEW YORK GIANTS by 6 SF over TEN by 11 DALLAS over PHILLY by 4 DENVER over PITTSBURGH by 3 in OT CHI over ARI by 3 ATL over WAS by 13

Organizing for America | Cloe Axelson's Blog: Morning News

the simple pleasure of being able to see someone's toes

2009-11-08T06:48:00.000+02:00

I want you here to speak quietly to me, and to watch foreign films that we cannot understand because our eyes are not on the subtitles. I do not think that it is too much to ask for, simplicity, perhaps happiness. Just because I so miss your arms, I do not want you to come half-heartedly back.

It’s beginning to really feel like fall here in Brooklyn, the smell of rusty, fallen leaves breaking down consumes the air, fills this room through the cracked window. You’re missing autumn, I wonder if that has occurred to you yet. It doesn’t bother you enough to make you come running here, to wrap me up and dim the lights (not that I blame you, I’m just giving you a hard time). I’d love to grab your hand and shout “Let’s go! Let’s go!” Or maybe not, and just hold onto you for a little while. it is so easy to miss feeling you. I hate the way the feelings, the memories of them, fade the longer that you’re gone. I wonder when I will see you again, wonder how I’ll keep myself quietly in line when I do. Maybe I’ll surprise you, could I?

This Is News: Brit Brit Lip-Synchs | Dlisted

Not a fan of morning practice

2009-11-07T22:48:00.000+02:00

Everything seems harder, the jumps, the spins, and the Falls… I only have early practice one day a week so my body is just not use to it. That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it!

The last couple of days have been very productive, getting lots of school work done, so I have not had much time for blogging…

I think I’m gonna let the pictures do the talking today!

The pictures are a collection from the past couple days

Breakfast sand with some grapes that have seen better days…

I love this tea! and yes I use my xmas mugs all year-round

Love pb and pumpkin butter combo!

I’m gonna be so sad when these are all gone

I got these from my last Costco trip, so far I like them! I need to have strong skating bones

A packed lunch for school, btw I would not recommend this brand of soy yogurt, I got it on sale to try it and it’s pretty nasty…

Yummy pumpkin oats with raisins & sunflower seeds and some java!

Getting my veggie and hummus fix!

Baked acorn squash with maybe a little too much butter and cinnamon

Todays breakfast skating fuel! I had never had this before, and it was very yummy and kept me full for a long time

But when I came home I was in need of some lunch asap!

Soy vanilla yogurt, cinnamon cereal and blackberries

Okay okay, I’m gonna stop now since I do have things to do, plus I really wanna “bake” some raw cookies today

later gator! have a great saturday!

Elizabeth Lambert, New Mexico Soccer Player, Suspended For Hair ...

long live the King.

2009-11-07T14:44:00.000+02:00

This Is It was the bomb. seriously. I LOVE IT. this is an MJ post. (:

My life will never be the same, ’cause girl, you came and changed the way I walk, the way I talk. I cannot explain the things I feel for you, but girl, you know it’s true, stay with me, fulfill my dreams and I’ll be all you’ll need. You rocked my world, you know you did, and everything I own I give (you rocked my world), the rarest love, who’d think I’d find, someone like you to call mine (you rocked my world).

You rocked my world, you know you did, Michael Jackson.

♥

Fox News Channel Draws a Large Audience for Coverage of Fort Hood ...

Ten reasons to suck it up and write a post anyway

2009-11-07T06:28:00.000+02:00

1. At least the computer works.

2. You should find time for the things you love.

3. You can always reset your password.

4. If you wait around to be motivated then you never will be. You motivate yourself. Motivation does not usually magically descend upon you.

5. You can write about anything. What you are thinking, something that happened, something you know, or even something you don’t know. There is always something to write about.

6. Writing is one of the best outlets for questions. If it sounds a little incoherent, just call it art and pretend everyone else is too shallow to understand it.

7. Sit down, stop finding distractions, and quick making excuses.

8. Writing can be like a vacation.

9. You should write tomorrow. And today. Because you can only write while in the present, so do it now.

10. If you are writing for other people you will rarely be satisfied with the actually writing. Write for yourself and write often, eventually you will write something you are satisfied with. And then you will write even more.

