COLD

I was listening to the radio yesterday and the morning show announcer made a call to a family diner in Minnesota.

JS: Hi, who is this?
Dk: Derek.
JS: Hi Derek, this is Johnny Stone in the Morning, we are serving the New York/ New Jersey area, you're on the air. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?
Dk: No go ahead.
JS: Well, I hear that the weather there is -28 is that true?
Dk: Yes that's true.
JS: And that the windchill factor makes it -58?
Dk: Yep.
JS: Well, Derek, how do you cope with the weather out there?
Dk: Well I work indoors in the diner so its no big deal.
(Outdoor diners must be awful up there.)

JS: But what about when you have to leave the diner?
Dk: Well, we just dress in layers here.
(Cause Minnesota law allows for that kind of breach of fashion.)

JS: Well what about your car, do you have to plug it in at night?
Dk: No, I have an automatic starter, every two hours it starts the car to warm the engine for a while and then shuts off.
JS: And what about pets? Your animals must hate the cold.
Dk: Well, my dog, she's an indoor dog, she doesn't go outside.
(That must get messy after a while...)

Speaking of the cold, I've been working on the goat farm in the mornings before heading out to the store to open by 10. There's a water heater under the sink, and a heat lamp on the faucet. Sometimes in the morning I will come in and the cat will be sleeping in the sink under the heat lamp. But this morning I came in and even though the heat lamp was on, the faucet was still frozen. I couldn't give the goats fresh water so I had to go around the barn with a hammer, breaking the ice on the tops of their water buckets. Its miserable out, no wonder they refuse to leave the safety of the barn.

I am waiting for the temperature to get to about 28. I want to go ice skating again but I can't when the high for the day is 19 degrees.

Sex with Lake Vostok

I am amused.

"To date, the best candidate seems to be the cryobot, a fittingly phallic penetrating probe designed to gingerly work its way into the virgin lake. Its heated tip would melt a channel straight into the ice as it unspools a power and communications line behind it. The melted water would quickly re-freeze behind the cryobot in temperatures which linger around minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and once it finally reached the water it would eject a small submersible hydrobot to capture images and take measurements."

Taken from this article about a sub-glacial lake in Antarctica.

the total opposite...

So the other day I couldn't figure out how a person could come into the store and ask us if we were closing. Can you not read the signs on the window? They are pretty straightforward. But today, a woman came in and made her purchases. While ringing her out, another customer came up and asked if we had a closing date yet. The woman said, "Wait, what? You're closing??" So apparently, you CAN miss the fifteen signs, the empty shelves, the whole everything-being-on-sale part, AND the hand made signs all over the counter saying "Please note that all sales after Jan 1 are final." I would hate to be on the road with her...

A sad sight

The store looks so sad, all dressed up like this...




And, get this: I still have at least two customers a day who will come in and ask me, "Are you guys closing?"

Um, what could have given you that idea? Oh those FIFTEEN signs that say we are going out of business? No, we just put them up for kicks.

New Years

I had a great time but I really don't feel driven to give you all a play-by-play. All I have to say is that in the past years, I have looked back on the year and analyzed it. Was the year a good one or a bad one or somewhere in between? I know that there are some years that totally sucked, and others were pretty good and memorable. This year, as the ball dropped, I was totally caught up in an adventure, and didn't think to look back on the year until today. I think I am finally living in the present.

addition to the last post

In the old days, it was not called the Holiday Season; the Christians called it ‘Christmas’ and went to church; the Jews called it ‘Hanukkah’ and went to synagogue; the atheists went to parties and drank. People passing each other on the street would say ‘Merry Christmas!’ or ‘Happy Hanukkah!’ or (to the atheists) ‘Look out for the wall!’

~Dave Barry, “Christmas Shopping: A Survivor’s Guide”

Merry Christmas

"I am a Merry Christmas person. It's Christmas. I am going to say it. Why it might offend anyone is not on my mind. I laugh inside when people exercise God-less political correctness and try to neutralize Christmas by saying 'happy holidays.' The word 'holiday' is derived from the phrase 'holy day' so in actuality, by trying to drop God from the season actually re-affirm it. Merry Christmas, and happy holiday!" ~BGDC

Throughout the year, I celebrate holidays with my friends. I take no offense when I get a text message that says Happy Diwali, I throw colors like the best of them on Holi, I have eaten many Seder meals, I eat moon cakes at the Chinese New Year, and I put up with the absurdity that is Thanksgiving. I have enjoyed myself at your holidays, please enjoy yourself during mine. Merry Christmas.

(I screwed up, moon cakes go with the Autumn Festival, some other thing which I can't pronounce goes with the New Year Festival. Both are yummy and I enjoy them. So eat some Christmas cookies.)

Postal services.

Me: surprisingly, we received shipments from the Post Office, FedEx, and UPS today, despite the snowstorm.
Me: no DHL though.
Him: yeah, they are going out of business anyway.
Me: that's cause they don't deliver during snowstorms.
Him: sissies.

So, I dropped off four packages at the post office on Wednesday (the 17th). They were all 3-4 day mail. Not counting Wednesday and not counting Sunday which is not a business day, I calculated that they will arrive somewhere around Monday (the 22nd). Contrast that with this:

I ordered a gift for someone and received email confirmation that it left the warehouse on December 14th. Estimated arrival time is December 22nd. Keep in mind that the warehouse is not on the moon, it is in Jersey City! So it takes 3-4 business days to go from West Milford to California and Michigan, but it takes 7 business days to go from Jersey City to West Milford. I could drive there in an hour.

Then, I go to the website to track the package, and I see this:

December 14, 2008 11:17:00 AM JERSEY CITY NJ Shipment has left seller facility and is in transit.
December 20, 2008 06:55:00 AM JERSEY CITY NJ Arrival Scan

So, it took them 6 days to go from one end of Jersey City to the other? I think "they" are right, NJ is like the Twilight Zone.

Sigh, shake head, roll eyes...

How do you know he's an engineer?

His Christmas list includes 40 feet of carbon composite pipes.

wtf

The following is excerpted from an email sent to me.

"Tyson Foods, the world's largest meat processor and the second largest chicken producer in the U.S., has admitted that it injects its chickens with antibiotics before they hatch and then labels them as raised without antibiotics. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has told Tyson to stop using the antibiotic-free label, but the company has sued for the right to keep using it.
...
...
...
The agency told Tyson that ... it would no longer consider the antibiotic-free label "truthful and accurate." Tyson objected again, claiming that because the antibiotics are injected before the chickens hatched, the birds can truthfully be said to be "raised without antibiotics." Tyson has filed a lawsuit against the USDA, claiming that the agency had improperly changed the definition of "raised without antibiotics" to include the treatment of eggs."

Sources: http://www.naturalnews.com/024756.html Natural News November 9, 2008

So, I need opinions people. In our society, it is generally accepted that before birth, a fetus is not a baby, therefore abortion is ok. So, should Tyson be allowed to keep their label? Are they really going to say that an unhatched chicken is still a chicken but an unborn baby isn't a baby?

weird

I can drive the road between my house and work (or my house and school) on any given day and not see a single person out walking on the road. There are no sidewalks, so people just don't do it. The road is winding and just isn't safe. But today, when the thermometer reads 28 and it snowed last night, and the windchill puts things in the single digits, I happened to see FOUR people out walking their dogs. What is going on??

Another customer...

Him: I want to get this visor clip, but do you have anything better than this?
Better, as in more suited to the occasion or better, as in better quality?
Me: I can get you some catalogs that have visor clips but that rack you were just looking at is what we have here in the store.
Him: Well, I like this one, its the right size and its what I'm looking for but do you have any that are more expensive?
I would be more than happy to overcharge you for that one.
Me: Like I said, that rack is what we've got but I'll get you a catalog to look at.
Him: It doesn't even have to be a visor clip, it could just be a large medal and I'll just glue it.
You are going to spend more on something just so you can smear glue all over the back of it?

