Really random wandering thoughts, dreams, food, hand update and sports! Why it's better than your local news update!

I did it! I posted everyday for the month of November and had a blast doing it. I admit, I like blogging. It's cheaper than therapy and keeps me in contact with people. Let's see if I can keep up this posting everyday thing, shall we?

In other news, I got my stitches out on Monday... I meant to post about it sooner, but it's been a busy week. I've been catching up on all kinds of things, keeping up with school work, getting holiday shopping done and all the random shit life throws at you when you aren't looking.

My hand appears to be healing just fine... it's only a little sore and I have to stretch it ALOT to regain the movement I once had. The stretching and squeezing is surprisingly tiring... you would think that I am just sitting there squeezing a ball repeatedly but then after 10 minutes or so I feel pooped. Weird, eh? Of course that could also be hormonal tiredness, which happens to us gals, but that's another story.

Food Porn alert: I have to tell y'all this... last night for dinner, at Ron's prompting, we made homemade pizza with grilled chicken and BBQ sauce, cheese, peppers and onions and it was THE BEST. YUM!!!!

Now at the risk of this blog becoming an online dream diary I had a slightly less weird one this morning. I was in my elementary school gym class with high school friends playing matball (kickball with bigger bases) and we were all wearing leather jackets. I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that I have been thinking about kickball these days (long story) and wearing my leather jacket lately because it fits me again (YAY!!!) and I bought it when I was in high school? I bet it does.

I also dreamt, ALL NIGHT LONG, that our phone was ringing. Everytime I would dream it I woke up and thought about getting out of bed to answer it. This would happen at least once an hour. ALL NIGHT LONG. I'm tired and a tad cranky today because of this.

So why have I been thinking about kickball lately? Well, I am trying to think of fun ways to incorporate some exersize* into my life and I though, maybe if i did something I enjoyed as a kid it would help my lose a few pounds. I thought about Roller Derby... THESE fine ladies recently had tryouts, but I had surgery and I don't have skates. I used to LOVE roller skating though and I used to be VERY good at it if I do say so myself.

Then I thought KICKBALL! Hell, I was once dropped on my head during a kickball game and had to have 8 or 9 stitches in my head. I still have a flat spot there... I'll tell that story another day. And then someone gave Ron info about THIS. I'm not sure I'd be into something so organized... that smacks of - gulp - commitment. I was thinking something fun starting this spring with friends at a local park when the weather is nice.

I am feeling chatty today... maybe it's the caffeine finally starting to kick in. I really ought to shower now and get my ass out the door. I'll stop now.

* Exersize is one of those annoying words that NEVER looks like it is spelled right and the more you look at it the more wrong it feels.

Yeeeahhh!!!!

Dreams...

Last nights dreaming:
I dreamt I had to pick up a famous author at a bus station in Pittsburgh. Why she couldn't get a bus ticket to Boston I don't know. So I had to drive all the way from Boston to Pittsburgh and get back in time to go to work and school. I get there and I find a bus station full of derelicts, across the street is a thrift store. Tehre are several ail shops and salons, and a a few porn stores and liquor stores and I stand there thinking there's nothing to do in this town but eat, drink and fuck.

I get a call on my cell phone to meet the famous author woman in a fancy hotel for breakfast. She is short and dumpy with longish, curly mousy, brown hair. I think, with a little upkeep her hair might be quite nice. I buy us two mimosa's and they cost $32. I am not shocked by the price in the dream but somewhere in my head I think I was screaming $32!!!! That's fucking insane. I smile, pay for the drinks and go over to talk to famous author lady. I still don't know her name. The woodwork in the fancy hotel is very a very nice honey color that I find comforting.

We magically are back home and it's raining. HARD. Inside my house my father in law is frantically trying to stop the rain from coming in through the foundation of the new addition on the back of the house. Ron is on the computer looking for ways to stop leaks and he finds a magic keyboard shortcut that fixes it. Fancy author lady looks over my book collection and says "This is where I belong" and she turns into a book and flies onto the shelf. I can hear snoring.

I was then walking in front of the library of the town I live in when I saw a friend of mine who also lives in town walking a small dog and pulling a cart full of groceries. He tipped his signature adventurerer style hat to me and said good day in an odd accent while the dog tried to bite my foot. Then I woke up.