News Ticker: Dave Matthews Band, Rihanna, Tom Waits, Janet Jackson ...

Tales of an Angry Fatty

2009-11-05T22:48:00.000+02:00

I’m not much for emotion.

That might sound a bit terse, but it is accurate.

I can probably count the number of times I’ve cried on one hand—maybe two hands if we’re counting times I got hit in the stones—and I really don’t go the other direction and get ragingly angry all that often either.

Does this mean I’m a bubbling cauldron waiting to explode in a multi-state killing spree that leaves dozens of innocent people dead in my wake?

Maybe, anything is possible, I guess.

For the most part, I think it just means that I’ve learned how to deal with my anger and/or sadness in other ways.

Today we’re going to focus on my anger-management skills.

You see, Faithful Readers, there was a time back in my youth when I didn’t have any anger-management skills.

When I got mad, I turned into a punk-ass little beeyotch.

I’d throw things, I’d break things, I’d curse, I’d scream, I’d beat the ever-living dog-piss out of my little brother (we’re all good now) and when I was done with all that the anger was gone.

As I got older—and received a plethora of well-deserved ass-kickings—I learned that there were probably better ways to deal with my anger. So I quit breaking things and quit beating the crap out of my brother and moved on to many other things.

There was running, baseball practice, writing, sleeping (an odd reaction if ever there was one), running again, baseball practice again (I thought I had a mighty fine fastball at one point), running yet again and eventually when I got to college drinking.

Drinking probably wasn’t the best option, because when you’re full of rage, half-a-dozen Bud tall boys ain’t going to do anything to calm you down.

So after a short period of drunken, ill-advised decisions to punch holes in things (NEVER a wise move)…I replaced that with my current anger suppressant – eating.

Well, eating meat, to be more specific.

When I’m all pissed off about something there is nothing more likely to calm me down than a perfectly cooked (read: medium) bacon cheeseburger with all the fixins.

Today for instance, I had an insatiable urge to bludgeon a co-worker to death with a crowbar before dragging his/her bloody remains over to the Charles River, where I would then give him/her a proper Viking funeral by using one of the MIT sailing club dinghies and a few homemade Molotov Cocktails courtesy of the fine folks at The Muddy Charles Pub.

Instead I huffed and puffed a few times and wandered over to Fresco’s and snagged myself one of the aforementioned rage-sapping bacon cheeseburgers.

To make things even better they gave me a free side of coleslaw—which I can only assume was rapidly approaching an expiration date—and the fine musical-stylings of Journey came blaring over the radio.

By the time I left Fresco’s, I was out of rage and full of meat. As such, said co-worker survived the day and most-likely he/she will survive for many more days.

Clearly my “eating to devour rage” game plan is working and working well.

My only worry is that if things like this keep happening, I’m going to be one very angry fatty!

All The News That's Fit To Print — And Vanity-Driven, Ego-Dripping ...

Tell Me The Stories Of Hormones

2009-11-05T14:39:00.000+02:00

To the tune of Tell Me The Stories Of Jesus:

Tell Me The Stories Of Hormones

Tell me the stories of hormones, why live in fear?

Things I would ask them to tell me, if they could hear!

Scenes in the daytime, tales of the night

Stories of hormones, cause such a fright

First let me hear how the children hurt just like me

And I shall fancy the hormones resting on me-

Words full of anger, deeds full of spite,

All ’cause of hormones – it isn’t right!

Into the city I’d follow the hormone band

Waving my arms at them crying, “Let go my hand!”

One of their haters, yes, I would scream,

loudest in anger, “STEP DOWN AS QUEEN!”

JASON Cautions on Predicting Terrorist Events | Secrecy News

Randomness

2009-11-05T06:41:00.000+02:00

1. This video has always creeped me out a but. Watch it and see if you can explain it.

2. Today I was again told I should choose a different line of work because I am too smart for this career. Come on people, I think enjoying work is better than being intellectually challenged every day (that’s what hobbies are for)

3. As much as I don’t like WalMart, this christmas-y commercial is really clever

4. Speaking of Christmas, every week I drive by an 80 foot tall christmas tree. They put it up the week before halloween, because it apparently takes a full month to decorate. I’ll try to remember my camera to take a picture.