Ehh... Its his money...

Huh?

An elderly customer came in asking for help finding a Bible, and also finding books on economics and Biblical prophecy. I explained the differences in translations and also which authors were best-sellers in the "end times" category.

Upon completing the sale, the following dialogue occurred. I'm not feeling well, so my brain is still spinning 2 1/2 hours later.

Him: Can I ask you, do you go to college?
I'm not exactly in college anymore, so I inefficiently clarified.
Me: I am going to school, yes.
Him: Can I ask you the name of the school?
Me: The Institute for Therapeutic Massage.
Him: Ehh? Massage? Oh. Ok.
Me: Yes, its a vocational school.
Him: You see, if you had said something like Seton Hall, it would make sense for you to sell me these books. But you see, you don't go there and you are selling it to me anyway, out of the goodness of your heart. That's a Christian witness right there. Excellent.

Well, I'm glad that he left happy, and I'm glad that I did something Christian... but I am not quite sure what exactly I did... there's nothing Christian about going to ITM, or about telling a customer what books to buy based on how popular they are. Maybe it is because I'm not feeling too good that my mind is still reeling. What's wrong with me? I don't know, but I think its in my head somewhere:

"Dysfunction is the in-between state of 'not healthy' but also 'not sick' (i.e., experiencing disease). Unfortunately, many people experience dysfunctional states. Western medicine has a difficult time identifying and dealing with dysfunctions because these are prepathologic states and are often not apparent within current diagnostic methods. Actual pathology usually needs to exist before medical tests and diagnostic methods can detect a disease state."
~Mosby's Fundamentals of Therapeutic Massage

So, if you think you're sick but your body looks normal, you are dysfunctional. Excellent!

I just keep posting...

I feel like I've posted a lot of stuff lately, but maybe no more than I used to. I know recently I've been pretty silent because of work and school...

But I feel like I can't really adequately express myself anymore. Here I am, at almost 3 am, when I should be resting so I can get up for church in the morning, and I can't seem to make my mind turn off.

I was thinking today how long its been since I sat down and watched a Lord of the Rings movie. The friends I had before leaving for college used to talk about having a LOTR marathon, where we'd watch all three movies back to back. We never really worked up the courage to do it. My college friends aren't that geeky, no matter what they say. Or maybe it was something else besides the geek factor that was so attractive. Maybe it had something to do with adventure, being part of a story that goes beyond the edge of the Shire, striving in a distant land to preserve everything you love about that land back home. Is it something about me that's changed? Or is it the new friendship dynamics now that those former friends and I have moved on?

I feel out of place at home, but I am not sure that moving anywhere else would help. I have discovered that I am the most "down" on my days off, on those rare moments when I have some days off. I sleep in, read, and generally stay in my room unless Steve is coming to visit. I don't like to be sociable, I don't even use the computer much. I had Thursday off, worked Friday, and have Saturday, Sunday, Monday off. While I know I need the time to sleep in, I am sort of dreading it. I will become moody and unproductive.

Taylor and Anissa are two pretty close friends of mine, and I don't see them much anymore. I heard once that a person should never marry their best friend because best friends change. We choose our friends as we need them in our lives. I hope that I will always need Anissa and Taylor.

I wonder how my story is going to unfold. Am I on the right path? Am I choosing the right things and walking with the right people? What if God is telling me I need to be somewhere else and I just can't hear Him because I haven't been able to hear God speak in so long that now, when everyone else is yelling things at me too, I can't hear Him over the crowd? Is that why Gideon put out a fleece? Or was Gideon just a coward, hoping God wouldn't answer him with something miraculous? What if Gideon was afraid of change?

Sitting here, blowing bubbles with the party favor from the last wedding I attended, I can't help but notice that the bubbles are always so pretty, the bubbles always go down, and the bubbles always pop. I wonder which wedding that was, and how whomever is doing with whatshisname. And I hope no one ever remembers my wedding like that.

The Lunacy of Thanksgiving.

I just had my third Thanksgiving meal in as many days. While the second one was completely Indian, and completely more delicious, I have serious doubts regarding the "traditional" American meals. I imagine the conversation surrounding the origins (between people I imagine as college frat boys) would go something like this:

Joe: Lets have a new holiday where people eat a lot.
Bob: Wow, great idea. We should do it where they eat the same exact combination of food every single year. It could be a holiday celebrating the food more than anything else.
Joe: Yeah, forget that Christmas and Easter "being with friends and family" garbage.
Bob: Yeah screw them, who needs family?
Joe: So, what kind of food should we celebrate?
Bob: Well, I was thinking we could take some of this wet bread and stuff it in this bird here.
Joe: Wow, you are a genius. And lets cook it for about 6 hours straight.
Bob: Brilliant! There is nothing else in my cookbook that has to cook for that long!
Joe: Dude, you have a cookbook? Seriously. Wow. Well, whatever. When its done cooking, we'll take whatever liquid comes out of the bird, and we'll pour it over some mashed potatoes.
Bob: Will the genius never end? But lets not stop there, lets use potatoes for something else!
Joe: Well, if we're not careful, people will get tired of potatoes. Let's find a different starchy root.
Bob: Too true. How about sweet potatoes?
Joe: Excellent. What can we do with them?
Bob: Well you know how we drizzled the bird liquid all over the wet bread and mashed potatoes?
Joe: Yeah?
Bob: Lets put brown sugar and marshmallows over something that is ALREADY sweet and ALREADY has complex sugars in the form of starch!
Joe: OMG YOU ARE BRILLIANT MAN, BRILLIANT!!
Bob: But lets not stop there. Lets put MORE desserts on the dinner table!
Joe: Like what?
Bob: Lets have them spread cranberry jelly all over everything.
Joe: We are going to be millionaires for coming up with this.
Bob: What about for actual dessert?
Joe: Take something you wouldn't expect and put it into a pie.
Bob: Like what?
Joe: How about a squash or something?
Bob: A pumpkin!!
Joe: Yes!! And another one could be completely pointless: A sugar pie.
Bob: Well that's cool but don't you think people would hesitate to eat that?
Joe: Yeah, well maybe if we just put some pecans on top of it.
Bob: Oh ok then yeah that's a good idea too.
Joe: I am getting so excited about this. Its so American to have a holiday celebrating eating things that are bad for you.
Bob: As American as apple pie.
Joe: Yeah, mmmm I want some apple pie now. Lets add that to the list of desserts.
Bob: I don't know, Joe, I've been writing all this stuff down... and I don't think people are going to buy into this. I mean, don't you think they're smarter than that?
Joe: No. Not really.

Crap day.

So I showered on Monday evening. Usually I shower every other night but yesterday, Wednesday, I thought it was Tuesday so I didn't shower. When I woke up today and remembered it was Thursday I realized I should have showered last night. Now I have to shower before visiting relatives and then shower again when I get home to wash the cigar smoke out of my hair. This morning, my mom stole my cheese, I ate a cup and a half of yogurt BECAUSE I am lactose intolerant and I became a vegetarian again, on a whim. I hate Thanksgiving. Its a stupid holiday which invokes stupid memories.