The night before lasts dream:
Jennifer Aniston and Gwyneth Paltrow are not friends. The only thing they have in common is Brad Pitt. In this dream they were both impregnated by him and miscarried.

They both made sculptures to represent thier loss. Gwyneth made a bowl that was rounded at the bottom and squarish at the rim. It was white on the outside and a deep red on the inside. She made it then smashed it and was healed of her pain.

Jennifer made an all white heart with wings. It was about 3 feet long and could really fly. She kept it tied to her wrist with a string so it wouldn't fly away. Gwyneth tried to convince her to let it go and she would be healed, but she couldn't. So she got a flying sportscar and drove around the city, I don't know which city, and started blowing up parking garages.

I told you I have weird dreams.

Not QUITE a rant, but close...

St. Jeremiah's Church in Framingham is suing The Archdiocese of Boston for attempting to close their parish in an effort to save money. Many parishes have been fighting their closing decree's but the folks at St. Jeremiah's have decided to sue on the grounds that each parish belongs to the parishioners.

This is an interesting and almost genius move. They have been protesting the decision to close for over a year now and while I personally don't care what happens either way, I have to admire their pluck. By suing the church they are pretty much asking the government to step in and have a say in a church matter.

I may be wrong, but this could set a bad precedent in any future issues involving the separation of church and state. This is murkey territory and it doesn't make me comfortable at all. In the defense of the Archdiocese of Boston if they were a company and had to close a few offices due to budget cuts and poor profits they would just lay everyone off, sell the building and move on. But faith has never been that simple and God(?) does not issue severance checks.

I'm sure all kinds of folks will come out of the woodwork to see how this turns out and to see if a decision in either direction can be used to their advantage in furthering their own political agendas.

File Under: Current Events

Here is a list of strange stuff that's been in the news lately:

- Lightening Exits Woman's Bottom
- Not a leg to stand on: Plastic flamingos face extinction (No!)
- Evangelical Leader Quits Amid Allegations of Gay Sex and Drug Use (Heh... go figure...)
- Library volunteers just say no to drug testing (AMEN!)
- Tesco condemned for selling pole dancing toy (um, excuse me?)
- Hairy fairy picks up the bill
- New Inhaler-Friendly Snorkel Could Open Up Underwater World to Asthmatics (Finally, someone is looking out for me!)
- Family snap 'saves girl's life' (Woah...)
- Boy, three, buys car on internet (Passwords people! PASSWORDS!!!)

Oh where, Oh where have you gone now?

It seems the Traveling Journal has gone AWOL again... If you have it please pass it on.

Thank You!

The Betty Glover Library Exercise Video!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Ron! I love you!

Home Stretch...

Here we are in the NaBloPoMo home stretch! Only 3 more days to go and so far I have managed to post something everyday. Woo-hoo! I knew this would be pretty easy for me. Okay I'll shut up now before I jinx myself.

Anyone interested in seeing other folks who are doing this crazy thing check out the NaBloPoMo Randomizer. It will randomly select a fellow participant.

No weird dreams to report this morning... sorry. I stopped taking the pain pills for my hand so the weird dreams have returned to their normal infrequently remembered schedule. Enough of you liked them though that I will try harder to remember them and write them down for you in the future. I invite all amateur psychiatric types to interpret them as they wish as the interpretations can be as entertaining as the dream.

I get my stitches out in 2 hours, but now for one last one handed shower. I am NOT going to miss that at all... pain in the ass that is. As soon as I can get my hand good and soaked and have at least an hours stretch of time I am going to take a long, hot bath and destroy a few razors catching up on some personal landscaping. Can I get a Halla-loo!!!

Artist of The Week

This weeks Artist of The Week is

Michelle White!
I've been following her blog for a couple of months now and her work continues to amaze me. After a while I noticed she had another blog which can be seen HERE.

I love her style which sort of reminds me of book illustrator Peter Parnall, yet she makes each piece uniquely her own.

You can view her professional website HERE.

Screwy Dream Alert!

I had many weird dreams last night... I kept waking up all night to pee and each time had a weird dream preceding it. The one that stands out (meaning, that I actually remember) is one where I had traveled back in time to the caveman era and was trying to dam up Niagara Falls with boulders made of chocolate. I was throwing them at the falls while mysteriously hovering above them. I don't know where I got them from, but the cavemen would try and swim out to them to eat them, but they would just drown or go over the falls.