FOX News Ratings Spike Not True | Crooks and Liars

Undieing Affection!

2009-11-03T22:40:00.000+02:00

More randomness

If anyone wonders why I lack updates, it‘s because I‘m busy doing nonsensical stuff like this xP

Okay, so someone was messing around in my head yesterday O= And then I kept getting retired o=

A whole new meaning to mind control….

I always end up being the guinea pig …

Cheater ^_^

oh, not to worry. It‘s not the first time ;D This was from a few months ago, I don‘t remember what we were doing, but he demoted me to test something.

***

/Lab rat

Memex 1.1 » Blog Archive » Good news about the Republicans

Yorkists in Lancashire...

2009-11-03T14:45:00.000+02:00

Well we’re almost there sorting out the Javelina Hunt photo comp so… results tomorrow. In the meantime, let me show you an average weekend in the Pennines. Warning: Photo-heavy entry.

We, as you are probably by now aware are Yorkshire folk, wifey and I. We are very Yorkshire. We are so Yorkshire we should probably come with a Government health warning. And so it often galls me to discover Lancastrians that I like. Note for non-historians: The Wars of the Roses between York and Lancaster were (and are) to our counties what the Civil War was/is to the Northern and Southern States. Oh we don’t kill one another any more. It’s mostly about cricket and pride now, but still I twitch as I cross the border. I seem to be getting carried away with drivel. Back to the point, eh?

After my MRI on Friday we headed off to Skipton (close to the Lancashire border) where I had booked us into an Inn for the night so we could have a relaxing night away without the dogs. It was the night before Halloween (or Samhain for those of us who recognise the Celtic contribution to festivals that got trodden all over by Christians who didn’t like men in dresses with beards.) While back in our village there would be a few decorations and pumpkins out, the landlord actually did nothing to draw attention to Halloween in his pub. Skipton was quite different. Every pub in the centre of Skipton had gone mad with decorating. Every shop had staff in pointy hats. It was really energetic and lively. Here’s a slightly blurred picture of me next to my nemesis in the bar. The photo is blurred because it had to be taken phenomenally quickly before I ran away.

Yup. Incy Wincy up there may be made of styrofoam and black fuzz, but I still peed a little any time I went near it. In the gentlemen’s convenience there, I found this, which I quite liked:

Ah, toilet poetry, how you make my heart soar! Then around the pubs to sample the delights. Until we reached (insert dramatic music here)… the Pub of the Damned! Honestly, we approached the tall, 3-floor brightly lit building. And it was empty. All the other town pubs were starting to fill up heavily, but not a soul here. Warning bells went unheard. And then a chubby, shuffling barman with a runny nose came ambling out of a hidden area of seating. I asked for a pint of beer and a soda for wifey. He looked at me in vague confusion, sniffed back his dripping nose and said “Got no beer, sorry.”

No beer. In a pub. No beer! Well it’s no damn wonder there’s no customers! So I ordered a whisky. We stayed in the place for 5 minutes while I drank the whisky and the barman returned to his booth to stare at the floor, sniff, sigh and make growling noises. We left hurriedly, as though a the plague might follow us.

We continued round the bars and sat in one particular one beneath the sign that declares the folk who have been barred from the the town’s pubs. I took this because the 3rd and 4th names from the bottom of the list made me guffaw and I like to guffaw.

Nutter and Outlaw are banned from the pub. Nutter and Outlaw! Oh how I chuckled. We had a good night out and planned to stay up and make the most of our quiet romantic night away. But in fact, we got back, clambered into bed and were asleep by 11pm, and hour and a half before the bar beneath us emptied! Ah well. The next morning, at breakfast, I noticed the boards around the restaurant area, and almost gagged on my coffee…

Don’t know about you, but I’ve never had anything Scumptious. In fact, it’s quite high on my list of priorities never to HAVE anything Scumptious. And…

… I’ve never encountered orange Boobees before either. Must be something to do with carotene I guess. ‘Carotene the boobees’. Oh far too many jokes. But who, honestly, working for an English-speaking company, in England, would decide to produce a day-glo luminous drink with a dubious top-pipe attachment and call them Boobees? Really?