Edit: Oddly enough, in a strange twist of fate, I put on a pair of pants that I haven't worn in a while, and found my retainers, which have been missing for the past six months. In that six months, three of my four wisdom teeth came in, pushing my teeth all over the place in my mouth. I think that I am more heartbroken to find that the retainers no longer fit than I was to find them missing in the first place. There is something comforting about having them in my mouth, and for the past six months, my teeth have felt "naked." Of course, it WOULD have to be on a day like today. Why don't we see how much more bad vibe we can fit into the day? Did I mention I don't even LIKE turkey or stuffing?

character analysis

There are only two guys in my class of 9. I have become one of those "watchers" sitting back and analyzing what's going on around me. Guy #1 installs flooring. Because of that, he is somewhat buff. He is an actor, which means he is somewhat gutsy. He has a black belt in judo, which means he thinks he's tough, AND he probably is. He is soft-spoken and is learning massage so that he can open a martial arts school/health spa with his brother.

Guy #2 got everyone's emails on the first day of class. No one knew exactly why, but we gave our info to him anyway, because the vibe he gives off is of utter innocence. As it turns out, he wanted to get a study group together, and he emailed everyone the lecture notes with info about what would be on the tests. He forgets things and subsequently comes to class unprepared, but we help him out because he made the time to put together study notes for everyone. Leaving class at 10:30, he warned us about the ice in the parking lot and scraped the ice off my car and the car of his massage partner. He is what one might call a "nice guy." Guy #1, with his judo tattoos and low-range-of-motion-joints (because he has broken or dislocated almost everything in his body), might be considered a "wild guy."

Now, according to one particular book I have read, people are generally attracted to the wild guys, but have more respect for the nice guys. Although the book has a few flaws, I generally agreed with the concepts laid out. However, now that I am seeing the types of guys mentioned in the book characterized in my classroom, I am wondering how my perspective on the book will change in the next few months, based on my observations in class. I would like to ask my readers to leave me a message. Which of my classmates do you find the most admirable, interesting, desirable, or some other superlative adjective of your choosing?

Christmas is coming

http://www.amazon.com/RSVP-White-Marble-Mortar-Pestle/dp/B000BUB58K/ref=wl_it_dp?ie=UTF8&coliid=I1KSFM6G5ORRL1&colid=GF85P5O99BNC

Way to go Meg. You're so subtle its awesome.

Living in the sticks

Mom's Sunday School class talked about their Thanksgiving traditions. She found this gem coming from a four-year-old:

"We're not getting together for a family dinner this year. Instead, we're going turkey hunting!"

What the heck?

Who was this insane?

"Please Daddy don't get drunk this Christmas
I don't want to see my Momma cry
Please Daddy don't get drunk this Christmas
I don't want my Momma cry
Just last year when I was only seven
Now I'm almost eight, as you can see
You came home a quarter past eleven
And fell down underneath
our Christmas tree"

"Grampa's in jail he shot a reindeer
hunting out of season Christmas Eve.
Venison just don't seem right at Christmas,
but Grampa says 'it seems alright to me.'"

"Randolph the Brown-Nosed Reindeer"
(Couldn't stop when Santa yelled Woah, his big nose ran into Rudolph's rear.)

Public Threat

I would like to know how our soon to be president proposes to handle the growing problem of Pirates.

Ok ok I kid. But seriously. Pirates are a problem.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27766333/?GT1=43001

I don't get it.

A blogger wrote a list of things she wanted her future husband (whoever he may be) to know. She said, "I hope never to be divorced."

There is no one out there who gets into a relationship thinking, "Yes, I'd like to spend X amount of money on a wedding, X amount of paperwork in pre-nups, and then the eventual joining of two people legally and taxably, and then after a few years, I think I'd like a divorce." Am I wrong? Why waste your words to your future husband?

If God were on facebook.

Just click to enlarge the photos. Something I found on Xanga at the site of someone I don't know.

Damn Estrogen

So the other day I felt like there wasn't a thing that I could do right. The day after that everything Steve said annoyed the heck out of me. The next day I only wanted to eat meat and junkfood so I settled for putting pepperoni on everything. I have graduated from eating dark chocolate to going straight to the cacao bean and eating them raw. Today I don't have a particular food craving, I'm just eternally hungry. And now, this has me bawling:


The photographs you are about to see show how a very determined male bird tries to save his female mate that has been seriously injured. 1) Here the female bird is injured and her condition is not good. 2) The male bird brings her food and attends to her with love and compassion. 3) Although he tries to help her, she is too badly injured and dies. 4) He is shocked over her death and tries desperately to bring her back to life, trying to pull her up and make her move. 5) He finally realizes that his sweetheart has passed away and will never come back to him, and brokenhearted - he cries over his lost love. He stands by her side, calling and crying for help. He is devastated by her death. 6) Finally realizing that she will never return to him, he stands beside her lifeless body with great sadness and sorrow, unable to leave her side. The photos of these two birds are said to have been taken in the Republic of the Ukraine. This male bird was bound and determined to save his female mate. The photographer sold these pictures for a small price to one of the most famous newspapers in France. All the copies of that newspaper were sold out on the day they published these photos.

Some day, I will look back on these days with fondness as I sit emotionally stable and having a hot flash.

more of "I hate the media"

If anyone wonders why I think Americans have been brainwashed by media propaganda, just read these two articles.

The first one is entitled "Youth Vote may have been key in Obama's win"
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27525497/?GT1=43001

The second one is entitled "Young voters not essential to Obama win."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27582147/

Yeah and it even comes from the same news station. Its not like CNN and NBC are reporting two different things. Its one news company that is blatantly contradicting itself.

Sackcloth and ashes

So many people have been asking about the status of my mental and emotional health after the election, that even though I was not going to comment on it, I feel I owe it to all the people concerned about me.

No, I'm not distraught that Obama won.

1) It is historic that we have finally elected a president who is not an old white man. Its about time. I have to admit though, I did not think it would happen. I overestimated the prejudice in this country.

2) Obama supports family life. On that, he and I agree. In his book, Audacity of Hope, he talks about the effects that a political office has on his family. Yes, I read it, and God did not strike me down. Living in Washington DC and visiting his wife and kids in Chicago on the weekend took its toll. He talks about calling to hear his daughters' voices only an hour after hanging up with them. When his daughters walked out on the stage with him Tuesday night, it was quite obvious how highly he values the family unit. Even in his greatest moment, it seemed obvious that his first thought was, "My family is sharing this moment with me!"

3) All life is cyclical, and all matter is cyclical. Planets and comets orbit the sun, eventually returning to where they were before. God (or the author of Genesis) started the weekly cycle by placing creation at "six days and the seventh for rest" before the cycle starts over again. The temperature of the sun flares up and dies down every few years or so, resulting in global temperature changes on every planet. (This is not to imply that greenhouse gasses do not exacerbate the effects.) Even the human body is cyclical. Without the presence of light, the body will still rely on circadian rhythm, an internal clock telling us when to wake up every day and when to feel hungry and when to go to sleep. Therefore, why should politics be any different? Keep a Republican or Democrat in the White House for too long and the balance of our government will be thrown off. We will cease to be a free country. We will become a single-party state, with no freedoms.

4) This is not to say that I am without concern for the state of our country. It concerns me that Obama supports many things that I do not. As a leader, he will sway the sheep** who do not have the sense to do their own research, but instead follow blindly. He will lead people further away from any kind of morality whatsoever. This is not about religion, you can have a set of morals without God. But this is about taking a stand for something. Too many people will not.

5) It concerns me that people have referred to Obama as their "redeemer." Yes, it is just a word. But he is just a man.

There's more, but five is a good number. And yes I have concerns, but I am not distraught. Obama and I may not see eye-to-eye, but its ok. He's young, and a work in progress. Come to think of it, so am I. Thank you all for worrying about me. I, in turn, will worry about you, just in case Obama fails at the things he promised you.

**Edit: Apparently, this comment is not clear to some of my readers. By sheep I am referring not to Democrats or Republicans but to those people who are undecided and who will follow the president as long as the president is charismatic, good looking, and young. He is all of these things, and people will follow him because of that, not because they actually believe in what he believes in.