And I haven't had a pain pill in 2 days! I swear!

OHMYGOD! This is too damn funny!

Photos!

Click on the photo to see more!

Photos of my hand can be seen HERE.

In Honor of Black Friday

Yes folks, today is the official start of the silly season, otherwise known as Black Friday. I don't know about you folks, but I HATE holiday shopping. I hate the malls, the crowds, the commercialism, everything. I even hate Christmas music. The internet is the best thing to happen to people like me who hate going to stores this time of the year. We are about 2/3 done with our shopping and should be totally done in the next week or so. YAY!

So in honor of spending a Black Friday curled up in your jammies in front of the lovely glow of the computer screen I offer you folks a list of some neato online shopping oppurtunities. I haven't purchased anything from the list below so anyone in my family who happens to be reading this feel free to safely buy stuff on this list for anyone we know.

And now without further ado, The List!

Silly Gifts:
- Arse/Face Towel
- Champagne Parachute
- The Best Rubber Stamps EVER!
- Old School Cell Phone
- The Atomic Bonsai (Good for those who kill plants)
- Dead Fred Pen Holder
- A Red Swingline Stapler
- The Avenging Unicorn

For the Anti-Martha:
- Bottle Opener/Fridge Magnet
- Twinkies Cookbook
- Salt & Pepper Shakers
- Grolsch Goblets (Recycling at it's best!)
- Egg Cuber (Wanna see how it works? Go HERE.)
- Mr. P Lamp
- Glow Brick
- Gun Vase (also comes in wall mounted version)
- Hostess Apron
- All About the Knives
- Cross-Stitch Anyone?
- Grass?
- Slide Light

For The Man in Your Life:
- Revenge CD
- Gamer Scarves
- T-qualizer Shirt
- Cool Shooters! (Great with Jagermeister!)
- Shocking Party Games (Great with Jagermeister!)
- The Senator Cape
- Star Wars Barware (Great with... well... y'know...)
- Show Your Support T-shirt

For Kids:
- Pig E Bank
- Wee Ninja

For The Ladies:
- Something Gold (also "comes" in Platinum)
- Libray CD Shelves
- Belly Dance Wear designed by Maragret Cho

For Baby or those expecting one:
- Pee Pee Teepee
- Pregnant Paper Dolls

For those with deeper wallets:
- A Lovely Garden Bench
- Stone Bathtub
- Light Up Table
- Cool Coffee Table
- Neato Shower Stall
- Perfect Villan Chair
- Tangram Shelving
- Tortoise Ottoman
- The Sky's The Limit!

For those who don't deserve shit:
- Coal Bubblegum

For "Type-A" People:
- TaskWatch Board

Not available yet, but if it were I would TOTALLY want it:
- Cutting Board Scale
- LED Candles

And let's not forget the pets:
- Hidden Litter
- Puppy Lips

Wrapping Paper!
- Raunchy Wrap
- Bob's Gift
- Wrap Hell

Update

Well, my dexterity is slowly returning to my left hand. How do I know this? Because I was able to pick my nose with it last night.

EEEEEEIIIUUUUUWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm SUCH a classy broad.

Happy Thanksgiving!

This seemed appropriate for Thanksgiving... I stole it from HERE.

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 Hours in a day is not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee:

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full.. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.

The students responded with an unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the Empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - God, family, children, health, friends, and Favorite passions -- things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, house, and car.
The sand is everything else -- the small stuff.

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...
Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play With your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18.
There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal.

"Take care of the golf balls first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.
The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked".

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

Aaaahhhhh.....

I got to scratch!!! Ah, sweet relief! And my incision is just about an inch and a half long. It looks like a caterpillar. I'll post all kinds of pictures soon, but now I need to go to bed.

File Under: TWISTED

Definately NSFW!!!
And a little late for Halloween... oh well!

Arrr!!!!

what kind of swordfighter are you?????? Pirate You are a scavenger of the high seas. You don't really know how to swordfight because you are drunk and worthless. Pirates are the worst type of warrior. Actually they are the worst type of people. Avoid battle at all costs for you will surely perish. You fight because you're too drunk to realize you shouldn't.