On we move round Skipton and to the castle, owned for seven centuries by the Clifford family, a very famous and important bunch in the North, and particularly in Yorkshire. This is the gatehouse of the castle.

As well as the castle, Skipton is well known for its canal which, as you can see, even in dull weather at the end of October is pretty.

And so we left Skipton. We sould a do a little touring about during the day until around 4:30 when the sun sinks below the horizon, or in Lancashire slinks away hoping not to be noticed… Sorry. That just crept in at the last moment. First up is a Roman fort at Elslack, just a few miles from Skipton. I have been past the place a dizzying number of times. Honestly, I must be in three figures for the number of times I have passed within 2 miles of this. And… warning… this is yet another sign of my mania. You know how I will travel 40 miles over unsurfaced roads to look at a brick that was left in a field by a Roman mason in the 3rd century? Well Elslack is the ultimate in SJAT-mania. There is, in fact nothing there. There is nothing to see. Nada. Zilch. Nietski! And I still made wifey detour and walk along an abandoned railway line so that I could photograph it. So, without further ado, I present the Roman fort of Elslack in all its glory:

Now you can’t tell me that wasn’t exciting. Eh? What is exciting, even for the total non-Roman fan is the content of the field.

Coz we love cows, don’t we. Everyone loves cows. Big, brooding black cows with murder in their eyes. Wifey loves cows. Can you tell?

And from there we cross over into Lancashire, and indeed into Lancaster itself. And here, even the posh places were getting into the Halloween spirit. Unless these maybe were customers who couldn’t pay their bar tab.

Slightly more exciting than Elslack fort, though probably not to normal people, is the Wery Wall and the bath house. Visible here is one room with the piles for underfloor heating. It was so exciting for me I went all squeaky.

Above the baths on the crest of the hill (and within the boundaries of the ancient Roman fort) is the church which is all that remains of Lancaster Priory. There was a service going on while we were there so we crept around very quietly inside. I didn’t even take photos inside as I didn’t want to disturb them. And then, as we stood looking at a book on the rack of the bookshop (yes the church had a bookshop!) the store owner came over and started telling us all about this book and what it was about. In a VERY loud voice. We made our excuses as politely as we could and sidled out.

Next to the Priory is the imposing Lancaster Castle. Very little of this is open to the public as it is, and has been for the last two centuries, a courthouse and prison. I suppose if you’re going to be in prison, why not in one as impressive as this, eh?

On the way back to the car, we stopped in a pub for a beer and I had the foulest, most disgusting, unpleasant, odorous, nasty and evil pint I have ever tasted. I took one mouthful, slid my pint away from me and swigged some of wifey’s soda to take away the taste. From Lancaster we had choices and problems with touring.

We had one place to visit south of Lancaster and a couple north. And because of the River Lune and the Pennine hills, the only ways to travel north to south or vice versa are on the M6 motorway or through the congested streets of Lancaster. So we headed to the place out south. And found ourselves on the congested road heading north from the town. Arse. So after thirty minutes in a traffic jam we managed to turn round and head south past where we’d spent the last hour. Finally we got out and onto a road heading out toward Cockersand. And then from the road onto the tiny tarmacadam snake that wound along the low grassy area to the coast. We met nery a car on the journey along that narrow road, which is good since, though it said single file with passing places, it patently had only passing places if what was passing you was a duck. If it was a car, one of you was reversing for 2 miles. We know this because we met four cars on our way back.

Anyhoo. This is the view across the Lune towards Fleetwood from where we parked. Nice eh?

A half mile walk from there along the coast brings you to what remains of Cockersands Abbey. The chapter house. Not a great or famous ruin, but just there and then, on the blustery west coast, in the sunshine, surrounded by murderous cows and a nervous wifey, it was lovely.

I’ll grant you that wifey looks bored. Actually she wasn’t. She was just relaxing and enjoying the view.