Quotes

Oh Bethlehem, what you have missed while you were sleeping- For God became a man and stepped into your world today. Oh Bethlehem, you will go down in history as a city with no room for its King... United States of America, looks like another silent night, as we're sung to sleep by philosophies that save the trees and kill the children.
~Casting Crowns

But when they said, "Give us a king to lead us," this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. And the LORD told him: "Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. ... Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. He said, "This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. Your menservants and maidservants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, and the LORD will not answer you in that day."
~I Samuel 8 : 6-18

Esther again pleaded with the king, falling at his feet and weeping. She begged him to put an end to the evil plan of Haman the Agagite, which he had devised against the Jews. Then the king extended the gold scepter to Esther and she arose and stood before him.
~Esther 8 : 3-4

Election 2008

Fast and pray with me today. Do not pray for your favorite candidate to be elected. Pray that God's will is done, pray for mercy for America, not because the next president will be God's judgement on us, but because we simply need mercy.

All war is unpopular.

Political analysts are talking about how the next president is going to be inheriting the problems of the current administration, for example, what they are calling an "unpopular war." Well... has there ever been a popular war? Has any president been burdened with the thought that he's in the in-crowd, now that he's got his own war? I don't understand the point of discussing how horrible it is that the next president will have to clean up an unpopular war. It seems like a waste of breath to me.

Esther vs. Vashti

Esther was a woman who rose, against the odds, to become the Queen of her country. Then when a decree was made, she risked her life to go before the King and plead for the reversal of the decree to save the lives of her and her people.

It has been hypothesized that a modern-day Esther is beginning to emerge in our country. I am wondering if these people are speaking of a woman who will rise to power and work in the government to reverse a law, or if they are speaking of a woman who will rise to power in the government and stand before the King of Kings to plead for mercy for our corrupt country. In other words, are they speaking about a literal Esther, or a spiritual Esther?

three new books

For those of you who follow my book-report blog, I have three new books posted. For those of you who didn't know I have a book report blog, go here: megcanread.blogspot.com

No, I didn't read these all at once, are you crazy? I don't have time for that. I read them and left them on my desk to eventually get around to writing something about them. That's all.

my cup runneth over

For anyone wondering if the glass is half full or half empty, I would suggest a new, better plan.

Fill the cup so high that you can not possibly raise it to your lips without spilling. For some reason, it tastes better that way.

I don't know, maybe I just love the simple little things in life.

would you use this?

This product whose brand will remain anonymous contains Hydroxyisohexyl 3-Cyclohexene Carboxaldehyde. Would YOU use something that contains 17 syllables? Especially if the last syllable reminds you of formaldehyde?

Where is the country headed?

People are going to vote for the wrong person, because they are uneducated. The sad part is, a lot of people (but not all) have the ability to do their research, but are too lazy. They would rather base their vote and the future of their country on what comes into their inboxes.

I realize the people in this clip are from Harlem. Some may have computers and access to factcheck.org, and others may not. But really, if you are going to vote at all, is there any excuse for not being educated about the candidates first?

http://www.bpmdeejays.com/upload/hs_sal_in_Harlem_100108.mp3

For those of you who cannot open the radio link above, I'll summarize. A radio announcer went to Harlem and interviewed people. He asked, "Who are you voting for?" If someone said Obama, he asked how they felt about the issues Obama stood for, attributing McCain's platform to Obama. They said they agreed with those issues, essentially agreeing with McCain. At the end of the interview, they were asked, "If Obama wins, are you ok with having a woman VP? Do you feel that Sarah Palin would do a good job?" They answered yes.

If you don't understand why I posted this or you don't "get" the meaning of the above paragraph, please don't talk to me again until you have educated yourself. I really don't care how you vote, whether Republican, Democrat, or something else. Just don't vote blindly.

reposted from someone i don't know.

"You know what I don’t get? All the women completely hating on Palin and saying she’s a disgrace to womanhood. The lady decided she wanted to change the way things were run in her town, by most accounts of those residents did well, went on to be governor of her state, had an 80% approval rating, and was chosen to be a vice presidential candidate. She’s relatively well spoken and successful. So she’s pro-life. So she likes guns. Does that make her less of a woman? Less successful? Christ. If we start bashing and hating every woman who has had a child and thinks it’s a wonderful experience and doesn’t believe in abortion, we might as well abandon the idea of feminism as a whole. I can understand disliking her for whatever reason, but when we start tearing each other down for our beliefs, we’re setting ourselves back. It’s not right. We don’t have to agree with each other, we don’t have to like one another, but we do need to respect each other."

~Thanks, random person!

gullible

A woman came into the store today looking for a statue of St. Anthony. She had already gotten a statue of St. Joseph so that he would help her sell her house. But someone told her St. Anthony also helps sell the house. I told her no, St. Anthony is never marketed as the patron saint of house-selling, but St. Joseph has his own little Home-selling kit. Realtors come in here and buy a bunch of them.

She wanted to make sure she was doing it right, so I checked on Google and confirmed what I already knew: yes, there are Catholics out there who get a St. Joseph statue when they want to sell their house. They then bury him (usually upside down) facing the street and near to the for sale sign and as they put the dirt over him they say a prayer. She wanted to be sure he wasn't supposed to be right side up, so I kept looking. When I want things, I ask God directly, so I was quickly losing my patience with this woman. I finally said, "Listen, I'm Protestant, so I don't know much about the saints, and you simply can't believe everything you read on Google. If you want to be positive, you should go talk to your priest." She said, "Oh, I'm not Catholic. I just believe in everything."

I should have tried to sell her a bridge.

hi

I have not had the presence of mind recently, OR the time for that matter, to sit down and write a coherent thought regarding an update as to what's going on in my life. I frequently forget things, make a to do list that usually involves calling 6 different people for one reason or another, and then forget to follow the things on the to do list.

I went roughly three weeks without seeing Steve, and I am aware that recently I went to visit but I cannot remember what brought me to New Brunswick. Oh yeah, that's right. Navin's party. We had a great time (I did anyway) and ate some great food. That may or may not be a topic for another blog entry.

I heard once that for every hour that you are awake, imagine putting one brick into your backpack, but for every hour you are asleep, you take two bricks out. Or maybe it was the other way around. Whatever, the point is that being awake is like carrying bricks on your back. Sleeping in at least one day is required every once in a while. I went from September 14th until October 5th without having a day to unload my bricks, which might account for why I keep forgetting where I put my to do lists.

On October 6th I slept in, I finally got my one day of rest, unfortunately, it was one Sabbath day in a 22-day week. What may be worse is that Sundays are NEVER restful days for me.

Today, I left work, and had the revelation that in the past week and a half, I feel I have not done one thing "right." Sure, I probably have... it just doesn't feel like it. Teaching my class tonight (yes, I teach now) I didn't stick with the schedule I wanted. Coming home, I couldn't even park my car. I called my mom outside to come and park it for me. And I don't feel like I am being a good girlfriend.

So thats an update on my life. Sounds pretty crappy when you put it all in black and white, but despite that, I really WANT to be doing all the things I am doing. Not counting the not-getting-to-see-Steve part. And the not sleeping part. And the not being able to park my own car part. Ok well yeah I just really needed to get stuff off my chest tonight that's all.

Trashiest thing since the Staten Island Dump

Ok. I laughed through this because its absurd. I firmly believe it is ok for a preacher to publicly state a political opinion. However, do it with some class, style, elegance, or something.