Click Here to Take This Quiz Brought to you by YouThink.com quizzes and personality tests.

Update

I am home for about 15 minutes before I have to scoot right back out again and get a haircut so here's a quick post. YAY!!! Clean hair! Really clean too! Woooot! And tonight I get to take the bandage off and survey the incision... and SCRATCH MY FUCKING ARM!!!

I am more excited by this than I can say.

Duh...

Apparently I can't count when fucked up on codeine.
My counter was less that 60 hits away from 9100, not 10,000 as I had thought.

*slaps forhead*

I can't be such a dumbass sometimes. However, no one caught my error which means no one reads this shit or y'all are taking pain pills too.

IF?

Well, IF OJ did it he doesn't have a book deal anymore. And that's a pretty big if.

But you know what I wonder? Who has custody of his kids? And how screwed up are they going to be with this shithead for a father?

Update

Here we are 4 days post hand-job and I am going to attempt going back to work today. I have to leave here in 40 minutes and I still need to eat and get dressed. I showered all by myself though! I'm a big girl now! And driving one handed should be inteeresting... I'll report on that later.

Tomorrow I get to change the bandage and see what this incision looks like... I'll try to take pictures. And I'll finally get to scratch my hand!!! Ahhh, blessed careful, selective scratching!! I can't wait! I am actually excited about thiss.

More torture, I mean, Healthy exercise for your cat.

Does your cat need exercise?

For All You Crazy Fucks Who Shop The Friday After Thanksgiving

Anyone want to see the sale ads in advance? Go HERE.

I Never Thought I Would Say This...

... but gosh darn it, I would really like to shave my armpits right about now.

But no, can't get my arm wet until November 27th at the earliest.

File Under: Zealots-R-Us

Sen. Satveer Chaudhary, a practicing Hindu, was re-elected in District 50 last week. Rather than call, his Christian opponent Rae Hart Anderson offered him an e-mail concession that he said read more like a sermon.

And HERE is that letter.

This is exactly what pisses me off most about zealots of any kind, not just Christian ones. I hate it when they take every oppurtunity to shove it in your face that you are not like them and therefore will burn in hell/die/whatever. I have no problem with what you believe just don't cram it down anyones throat. Why can't they just respect that not everyone believes in the same god or that there is only one god?

Why can't we all just get along?

Pooped

Carrie came down to visit and took me to IKEA to get me out of the house for a little while. That place is freakin' huge and now I'm damn tired.

Note to parents: IKEA has 45 minutes of free supervised child care!

Call me Lefty

Hey, I'm getting pretty good at this one handed typing. My left fingers are free to do some pecking though... I can handle the shift key at least!

And blast it all, my hand still ITCHES!!!

REALLY, REALLY Fucked Up Dream

I'm at school wich has been mysteriously relocated to Canton from Waltham and I'm wearing a halter top, short and sandals. I don't wear haltertops. It's hot outside, and I enter a big elementary school. I find my class and there aren't enough computers for everyone so I have to share with someone. I had a hissyfit because "I'm not aying all this money to share equipment!"

I noticed Sarah wasn't there... maybe she got lost? The class ends halfway through an excersise and an overdressed, overperfumed, over make-upped woman comes in and locks the door and proceeds to try and sell us cosmetics. There is a guy in the room I don't recognize and he is frantically looking for the door. In the dream my hand hurts and theres no bandage. The incision starts to peel back and reveal layer after layer of new skin.

The stinky woman goes away and it's time to go home. While in class it snowed about 5 feet. I am not dressed for snow. The main entrance of the school has also disappeared so we all shuffle out towards the back of the building. I am at the foot of a flight of stairs covered in green shag carpet when Ron finds me. He is carrying golf clubs. Neither of us golf. I tell him to go put those in the car and come back for me.

I try to go up the stairs and pictures of angry bulldogs magically appear going all the way up them. A crazy old fat man in a tuxedo appears holding something that is squirming that I don't recognize and sucking a lollipop. He has a mustache. He says I have to speak nicely to the doggies or they won't let me pass. I say nice doggy, pretty doggy, etc to every dog picture on the stairs and the pictures of angry dogs fall asleep as I pass. I notice a little boy has followed me up. He is wearing a tuxedo as well and blue and yellow nail polish.