And the view was worth relaxing and enjoying too.

Next stop: Warton old rectory. North of Lancaster. Arse. So we decided, despite being warned to avoid it several hours earlier, we’d try the M6 northbound. And we breezed past Lancaster. We also breezed past the completely motionless three mile long queue of traffic heading southbound. Phew. That was lucky. And so we got to Warton and went to see the ruined medieval rectory. Here’s wifey looking like she’s Morris Dancing. Cool huh?

And here she is pretending I can’t see her…

And so the evening came on and we went to our friends’ costume and Halloween party. I hope none of them are offended by being shown in costume. Actually, one of them would rip my face off and use it to mop up my brains if i posted a photo of her, and so I have wisely left our one character. Here are the others:

Cowgirl and a slightly slipped spook.

Wifey doing 25 to life.

Yours truly after carving the dinner.

Nanny Ogg showing some leg.

Gandalf the Grey eats party snacks.

Herr Skeletor surverys his domain.

And Eldritch lady?

This man frightened a young girl enough that she shrieked and fell over. Fabulous.

The chuckle twins.

Don’t they look dead tired…

Feathers, feathers everywhere…

And that was the party. Tomorrow: The Scavenger Hunt results. See y’all…

Rebooting the News moves (Scripting News)

NEW but not Unfamiliar

2009-11-03T06:39:00.000+02:00

I’ve been to many blogging sites. Some I’ve committed some time to, others were very short lived. I’ve had xanga.com, blogger.com, diary.com, my myspace section, ning.com etc etc. I desired to find a home to blog at. I was saving my newly started entry’s on my laptop but I wanted to share it online to give me another reason to spend it productively.

Here is what I have written so far…

October 21, 2009

12:08am

Something is compelling me to write. I think it might be my professor Lisa. Do I thank her or blame her? She started her own blogging series “lessonsat40” and mentioned it in class. I read what entry’s she had about her thoughts and recent life happenings and it hit me, I want to go back to when I used to write online and through my words, and some luck of people randomly browsing, I was able to social network and make friends. I used to use xanga.com. Ah, the days of high school. I don’t miss it much and I would change so much about the life and adventures I had. I know I am rambling but this is my first official, unofficial post. The question is… where do I post my words and expect feedback? I have my myspace and facebook account but it’s not enough for me to just have a site full of people I already know or just wish to have on my list of friends. I want something customizable and personal. I know there is blogger.com, wordpress.com, xanga.com… but it isn’t enough. I heard about multiply.com, but I don’t like a site where I can’t view people’s profile without creating a profile first or trying to figure out the site. Navigation is important too. Ugh! I hate my P.O.S. of a laptop. Seriously, it is like the banished half-wit child of laptops. First off, it is an Acer, I think Sony makes it? Secondly, it was only a temp because my other one, Dell (first laptop ever, I miss it…) was stolen when my apartment was broken into. So I had this one and it has limited space, running on Celeron power by Intel and has crashing problems on top of other annoyances. I do have a Toshiba, but my father is using it and he’s in Texas where I am not. He’s using it on his business trip which is ridiculous since this P.O.S. was less than $500 but more than $200 and he wanted his old Toshiba back for just note taking purposes. I swear parents and children are two generations to far apart to even communicate sometime.

Ok I am rambling again, but so much to say… I’ll say more some other night. But tonight is just an experimental night of expression. Hope you enjoyed… more to come. Promise… for now…

October 23, 2009

2:35am

It is early in the morning and I am at my friends house, Adrian and Sal. They are a gay couple and if it wasn’t for a mutual person we know, I would have not met them anyways. They are good people and I do appreciate the time they give me and when we hang out, go to clubs etc. but at the same time, I am jealous of their relationship. They are good people, but often times I feel like the 3rd wheel even though that’s not the case. They know I want to be in a relationship but at the same time they don’t know my “requirements” in who I am looking for. People are a dime a dozen, but it takes that special somebody to shine. I also feel I am not good enough… I live by myself, I work, and I go to school and have pets, but I don’t have a car… in today’s society it is necessary to have wheels and my lacks of automotive transportation, at my age is shameful. It’s not that I don’t want a car, I’ve been trying with my parents being my provider but no luck so far on their end. I also wonder if I can even drive… I do have my license but the last time I was behind the wheel was June 2008. I mean practice makes perfect and I can eventually be comfortable behind the wheel but right now I’m not sure.