It seems the preacher and I share the same contempt for the news stations though. Someone's got to tell them that no one gives a darn what a politician's family does, what is important is that politician's OWN beliefs and actions, and what that politician will be passing into law. And for Pete's sake, can we give the pregnant minors some privacy, please?

http://www.atlah.org/broadcast/ndnr09-03-08.html

holiday

In honor of Willie and in memory of my days at Nordstrom, I have to point out that today is Raw Nahashnah.

Another life question...

Why is it that when I'm curious about you, I pay a penny for your thoughts, but when I have an opinion, I pay you two cents to listen to me?

Oh, the irony...

This is not a new development, but today I was struck by the irony. What does a person do when they are allergic to allergy medication?

news

I went to the doctor on Monday for a physical... they did basically exactly what they did in June except that I had no symptoms of anything except allergies, which I told the doctor. And he said, "What do you do for your allergies?" and I said "Grin and bear it," mentioning that in extreme situations I take a children's dose of Benadryl or a half dose of Sudafed. So they called with my bloodwork results on Wednesday.

"Dr. Bain says your bloodwork results show you have allergies."

REALLY??? LIKE, OMG!!

Why I love 99.1

This is my local radio station. I get tired of them and turn them off, but then I always come back, because of things like this:

1: They've come out with a new study that says if you keep a bowl of candy on your desk at work then your coworkers will see you as a warm, friendly, and inviting person
2: Johnny while we're talking about this, can I ask you to have something other than Mary Janes and lollipops in your bowl?
[general agreement from the other morning show radio hosts]
1: haha! I'll just turn off your microphones! Now you can't bother me!! Haha! Nope, no one can hear you, your microphone is off!
[He turns it back on so one of them can do the weather report]
Her: Today, its going to be partly sunny, with clouds that look like marshmallows. Highs 76, lows in the 50s. Rain this weekend so you're going to want to grab the chocolate.

scents and memories

Its funny the things a smell will evoke. Sometimes its a strong memory, or a nostalgic feeling. Smells can make us happy or sad, or give us really bad headaches.

Today, I watched the funeral procession leave. Then some of the ladies from the church stayed behind and began to set up for the repast. As the smell of burnt coffee wafted down the hallway, I had a brief memory of Nordstrom before realizing that it was not "Nordy" quality coffee but something more fitting for a church-sponsored event. Then I smelled store-bought coffee cake, and that combination mixed with the lingering smells of embalming fluid and old people from the morning's events reminded me of a reunion of my dad's geneology group. After that I began to smell catered ziti, the kind that float in a pan of water with a heat candle underneath it. And for some reason, that smell made me feel panicky.

I cannot remember what happened involving ziti and a dangerous situation, but some part of me associates that smell with danger. It is a strange thing, the way the brain makes associations. But that panicky feeling is what made me start thinking about all the smells and the memories, and this distinct lack of a memory intrigued me.

Thats all. Just a comment about how weird the mind is.

Miley Cyrus Rant

Ok, I was trying not to. Honestly. I like the "good girl" image, and her connection to the purity-ring Jonas brothers (even if they broke up). American youth need role models who are not telling them to go have sex before they are emotionally and physically mature enough to comprehend the consequences.

But my friend posted a youtube video to her blog... and I watched it... and could not refrain from a response.

The song is called "7 things" and the "7 things" are a reference to the seven things the song writer hates about her boyfriend or ex-boyfriend or whoever he is. The song ends with her stating the 7 things she loves about him as well. My first thought when the song started was, "Oh wow is that really Miley Cyrus singing? She looks about 13 but her voice sounds like she's 27." It was a bad youtube video, so it looked lip-synched as well. Honestly, I'm not crazy about the voice of whoever sang the song, Miley or not.

Secondly. Miley Cyrus cannot count. The song is called 7 things. But I count more than that.
1-2-3 "You're vain, your games, you're insecure
4-5 You love me, you like her
6-7 You make me laugh, you make me cry
8 I don't know which side to buy
9 You're friends, they're jerks <- you're friends?
10 When you act like them, just know it hurts
11 I wanna be with the one I know
And the 7th thing I hate the most that you do
12 You make me love you"

Granted, I know which seven lines are MEANT to be the "7 things" but quite obviously Miley has not experienced life and heartache enough yet to know that each of those 12 things on their own are possible reasons for hating someone. Except #11, which makes no sense at all. Maybe I'm also inexperienced and just don't understand #11.

Anyway. Got that out of my system.

Perspectives on Death

Today when I walked into the bookstore I was informed that the church from which we rent (they are in the same building.) would be holding two wakes with a funeral tomorrow. Thus, there would be a body lying in state for the whole day but "Don't worry, he's in heaven." What does that mean? That if he's not in heaven I have something to worry about? Zombies? Ghosts? What?

At around 11, a customer walked in and said, "You know there's a dead guy over there?" I said that I had been informed of the days events, and the customer said, "Yeah well, the door is wide open and there's no one in there, he's just lying there and the door's not shut." Both the "door wide open" and the "no one in there" indicates this person believes a dead body should be watched and if possible, barred from getting up and leaving the building. (In case you were wondering shutting the door does not block a person's view of the room; the double doors are glass, as well as a floor-to-ceiling sliding glass door, and 50% of the walls are made of glass.)

To appease the customer, I went up to the church office to ask Emily if we could close the doors, even if they were still waiting for the flower arrangements to come. She said that there was, in fact, someone "watching" the body... watching it for what I am not sure... but it would not be a problem to close the doors.

At 2, when the wake was just starting, a customer came in crying because she dropped by to pick up a book and had not been informed that this man was dead. He'd been the best man at her father's wedding in 1953 and she came in in complete shock that he was now dead.

When Lakshmi came in, she looked at me and said, "There's a body over there." I was tempted to respond, "Huh... wonder how that got there." But I didn't. Unfortunately for Lakshmi, the kitchen and lunch room are down a hallway directly adjacent from the pulpit, which is where the coffin was. She braved it and went to get some water.

Thinking over the whole day, though, it seems to me that I've become somewhat desensitized in some ways. I've been to so many funerals that it doesn't really phase me to see a dead body, and honestly, I've had scarier nightmares. I can put on soft, peaceful music to match the mood of the service, but I can go right on suggesting books for people and filling out order forms just like every other day. I wonder if this is a good thing or a bad thing.

Trisha Yearwood

"When you go to sleep and you can't find a dream, won't you try me? A place you can whisper the secrets you keep, that's what I'll be. When you've given up and there's no one to trust, come and find me."

Haha which kid is worse?

According to an article I read, Lindsay Lohan once wrote that she wanted to "release a politically/morally correct, fully adequite [sic] letter to the press ... simply to state my oppinions [sic] on how our society should be educated on for the better of our country."

Now, since I don't follow the tabloids enough to call her LiLo, nor do I know what she has been up to since she got out of jail, if she was in fact in jail, and I most certainly don't know what got her in trouble, or what her next movie is going to be. But I find it extremely hilarious that the person who wrote the above quote offered to publicly endorse Obama. The article goes on to say that she encouraged her fans to make voting decisions based on facts and to vote for Obama. What's wrong with her? Doesn't she know that if she has fans they are 13? Did anyone tell her that 13 is below the legal voting age? Is SHE even old enough to vote?

In other news... I had a family come into the bookstore today.

Kid: Mom Mom I want a webkin!! Mom, get me a webkin!!
Mom: Sorry honey we are here to buy your sister a confirmation gift.
Kid: but mom i want a webkin!! get me a webkin!! she's going to have more than me if you don't!
Sister: no i won't, mine all died, i don't have any.
[Mom is focusing on the confirmation gift instead of the boy and he's getting impatient. He grabs the animal and rips the tag off]
Kid: "there! now you HAVE to buy it."

And she bought it.
And I am thinking: I can recommend a really good parenting book if you'll just follow me.

Smack that kid upside the head!