At the top of the stairs he instructs me to "step on the lilly pads" and I look down and there are lily pads on the green shag carpet. They lead to a door. I hop and hop to each pad. The last pad is a dog. A real dog this time. The dog looks up at me and says "Whatever" and goes to sleep.

I open the door into a 70's era kitchen/family room with more hideous carpeting. I see a door out into the snow and I say "that's it! I'm outta here!" The little boy follows me and turns into a mean looking man child in a boys body. He tells me to be careful and to watch out for the bicycles. I look up and floating magically in the snow are a herd of feral bicycles growling at me.

Then I woke up.

GAHHH!!!!!

IT ITCHES!!!!

I feel human again

I just had proper shower... not that the sponge bath Ron gave me yesterday wasn't enjoyable mind you, but nothing beats a proper shower. Ron lent a helping hand and washed my hair for me. He also has a way with soap.

On a completely different note I am slowly remembering things that happened in the operating room. At one point I woke up, but still felt no pain. There was music playing and I asked who we were listwning to becasue I HATE not know who I am listening to and someone said "Oh this is from before your time" and I said "It sounds like Roy Orbison" and someone then said "She's got you there..." and then a woman's voice said "Okay Kristine go back to sleep now" and I said "Okay" and I did.

I remember having my entire arm painted yellow with disinfectant, traces of which I am still washing off.

My hand is starting itch under the bandage. This could be maddening. I suppose that itching is a sign of healing, right?

Artist of The Week!

The weeks Artist of The Week is Loretta Lux!

I figured it was about time to feature another photographer and I love the way Ms. Lux photographs children. Her photos are beautiful and a little creepy, but I like that. Check out her work HERE.

One more thing...

Both CVS and Walgreens have pretty shitty childproof bottles for their store brand drugs... I can open both with one hand.

Update

Having slept for the better part of the last 36 hours I am now surprisingly awake. A-W-A-K-E. It's after midnight and I should be in bed. A pain pill will do the trick methinks, but they make me nauseous. My hand is throbbing aand I probablt should take one anyway. Not only is my hand throbbing, it's sweaty. It's funny how sweaty your fingers get when they are jammed so close together. I have to remeber to move them and stretch them so they don't get stiff.

Anyway, we popped in on Josie's birthday party 'cause I had to get out of the house. That was fun ans I dug out the old digital camera and took some one handed pictures. I'll post those as soon as I can. Then I spent the rest of the day sittin' on my ass and surfin' the net.

There's less than 60 hits to go until I hit 10,000 visitors. Who will number 10,000 be? If anyone notices that it's them take a screen shot for me, will ya? I think it's ctrl + print screen button to do that. If you email a screen shot to reallystrangegirl *at* gmail *dot* com showing you are the 10,000th viewer maybe I'll send you a prize. Maybe.

Rename Downtowb Crossing?

THIS is just dumb. Yes, the area could use a little TLC, but a new name? No. And if they do go through with it, how long before someone comes up with the brilliant idea of selling the naming rights? Reebok Square anyone? Microsoft Corner? Disney Crossing? Fucking stupid if you ask me.

Floaty Child Ball

Daily Snort

248 Ways To Annoy People

Anyone into Sodoku?
I'm not, But I know some of you are... those of you who are with blogs may be intereested in this little bit of code (shown below and available HERE) for their blog. It's pretty neat and changes everyday, I'm just into Sodoku... it makes my brain itch.

Update

Hi there!
It's Handy McThrob here... I just woke up about a half an hour ago and I am typing with 2 hands! Well, sort of... I am certainly catching more mistakes as I type, and I haven't taken apain pill yet. Now to eat, take a whores bath and maybe get out of the house for a little while... More later!

Happy 5th Birthday Josie!

Give Me Halloween Anyday...

Your Christmas is Most Like: The Nightmare Before Christmas

Christmas was not a big deal for you growing up...And you're still trying to figure out what it all means.

What Movie Is Your Christmas Most Like?


Um... actually Christmas WAS a big deal growing up, I just don't like it anymore now that I'm a grown up.

This is the sound...

...of one hand typing.

Alrighty... most of the stuff they gave this morning has worn off methinks. I'm gorggy and sleepy, but okay. Hand throbs when I out it down below my heart and I'm wicke dthirsty.