I don’t know why I am even writing. My thoughts flow freely and I have so much to say and yet again I feel silly doing it. I do hope I find a site to blog this all on. All I want is customizable options as well as each entry, besides my latest ones, being placed in an archive placement tab. It’s all about organization with me.

October 24, 2009

1226am.

I was having such a normal day before that text came in. I was dropped back off at home at 9 in the morning after crashing at my friends place, walked the dogs, slept in some more, went to work to pick up my check, cashed check, cleaned animals cages then went to work around 4pm. It was a pretty standard day without school in the picture. Work went well; I was at cash-wrap today instead of fitting rooms. Maybe they are getting the hint that I should be more diverse? Got out close to 11pm. And this is when the down part of my day comes in.

My friends, Jason and Shawn, were at IBT’s. They said my Dutch guy was there. There is only one guy that fit that description and his name is Matthew…

I met him at IBT’s months ago. He took me home, we talked and well made out and it was great. Everything about him was perfect. His career, his family orientation, his body… his voice and communication, everything was perfect, what I looked for in a guy… I gave him my number hoping he’ll call or text. Never happened. I should have gotten his as well but I was playing “if you want me come get me” card. Fail.

So they tell me he’s there and then a few texts later they said it might have not been him and they left to go to the casino instead. I don’t know what to think and feel. I mean I thought about that guy a lot for a while and I forgot till tonight. I know thoughts of him won’t go away anytime soon…

I need a man. But who is good enough for me? And will I be good enough for them?

October 25, 2009

8:48pm

People might think I’m crazy, me being interested in a person that I’ve never met. Long distance or whatever you want to call it. It does seem a bit odd but yet again isn’t online dating services just as silly? I don’t think so but it’s all the same in the end, based on a feeling. There is this guy, Jordan, that lives in Pennsylvania, that I’ve been talking to and knowing. I said I Love You to him and meant it. I told him communication is key to keeping me interesting and around. Well he got sick and hasn’t been talking for a few days. So I message him via text and he got back to me saying he’s still sick and he’s been thinking about me. He’s a special individual that can sense people’s emotions and inner self. He analyzed me and well from then on I was hooked. I always wanted a guy who could understand me at a deeper level, it just happens to be a guy miles upon miles away. I should be doing homework, but I need to get this out. I told him I’ve been thinking real hard each night, sad to that he didn’t message me in any form and hoped he would respond back to that. He didn’t…. so I proceeded the next day by saying “where did the love go.” A bit blunt yes, but truthful. I even called him and left a voice message. I am hurt and I am about to give up. He said to have faith and that he gets busy and that he does think of me… he also said that relationships are a priority in his life to… so why the loop hole? I don’t know what to think anymore. I am sad and numb by the situation. He isn’t my bf but he wants to be and I want him to be. DAMN THIS DISTANCE!!!!

He’s like a drug, a delicious drug that will take me a while to get over through proper treatment and withdrawl tolerance. But this isn’t something medicine or therapy (sometimes it works) will cure. Just time… I hate it. Why is it always so difficult for me.

I guess I’ll proceed on my day with a mask of happiness while my inners weep off of my current situation… sigh…

October 29, 2009

12:30am

I’ve been itching to write but I haven’t quite found the words to express myself. Why I am writing now? Because I need to. I have to let all the new happenings escape my fingers.

First off, I have made the decision to move to Pennsylvania to be with Jordan. I know, a bit risky and I should meet the guy first. We I would agree, and I still do agree, but I am going on a leap of faith here. What brought this desire up? Well we had a deep discussion and it was filled with tears on my side of the phone call. Jordan was in the hospital for 3 days being miserable and only had time to think. He realized that he was alone and that he needed someone to be with him. He thought of me of course and then considered my situation. 2 years before I graduate and he didn’t want to put his life on hold again. It would seem selfish, but I saw his point of view. I heard his stories. I knew he just wanted to build his life to the point of happiness and wanted to take the journey with someone… with me.