Um, what?

Customer: Do you have those bracelets that have all the major saints on them?

Me: Yes, right over here in the Catholic section.

Customer: Oh good, I want it for my friend who just had a premature baby and y'know I thought about one of the saint medals but I don't want it to be too specific because, y'know I don't know if the baby is going to make it and I don't want it to be a morbid medal or anything like that so yeah, I guess I'll go with the saint bracelet because if you have the priest bless it, it brings you good luck.

Yeah. Think about that for a minute. Luck: a mystical force which explains a person's fortunes without ascribing a deity or intelligent mind to said force. Priest: an ambassador or intermediary between a deity or deities, and humans.

Keep thinking until it makes your brain explode. I did.

discoveries

According to the standard thought of massage therapists today, the Eastern theory of Reflexology is pretty acceptable. (The thought that sore points on the hands and feet correspond to ailments in other parts of the body.) Observing a huge knot in my hand, I googled a reflexology chart. When I narrowed the search down to large images only, I came across an Iridology chart. This is a less accepted theory that subtle changes in eye color indicate generally the same things that a reflexology symptom would indicate. Another similar theory is that sore points on the ear also indicate the same things. What I discovered today that I didn't know is that there is yet another theory like all these involving teeth.

Apparently, the meridians in the body run through the teeth, so cavities and fillings disrupt the health of the body via the meridians. Most of the teeth only cross one or two meridians, but the wisdom teeth cross 3 or 4. When I read that, I thought, "Oh ok, no wonder I feel like this." I would assume that getting wisdom teeth pulled would wreak havoc on your body.

My wisdom teeth have been slowly coming in for the past two years now... so I'm wondering if maybe they've been having an effect on my body. It might explain a few things. Currently my upper left wisdom tooth is poking a hole in my lower jaw because its slightly off kilter. That can't really be good for the teeth or my mouth, much less the rest of my body.

In other news, I discovered worms in my hot chocolate. Halfway to finishing it off. Yummy.

"The Tradition of Tailgating"

[Taken from the Rutgers Alumni Magazine.]

"Rutgers Stadium has been the site of spirits and celebration for centuries.

"Beer isn't served at Rutgers Stadium, but a recent excavation revealed that plenty of ale was consumed near the south end zone, which was once the location of the Rising Sun Tavern during the 1700s. All the makings of a fine tailgating affair- wine bottles, cutlery, and ceramics- were discovered, as were remnants of the building, during the construction of the expanded football stadium. The tavern was part of the Raritan Landing settlement, a community that predated the New Brunswick settlement."

Just thought that was cool. So our reputation as a party school is not a new thing.

Why my mouth hates me.

(Click the picture for a better view.)

I wasn't gonna...

I was going to ignore the date. I was going to sit down and watch a movie. I was going to have a normal day.

I wasn't going to sit and watch people die on home video on the History Channel. I wasn't going to remember what I was doing when. I wasn't going to remember three years of nightmares about bloody bodies, demons with ugly eyes, and pools of blood. I wasn't going to remember sending care packages to war zones.

But I did.

Thank you

Three posts on Saturday. Thank you all for being patient while I posted about nothing much. It was raining, I couldn't get any work done in the garden on my day off, and Jack was meowing like it was MY fault it was wet outside. We were all a little stir crazy, and after our internet came back, I ended up just posting as much as I could.

Tropical vacations

In other news, I am thanking Hanna for bringing the Caribbean to me. I can't really afford to go there right now.

Maybe thats why God created tropical storms.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Don't know what this is, but it better be good luck!


What do you do when your model isn't paying attention?


Make her take the picture all over again... and again and again...


Irish, Christian, moderately red-headed... what more do you want? Oh. Freckles. Oh well...

lopsided

So, yesterday, my favorite Christian radio dj came into the store and bought a tie and gave me his card. That same evening my second favorite Christian radio dj came in. Then in between those two a woman came in and said I looked like a nice Christian girl, would you like to date my son? then today, there was nothing exciting at all. Its weird how they stack up.

Pwned!

Ok honestly, I do not use the word "pwned" nor do I used the word "owned" in the same context. But in this case, it seems appropriate, merely because the word traces its roots back to a certain class of people who tend to know a whole lot about computers because one or more of their hobbies requires either a super fast, or super cool computer.

My brother was trying to get his desktop computer to run a little faster, or even run at all, instead of the ambling walk to which it was accustomed. To do so, he borrowed my computer and installed the operating system on his hard drive using my boot disk, rather than his, which was not cooperating. While doing so, he discovered that my version of XP is installed on my computer twice, due a computer problem I had over a year ago. When booting up, I always have to choose which version of XP I want to use, the first one or the second one. He offered to fix it for me. When I turned my computer on today, instead of the usual selection, "Microsoft Windows XP" or "Microsoft Windows XP," I got to choose between "Microsoft Windows XP" and "Select this if Dan owns your computer and is cooler than you."

just thinkin'

"They got a alligator stew and a crawfish pie
A gulf storm blowin' into town tonight
Livin on the delta's quite a show
They got hurricane parties every time it blows."

The people who would appreciate this probably won't read it for a day or two and by then Gustav will not be a laughing matter. Ehhh... so what does that make this post? Ironic maybe? Dunno.

I love my family.

Thats all. I love 'em.

I hate pollen and mold

I feel like I am leaking snot out of every damn orifice in my body. Something's gotta give.

Whew!

Hi, everyone, this is Jack! My mommy Meghan is sleepy so I'm posting an update on her behalf. She's been doing a lot of gardening, and when I see her in the garden, I usually run over to help out. Sometimes I go into the garden even when she's not there. She needs all the help she can get taking care of those plants, because some small creature has been getting in and trampling on stuff. And boy!! Its exhausting, taking care of those plants:


These are all the things she's been pulling out of the garden. On the left is an acorn squash that seems to be genetically pure, whatever that means. She told me last year the squash that came up was an acorn/spaghetti squash hybrid. But I wouldn't remember because I was only a few weeks old! The cucumbers are going crazy, and Meghan can't seem to find enough people to eat them. The beans and peas are at the end of their seasons, so the ones in the picture are going to become seeds for next year. I can't wait! More digging in the dirt and rolling and basking in the sun and catching all the bugs that she disturbs!


The bright tomatoes are a breed called Amish Paste. They are supposed to be good for sauces, but Meghan's dad has been putting them in his sandwiches. The dark ones are Cherokee Purple. Don't sit and wait for them to turn red, they won't! They will go bad before that happens, because they are ripe when they are purple. They also have a very low acidity level, and Meghan wants to plant them next year because they are so yummy and juicy!! That big one in the corner became her lunch the other day. She just had a whole tomato for lunch. Can you imagine that? No fish-shaped fiber crunchies, no liver and tuna with gravy, not even a chipmunk! Just a tomato! How does she live like that?


Meghan has dubbed this the first ever butt-pumpkin. It is one of the only pumpkins that has survived the onslaught of the groundhog. She was really tempted to put mace on her pumpkins to keep the groundhogs away but didn't know if that would mean they are no longer organic. For now, we will just have to be more vigilant. (I wonder if she means me?)


Its really shiny here because it was in the dirt, and Meghan had to wash it in case there were bugs or anything on it. Its still sitting on the kitchen table. But there was another pumpkin that the groundhog chewed into, all the way to the seeds, so she had to make a pie with it before it went bad. I hope we can find this groundhog soon, because we don't know where he's getting in. There are no holes under the fence. I don't want Meghan to start blaming me for the groundhog's mischief! I hope she doesn't expect me to kill it. Although, that would be fun.