One handed typing sucks and is slow. Oh yeah and I've been asslep almost all day. Taking tyulenol 3 and makes me tired.

And then she said...

I go in for my bump removal tomorrow, so it's one handed typing for at least the next ten days. Here's hoping I can still participate in NaBloPoMo! I have many links, videos and silly pictures spring loaded just in case because afterall, I live to entertain you people.

Also, I am about to enter the Storybuilding Module at school so if anyone has any brilliant ideas as to what would make a good photographic story throw them my way will ya... I need to figure out what I'm doing before Tuesday.

And next on my to do list is to get my ass to bed. I promise to try and post while I am still dazed and sedated if I can, or at the very least hopped up on percocet.

I'd Like to Teach the World to sing...

Can a Global Orgasm change the energy of the world? While this certainly sounds like some new-age hippie crap to me, it certainly couldn't hurt!

I can't think of a better way to celebrate the Winter Solstice then a big world-wide fuckfest, can you?

I was going to make all sorts of jokes about coming together during the holiday season and the earth moving and such, but the jokes pretty much write themselves.

And by all means, you don't have to wait until the day... you can practice everyday up until then, and perfect your technique for days after. Have fun!

I can't win.

I am FINALLY dragging my sorry ass to bed, thinking, Hey! I can still get 8 hours of wonderful, refreshing, revitalizing sleep, and what do I do? I drop my eyeglass case in the toilet.

YAY.

Umm...

Saw 3: Curse of the Were-Rabbit (Saw vs. Wallace and Gromit trailer mash)

A day in the life of My Brain, or shit I think about all day long

8:45am
Last night it was brought to my attention that the woman who sits behind me in class used to work for the doctor who will be performing my ganglionectomy on Friday. It's a small world afterall... sing it with me kids!

8:50am
This morning I was early for work because I had to drop off Ron's car for a little TLC. I would have followed Carol's suggestion to go to a place a little further away that gives away free car washes on Thursdays, but I just don't time this Thursday and it needed to be done sooner rather than later... anywho, I was so early for work I decided to run over to Dunkin Donuts for a bagel. It's been a long time since I've set foot in a Dunkie's that early in the morning and let me tell you, Dunkie's before 9am probably has the broadest spectrum of examples of humanity you will ever see. I was especially fond of the gentleman standing so close behind me that I was surprised when he did not actually try to touch me. On top of it he was muttering to himself incoherently. If I had to back up for any reason I would surely have hit him.

9:17am
I have to pee. Glad I'm not at a doctors office.

9:42am
I wonder what Stan & Ali are up to these days... anyone heard from them lately?

10:20am
We are slowly picking our way through holiday shopping and we are doing most of it online. I would like to have it done by December 1st. It's good to have a goal, right? We would like to remind everyone that it is not necessary to buy us a gift as we are limiting ourselves to only giving gifts to immediate family and kids, as we have done for the last two years. The holidays are stressful enough and we know money is tight for everyone so please do not feel obligated to get us anything. I can't stress this enough.

10:36am
Made a hair appointment for next week... I won't be able to wash my hair easily since I can't get my stitches wet so I'm going to let someone else wash it for me. Thanks for that BRILLIANT idea Amanda! Now to choose a style... I haven't had a haircut in almost a year.

10:46am
People suck. SUCK, SUCK, SUCK, SUCK, SUCK, SUCK, SUCK.
It's not my fault the stupid TV guide isn't on the shelf! Don't get all pissed off at me mister! Other people ARE allowed to read it and take it away from the shelf you know. Now go away Mr. McSuckyface, you are embarrassing your wife and annoying the fuck out of me.

11:05am
Just remembered the vivid unicorn dream I had the other night... gotta write that one down. Maybe I'll share it with y'all... maybe I won't. I really ought to be working... checking in magazines gets a little tedious, but I get to see all the juicy headlines first! My wrist hurts. I'm hungry... I need a snack.

Cover of Newsweek this week: A Photo of George W. Bush and his Dad George Sr. Headline Father Knows Best: With Congress Lost, and Iraq in Chaos, Bush Calls In His Dad's Team. Can James Baker & Co. Save the Son's Presidency?

Lovely... when the going gets tough, call Daddy. A lovely lesson in politics, eh?

11:45am
I have the James Bond theme song stuck in my head. Now you do too. You're welcome.