So I said I can’t up and leave, there are things to take care of. Like where to transfer to for school. My lease to my apartment. What about my dogs. Details that need to be planned out. It is still in the making but we both want each other. He even recommended paying for my trip to see him first to “check under the hood” before investing my time and love. I said I was planning on making this a one way deal. I love him and I know this is different… he is different. The way he talks, the way he figures things about me that I barely had time to analysis. Nobody was able to do that, EVER! He is making me feel complete. I just hope that this will work out that he is real and that he is all that he says he is. Hope… is what I am basing this on.

On a different note. Work might be promoting me to a merchandise sales person. That would be a great upgrade for me considering my situation in leaving the company to see family for a few weeks.

School sucks and I am lacking motivation. I am trying to get what I can out of it and even then it is a challenging thing to seek.

November 1, 2009

1012pm

I’m feeling majorly “burnt out” now a days. My motivation for school is lacking. I go through the motions of everyday life. Work is work… I turned down the opportunity for extra hours at BBW but said homework came first. Yea it did, but I didn’t start on it till a couple hours later. I got side tracked with cleaning and avoiding the responsibility all together. Why can’t I be the person to just get it down and over with? I would have finished before work and would have been good to go. I am such a slacker…

As I type I am avoiding my homework yet again! But I made a deal with myself. Check my mail. Watch one episode of something then on to the books. I did some reading today but I have 3 more long boring chapters to go. UGH!! I hate this acer pos of a laptop! It deserves to be put in front of a firing range!!! Anyways… then I have to do a direct response piece for the non-profit organization we have. Fun times… NOT!

I’m just so tired of life. I am ready to graduate and move on with my life. But where does my life belong? I love Jordan, I do but he is far from perfect and I don’t expect him to be. I just wish he could sometimes communicate at my level. His communication is great and I love how he see’s beyond things but he was going to tell me something yesterday and he didn’t and I asked 4 times what it was and he never directly replied back to those. I should tell him what’s up because it is annoying…

On a different note I don’t know how I feel about my current action I have committed. Though I have not met Jordan and I do love him, he is not mine… yet. I said I had no eyes for anyone else, I wasn’t lying when I said that but rules change when people do…

The other night I was with Link and lets say things go physical. No we did not have sex but I did make him feel good and he gave me praise for my skill haha, but seriously. What does that make me? I liked Link, even when he had a bf I found something about him interesting and wanting to know more. I only know oh so much now but I hope I won’t be just a fuck buddy to him. No sex unless he wants to date and maybe become more than that… I don’t know what he wants from me, but I know I won’t cheat once the bf title is in place. But does he find me attractive or was that the booze last night… he was sober this morning when I pleasured him. He didn’t pleasure me but that is because I wasn’t horny. I think he might have, he did want to touch…

Sigh, so lost, so tired, so confused, so frustrated

Rush Limbaugh on Fox News Sunday: 'Palin Ready to be President ...

The Hype Machine

2009-11-01T22:44:00.000+02:00

Alright, we have our favourite music blogs we listen to and it collects our selections and gathers other possible music we may like. Jango and Last.fm are two that are looking cool at the moment. Here is one I just came across moments ago, called The Hype Machine. It is slightly different from Jango and Last.fm. Those who listen to the music and then click the ‘add to favourite’ or ‘add to playlist’… Hype is where you search, listen, heart the artist’s tracks, and read the posters reviews on why they like the selected artist; then you can comment on their individual blog.

Hype quotes “The Hype Machine keeps track of what music bloggers write about. We handpick a set of kickass music blogs and then present what they discuss for easy analysis, consumption and discovery. This way, your odds of stumbling into awesome music or awesome blogs are high!”

They quote farther – “We are creating tools that empower independent voices that write about music. Rather than picking and writing about music ourselves, we think a select group of passionate people can do a better job, so we amplify their posts and the audio they choose. This group will produce more vibrant culture and conversation than a huge social mob, or a rigid hierarchy of editors. Oh yeah, music runs in our veins. You already figured that out though.”