Speaking of big game, there were two giant birds in my yard today. Meghan called them turkeys. I didn't like their clucking noise, so I puffed my tail up at them and arched my back to make them go away. Slinky and Sister, my real parents, ran and hid. But I was brave and was only about 8 feet away from them. One of the birds jumped up onto the garden fence and then flew away. The other one had a staredown with me but I won because I looked more like a lion than he did. I ran towards him and he flew away too. Meghan was sad she couldn't get to her camera soon enough.

Ok that is all. Until next time,

~Jack~

Ahh little kids...

So, today I played Esther, as I already mentioned I would be doing.

I thought the kids seemed riveted to me, but I guess not. I overheard one little girl telling her grandmother what Bible character came to Sunday School today:

Girl: "We got to meet Sylvester."
Grandmother: Sylvester?
Girl: yeah, she's right over there, with the long hair.

I was walking away so at that point I was both laughing and out of earshot. I don't know how Gramma responded. I hope she set her straight.

Michael Phelps

I discovered that if you are aware of your surroundings and current events, it is possible to turn the TV on, watch for thirty seconds, see history made, and yet another world record broken, and in under a minute, turn the TV off again.

I think the cooler race was the other relay where half their suits were hanging off and Steve made a big deal about the buttcrack and that NBC was being really conservative by not showing any of the swimmer's fronts "out of fear."

We wouldn't want the male version of Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction now would we?

Rolling with the punches...

So my church isn't doing VBS this year. What? A church without VBS?? Sacrilege! Instead, every Sunday, a Bible character is visiting the Sunday school. I believe I have mentioned this before. The first week we had Noah tell us what it was like on the ark, then Gideon, Elijah and Elisha, Shadrach... its been exciting.

I've been the one calling the actors, rehearsing with them, putting them in costumes, etc. We only managed to find someone to play Queen Esther about two weeks ago. Today, I re-discovered why I am not working in a professional theater.

Esther called to say she couldn't make it, and she's sooo sorry. Fortunately I have to say, I really really had a strong gut feeling that she would bail. So, I didn't call her back, I didn't even call the Sunday School director. Why? Because I listened to my gut and I've spent the past two weeks studying the part. Why didn't I just give the part to someone else? Cause we've exhausted our resources as far as actors are concerned.

So yeah. Cool. I have a day and a half to prep myself for a performance (I didn't memorize lines, I just studied the story so when I get up there, I'll have to improv). Now you know why, if I did this professionally, and it was the only thing paying my bills, I'd kill myself.

Just rolling with the punches...

Oh yeah, PS. I get the nicest costume for myself... why? Cause I CAN!

Ahh memories...

While I worked at the Nordstrom Espresso Bar, and not Starbucks, it is my belief that they are all virtually the same: the same neurotic caffeine-addicted customers wanting their daily fix at the same time every morning at the same hectic pace and the same rush at the same time every morning. A friend of mine works at Starbucks and posted this in her blog:

"We have a long line out the door, 2 people on bar, 2 people (including me) on register, and one person in the lobby getting everyone's order. We're all huring getting people in and out with our legendaryyy service when I get this guy:

[My Friend]147xxxx: Hi, what did you order?
Cell phoned jerk: Yeah, well that's what I reported to Grady... yeah, exactly...
147xxxx: Excuse me, sir?
Cell phoned jerk: at around 8 or 9 I asked- ...yes... no, no, I agree wholeheartedly on tha- ... right,
147xxxx: Sir, I have to know what you ordered to ring you up
Cell phoned jerk: Yeah... haha oh of course
147xxxx: SIR
Cell phoned jerk: Well, I think she faxed it around 10
147xxxx: (to another partner) DO YOU KNOW WHAT HE ORDERED?
13xxxxx: I don't remember...
Cell phoned jerk: right...ha... At starbucks. STARBUCKS
147xxxx: ...if you want something you have to tell me what you ordered or get out of line.
Cell phoned jerk: grande cappuccino

He tossed a $20 at the counter while continuing his phone conversation, and I slammed the change down on the counter and wanted to shove that god damn phone in his mouth. When there isn't a line and I get customers like this I usually try to take my sweet time in punching in their ordering and getting their change. We should have someone not affiliated with the company stand outside and kick them in the groin after they leave. Eh, just a thought."

I know EXACTLY how she feels!!

Quotes

I often post quotes in my Xanga account, more for my benefit than anyone else's. I thought that today I would switch it up and post here instead. Usually, I post the original author of the quote. But most of these, I have no idea where they originated.

"Everything will be OK in the end. If its not OK, its not the end."

"The best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other."

"A woman should be so lost in God that a man has to seek God to find her."

"One of the first things a relationship therapist learns is that couples argue to burn up energy that could be used for something else. In fact, arguments often serve the purpose of using up energy, so that the couple do not have to take the courageous, creative leap into an unknown they fear. Arguing serves the function of being a zone of familiarity into which you can retreat when you are afraid of making a creative breakthrough." ~Gay Hendricks

"He doesn't make my dreams come true. No, when I am with him, I find myself giving birth to new dreams."

Celebrity Morph

Yay, I like Rachel Weisz!

MyHeritage: Family trees - Genealogy - Celebrities

gas prices

I'll admit... my heart leaps a little when I see that the local gas station near me has dropped its prices to $3.65 (from $3.97). I've always loved them because they do have the cheapest gas around excluding Raceway (but I don't go to Raceway... my car doesn't like the gas there) and when everyone else went over $4/ gallon, Mr. Thrifty Gas made it a point not to (probably because you pay the same whether you use cash or credit).

And I'll also admit, I have at times called Anissa or Steve before visiting Nanuet or New Brunswick to find out the price of gas where they are... should I fill up here, or wait?

But I do have to say, I like the ideas in this article. I also, on occasion, have to drive on 287 during rush hour. And when gas was over $4/ gallon in places, "rush hour" meant there were enough cars on the road that crazy people had to slow down to 70 rather than their usual 80 (speed limit on 287 is 65, 55, then back to 65). I like it when less people drive. Seriously, our gas is not taxed as heavily as in other countries, we do pay less than other people, the Brits are still envious of our gas prices (I know, I talked to one!), and it is possible to get by despite high gas prices. You just have to know how to make a budget. See my August 8, 2008 rant on that.

I think gas prices hit Americans hard because most of them don't know how to manage their finances or do simple math.

Ok. Thats all. End rant.

pillar of salt

Genesis 19:26 But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.

I finally get it. As cool as it would be to discover a medical condition transforming the proteins in the cells of the body into sodium chloride, its not necessary. If you enjoy your memories while looking forward, you can bring yourself to a safe place. If you look back at your memories, you are frozen there. There's no moving forward. Good, you may think... I will sacrifice myself to become a standing monument to my memories. Well thats no good. A monument of salt will last as long as there's a drought. After that it will wash away to the ocean. The monument to your memories will be gone. Better just to look forward and remember your memories; that way you won't lose anything.

Simple Math

I have spent 17 months working at a cash register. In all that time, the following conversation occurs repeatedly and it never ceases to amaze me:

"Ok that will be $41.72 ok and that's out of a $50? ok."

Pause as for one reason or another a glitch causes the computer to neglect to print what the customer should receive as change.

"OH NO! What do I do now???!"

Why? Why does nobody know how to give the correct change anymore? Did your 1st grade math teacher make you use a calculator instead of brains?

It is really sad that I, a self-confessed math hater, must comment on this. I hate math, and a lot of the time I can't be bothered, I am too lazy to do it. But at least when I HAVE to do it, I know how and can do it quickly, silently, and without panic.

This article seems to be pointing out a growing trend of mathematically challenged people.

Champagne in my veins

The number 8, in certain ancient symbolism, is supposed to represent the start of something new. I wonder what 8-8-'08 will bring.