12:10pm
I am brainstorming ideas for a card I need to make for a co-worker and making my mental craft store shopping list. Ron's car is ready to be picked up, and I am cranking out magazines left and right.

12:55pm
I wonder if Carol is here yet... someone is cooking something in the office kitchen and it smells delicious. I'm really hungry now.

1:40pm
Thinking about the fact that I am out of here in an hour and 20 minutes.

2:59pm
I'm outta here! I'm off to A.C. Moore and then on to bowling with nurses! (Okay, hospital staff, but nurses sounds better.)

8:24pm
Went to Jillian's at the end of Landsdowne Street with Ron and a bunch of his co-workers. Anyone else remember when Jillian's was the roller rink Spinoff? Man, do I feel old. Well, now to finish my homework and get my ass to bed.

Where the Hell is Scranton Anyway?

Expensive Goya Painting goes missing in Scranton Pennsylvania, home of the Houdini Museum. Coincidence? Probably, but sort of funny. I'm always amused by how often this little town makes the news. Remember those floods last year? Rick Santorum anyone?

A Musical Interlude

I'll be back with a proper post tonight... I've got alot to do this morning and I've wasted enough time online already... in the meantime, enjoy a music video!

Pissed On and Pissed Off

Today I had my pre-op testing/interview for the ganglionectomy I am having this Friday and the nurse says to me "You're the right age so I need you to pee in this cup" and I'm said "The right age for what?" Um... duh... she meant I was old enough to get knocked up, despite my religious-like precautions. I thought maybe it was some sort of drug test... not that I do drugs... anymore.

So off I go into the bathroom with my little, teeny, tiny plastic cup with my name on it and proceed to pee in the cup. Or rather, pee in the cup and all over my hand, the toilet, my leg... you get the idea.

Is it just me or does every gal have problems with this most basic of lab tests? Am I the only woman on the planet who simply cannot manage to get more than teaspoon worth of piss into that damned cup without wearing at least a half a cups worth?

And goddess forbid they have a table or soemthing in there to rest it on so I can clean up! So I have to transfer the warm, wet, dixie cup sized container to my clean hand to wipe up my own personal Exxon-Valdez incident, wash the cup off, then wash my hands, the sink, and anything else I may have literally pissed all over.

Lovely, eh? Talk about embarrasing... the only way this could be more embarrasing is if after admiting this to the world I am indeed the only woman in the world who lacks the pee-in-the-cup gene. Please tell me I am not alone.

Really Random Blathering...

How long has it been since I made something with my hands? Created something without the aid of an electronic device? Gotten paint under my fingernails and lost myself in a color I just invented?

Now that I am having surgery on one of my hands in less then a week I have this sudden urge to do shit with my hands. I have to make a card for someone at work, but that's not as much fun as cracking open a new blank book and making a royal mess.

I used to be pretty spotty when it came to journaling, always starting them and NEVER finishing them. But then in March of 2002 I started my first visual journal. My only rules were I had to try and put something in it every day and I had to fill it. I filled that then created another journal out of a giant 1953 dictionary that was over 5 inches wide. I filled that fucker too. Then in 2005 I started another journal in a 3 ring notebook, but it just wasn't as much fun as the previos two books.

I started another notebook for 2006 and here we are in November and it's not even 1/4 full. I also have a small portable journal that I have simply been writing in, but usually only when I am angry or upset. If anyone were to ever find it they would think I hate everything. Maybe I'll combine the two and put them in a smaller book, then start fresh for 2007. Holy crap, 2007! Is it really gonna be 2007? Where the hell is my flying car?

Anyway... I don't know where I was going with this entry when I began. You now I used to print out emails and blog entries and out then into my journals as well... and I haven't at all this year. There's got to be some good ones in here somewhere. Actually, I could do that one handed if I had too, couldn't I? But I also could sort digital photos one handed and that is a little more pressing at the moment. And of course if I link to something important to what I am writing it doesn't exactly translate on a printout now does it?

Surprisingly I have been pretty faithful to this online journal since the fall of 2003, but the paper journals are where the meat is... this is just the potatos folks, but as some you know I LOVE POTATOS. There is no such thing as a bad potato in my book... unless it's from that restaurant in Philly... *shudders* they did something purely evil to that poor potato and I can still taste its evilness corrupting my tastebuds now. That's shit just ain't right.