I’ve been trying it out for the past hour, I’m finding a lot great bands… Vamps, although the only thing it found on them; was their latest song “Love Addict” for that I was happy. It found one song of Tokio Hotel, understandable about that Vamps and Tokio Hotel aren’t well known in America….yet!!!! Give it time my fellow music lovers! I did found several listings of Linkin Park tracks, so that is what my ears have been listening to until now. I didn’t find many indie bands, still understandable; they don’t many accomplishments yet, they need more fans writing and spreading the word of the band.

So you indie music critic out there and anyone who just wants to listen to great music, I recommend you giving The Hype Machine a try.

The Hype Machine tracks an array of MP3 blogs, so if you post a link that contains MP3 links, it’ll add those links to its database and displays them. Tracks can not be downloaded however, you can preview them; there’s a play button to each song.

If you enjoy the song, click the heart and it’ll be added into your data. If you like a specific song, you can visit the blog of the user that posted the song and view other songs they’ve posted…chances are you may like those as well.

You can purchase CDs and individual tracks by using the Amazon and iTunes” links that appear next to most tracks. Each purchase you make supports both the artists and the Hype Machine. Please buy and enjoy.

Sneak Preview of Rush Limbaugh on 'Fox News Sunday' | NewsBusters.org

Welcome to the Thoughts from Hell!

2009-11-01T14:46:00.000+02:00

Hello everyone and welcome to my new Blog, Thoughts from Hell!

I’m Michael Hell, residing in Austria, Europe! Some of you might know me as MichaelSF, former Co-Admin of Symbian Freak Forums or xMichaelSFx on Twitter! I did some intense thinking about my Future (internet-related, personally i still know i’ll rule the World someday ) the last Couple of Weeks. I didnt really keep as a Secret that Symbian just did not cut it anymore for me, as well as Nokia’s Phones. The N97 has proven to be a Failure, which also led me to not only change my Provider, but also change Phone Model and OS. HTC Hero and Android are now rocking my Mobile World and so far i must say that i’m satisfied with it. My Needs has also changed in the Past, away from a best possible Camera, to social Network Integration and more intuitive UIs. Let’s be honest, nothing has quite changed with Symbian in the Past, instead of making an Overhaul on their great OS, they go on and boost out Phone after Phone after Phone.

When i was recently changing to T-Mobile Austria, away from Vodafone, i was looking through the Phone Programm they had going at this Time and sadly i didn’t find any Phone i wanted to spend my Money for. I was lucky enough to get a G1 Trial from T-Mobile Austria earlier that Year and was really impressed by Android. Well, in fact the Excitement kept me waiting for another 2 Weeks until i laid my Hand on a brand new HTC Hero, which was Love at first Sight i’d say. Don’t get me wrong, i still keep all my Nokia Devices, especially the N82 is still a reliable Backup Device, which goes on every longer Trip in case something happens.

I felt as Co-Admin of a huge Site like Symbian Freak it does not look too good, to constantly rant against Nokia. I know People there absolutely love their Symbian Devices, but i always left behind some Thoughts about Android and other Stuff i felt i needed to write. Browsing through the Feed Reader, Twitter and other News Sources 97% of my Thoughts and News would have been android-related, which i think should not be on Symbian Freak constantly. Apart from that i really felt like i wanna stand on my own Feet again, get even more social networked and basically write about whatever i want to write, even if it’s just my big right Toe that’s itching me.

With that being said, i decided to open up a new Blog, called “Thoughts from Hell” – thoughtsfromhell.wordpress.com! This is the Goal i’m going for, where i wanna start off something new and exciting. I felt it was the right Time to do it. It will certainly not be a News-only Blog, nor do i go on a Hunt for View Numbers – i wanna blog whenever i want, about whatever i want. No Pressure, No Rules .. I won’t aim this Blog at any particular Audience, nor will i just blog to get as much Views as possible – it’s a Fun Project, that should stay fun, and certainly not put myself under Pressure, this is my Main Goal.

Well, have Fun reading through my Thoughts from Hell - spread the Word!

Michael

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