So far, 23 minutes in, it has brought a poem about myself. I have not written a poem since May 2006, so it is very interesting to me that I am beginning to see life in catchphrases that I can expound upon like I used to do. I wonder if this burst of creativity will be the start of something I haven't experienced yet.

(If you were wondering about the title, that's the catchphrase that triggered the entire poem.)

Roughing it...

I love cooking. I love it so much I make Steve cook with me. In the mood for fish recently, we stopped at the Asian food market to see what was available. The Asian food market is incredible. They advertise many different types of animals and animal parts, including a wedge of shark meat that looks like its been chiseled away with a hacksaw, and "sheepshead" which we saw on a sign but... they must have been all out. Thank goodness. At other times you can go browse the rotisserie and see things that are clearly not fowl, the usual occupants of rotisseries. After much debate, we finally settled on red snapper, since my neighbor, an Italian cook, raves about red snapper.

I come from a predominantly white neighborhood, where you can go to the store and buy fish fillets, fish steaks, mollusks and shellfish. The latest novelty which they just installed about a year ago is a sushi bar which is manned for about 3 hours a day by the employees of the Chinese/ Japanese restaurant down the road. Its a big thing. One thing you do not see in our store is whole fish. So naturally, I didn't quite know what to do with this red snapper that we got. I went to Barnes and Noble with a gift card and a gift certificate for a free smoothie from the cafe. Steve settled in with a comic book, I sat down with a whole stack of cookbooks. I didn't end up buying the cookbook dedicated to fish, but I learned how to clean, fillet, skin, and cook a fish. I got a delectable recipe as well. But I ended up actually buying a green tea cookbook.

So now I feel prepared and more educated. I feel like if Steve were to come visit covered in war paint and dragging dinner behind him with a spear through it, I would be able to take it without blinking an eye or asking "what do you want me to do with this THING?" As long as it breathes with gills that is. Perhaps I will find a book that teaches how to get the meat from a larger creature, like a deer. Then I will be prepared for any sort of guy dragging dead stuff to my kitchen.

Next item: Learn how to make fish stock from a meatless carcass.

Three things

1. I am starting to hate Blogger. They made some kind of a deal with Google that makes logging in a nightmare from hell.

2. It has been a long time since grappling with someone resulted in them tapping out. Tonight, I discovered sutemi that can lead to my opponent tapping out. As I was grappling, I could hear Rod's voice in my head yelling at me not to hold back, but just go for it and mean it. I finally figured out how to do that. We were near the edge of the mat, and getting the tap required me to relinquish my comfort, and allow my head to press into the pavement. There was no other way. Grappling is not usually like that for me. I either win rarely, or I give up and tap out (more common). It is not often that I must make a sacrifice to reach my goal. I can over analyze this: I wonder if perhaps I have had this love-hate relationship with jujitsu because I have been allowing myself to give up my goal rather than make a sacrifice.

3. I have a little secret that I briefly thought about sending to postsecret.com but then decided its not necessary for me to be anonymous. Here it is: I love looking at myself in the mirror after Jujitsu, and seeing my hair mussed up and falling out of its braid. When my hair is mussed, that's when I feel the most beautiful.

HAHAHA

I tried to post a comment and blogger required that I pass the "captcha" test. (If you don't know, its that picture of distorted letters that prevents spam bots from advertising on your blog.) I noticed that if you type the letters in and then discover that "that R is actually an N" you can erase the whole thing and start over. But instead of the standard button that says "clear" or "start over" Blogger makes you admit your stupidity by clicking the little handicap symbol.

Weddings

I've been planning my wedding since I was five. At 13 I narrowed my wedding dress choices down to 2. When my aunt got married a few summers ago, I decided that I, too, wanted a reception in a castle. So its only natural that today I read an article about the top wedding traditions that you can't do without. The author was witty, which is why I have deemed it blog-worthy. I've summarized a bit, but I'm quoting the four best paragraphs in the author's article.

You can do away with the Macarena, YMCA, and Electric Slide, but the four traditions your wedding must have are:

1. Write your own vows. "The traditional 'for better or for worse' vows don’t do the bride and groom justice. These people have been through better and worse. They have planned an American wedding, an event that in modern dollars and man-hours equals approximately the entire Normandy Invasion. If you can plan a wedding together, you can live together, buy a house together, invade Nazi Europe together, etc."

2. Open Bar. "You don't want to be known as a closed-bar wedding. You could host an elaborate ceremony on a scenic Hawaiian bluff with the Rev. Jesse Jackson presiding as the bride and groom parachute from a B-52 Stratofortress while Yo-Yo Ma and Kid Rock perform a breathtaking duet and, if you don't provide free booze, the only thing any guy in attendance will say about that day is, 'Dude, closed bar.'"

3. Best Man's Speech. "Here's a man who's probably a lifelong friend of the groom. This man knows in the back of his mind that their friendship will never be the same. No one in the room has more to lose by this couple getting married. But if this man who is losing his best friend and facing many a lonely weekend playing Xbox, if this man can give his blessing, then who can object?"

4. Honeymoon. "Legend has it that Northern European men in the mood to marry used to abduct their wives from neighboring villages and take them into hiding while the bride's father and brothers hunted them down. This hiding period came to be known as the honeymoon. How romantic. The name itself came from a drink the bride and groom would share — mead — that was made from honey. Couples would drink a cup of mead per day during the first 30 days of marriage, presumably to take the edge off the wife's recent kidnapping. (Admit it. There’s a part of you that longs to be kidnapped by a take-no-prisoners Norseman who never wears shirts. I know how you women think.)"

(Taken from an msnbc.com article written by Joe Donatelli)

w(sl)eepy

The sky is pretty today.

But its still one of those lost and empty sort of days.

Photo Blog

Today is day two of my body's sleep boycott. I have been falling asleep at 2 and waking up at 6, which is before my alarm. I hate waking up before my alarm. Also I have been stressed this week and when I get stressed I pick the skin away from my fingernails... without even noticing I'm doing it. It looks bad, especially because my nails are caked with dirt from working in the church's garden and the church attic, which has to be emptied because the fire marshal said so. To get my mind off those things, I took a walk around my yard with the camera, and took comfort in everything I have accomplished this summer.

I planted about three trillion dahlias, and a bush next to the Holly that has a name I can't pronounce. That day I got a nice sunburn.


In order to plant the vegetable garden, I had to remove the hydrangea. I put it in a bucket to transplant, and then I forgot about it. It seems to be happy in the bucket (its growing anyway).


I spent about half a day cleaning the old leaves out of the hydrangea (the one that is IN the ground) and pulling off the dead stems. That was another sunburn day, but it was worth it:


The overgrown vegetable garden. Note patch of red, that is a gladiolus, which just came up on its own, as well as a few others in places where I KNOW we have never had glads.


A bee in a cucumber flower.


The cucumber patch, which is producing cucumbers that are about the size and diameter of a footlong Subway sandwich.


Three foot tall lettuce.


7 foot tall tomatos. Back row, R to L: Aldo, Amish Paste, Cherokee Purple. Front rom, R to L: accidental cherry tomato from last year's plants, cherry tomato , cherry tomato, three basil plants.


12 foot tall carving pumpkins. Obviously, I am going to have to cut them out of the tree and obviously they are going to be too heavy to grow up high.


Apple Mint taking over next to the garage.


Rhubarb.


Snow peas, at the very end of their season.


The back garden, which contains my pumpkin patch consisting of sweet pumpkins and cheese pumpkins.


Random item. While cleaning out the attic, I discovered a telegraph machine. I took it home to cut down on the phone bill.


Sorry for the blurry photo. I was balancing on my heels, and was tiring of the photography and at that point, wanted it to be over quickly and didn't care about the quality.