Well enough rambling... I have to shower and get ready for an appointment with an anestisiologist... eh fuckit, I can't spell that and I give up. One of these days I will scan selections from my childhood journals and y'all can have a good laugh. Speaking of childhood... gotta go email an old friend that I haven't seen in 20 years, but I hear she bought a restaurant in Jamaica Plain... more on that later.

Artist of The Week!

Artist of The Week is taking a break this week... I'm busy shopping online. See ya next week dearies!

Look!
I've made my Bollywood debut! My homage to Michael Jackson can be seen HERE.

Office Space as a Thriller?

Stop what you are doing and watch this right now!

505th post!

HA!
It seems I missed a milestone of sorts about 5 postings back. This is my 505th post on the new site. Aren't you proud of me? I should have had balloons and noisemakers or something... ah well... Stick around though, I'm less than 1200 hits away from having 10,000 views of this site. Won't THAT be fun! Who will the 10,000 viewer be? Stay tuned!

It is what it is....

Click on the image to make one of your own.

Still nothing much....

Ron and I went to see The Prestige today... it was excellent! Then we walked around Waltham, came home and stuffed ourselves with chinese food. Now I'm off to roll myself into the livingroom to chill out in front of the TV and perhaps watch another movie. A good and relaxing day!

Nuthin' Much

Okay, okay so I sort of cheated today and didn't post a "proper" post... well, I'm here now but I don't have a whole lot to say. My hand hurts so I don't feel like typing much either. Ron and I both have tomorrow off - A rare treat! A day off together during the week! Wooot!

Okay, time for bed kids... over and out!

Makes You Think

I read this in a book last night and it struck me as one of the truest things I had ever read.

For many millennia,
man has been striving after happiness;
but he is not happy. Why not?
Because he cannot achieve it,
because he does not know the way -
both these reasons.
Above all, however,
because in our earthly lives
there must not be ultimate happiness,
but only the aspiration towards it,
in the future;
there has to be suffering,
because it's through suffering,
in the struggle between good and evil,
that the spirit is forged.

- Andrey A. Tarkovsky
Instant Light: Tarkovsky Polaroids

Oh No! Mario! Nooooo!

NSFW!

What Have I Been Reading These Days?

Here is a list of the literary puddles I have jumped into lately. I don't have alot of free time these days so I listen to alot of books in the car while I am driving to work or to school.

- The Omnivores Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals by Michael Pollan
You will never look at corn the same way again. Or Cows. Or anything you eat for that matter. Scary yet informative stuff. The reader of the audio version does an excellent job.

- Don't Get Too Comfortable: The Indignities of Coach Class, The Torments of Low Thread Count, The Never-Ending Quest for Artisanal Olive Oil and Other First World Problems by David Rakoff
The audio version is delightfully read by the author and it's hysterically funny.

- Readymade: How to Make (Almost) Everything: A Do-It-Yourself Primer by Shoshana Berger and Grace Hawthorne
From the creators of Readymade Magazine this book should be called How To Make Almost Nothing. I have never seen the magazine, but I have heard good things about it and I expected alot more from this book. So far all it has done is make me tired. I read it to fall asleep at night, which is also why it has taken me 3+ weeks to read the damn thing... and I'm still not finished. Skip this one.

- The Time Travellers Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
Another one I listened too and I LOVED this book. The reader and the story are both excellent. Warnign this is not a happy book and I admit I was bawling my eyes out by the end of it, thus making it hard to drive, but it was wonderful.

- No One Cares What You Had For Lunch: 100 Ideas For Your Blog by Margaret Mason
Margaret Mason, creator of the blog Mighty Girl gives the world 100 ideas to blog about. I haven't exactly used any yet, unless you count this entry which I think was listed in the book... I can't remember. Anyway, I bet some of the ideas got stored in my brain and will come out in one form or another before long. A good book for those of you suffering from Bloggers Block.

Well, that's it for now... Not much else worth mentioning unless you really want to hear about the countless photoshop, photography and computer books I've been skimming lately. I think that's another post for another day. What have you been reading?

Good Luck Steven!

Good Luck Tomorrow Steven!

Go Vote!

Ron has some excellent links over on his site for those of you who don't have a clue who or what to vote for. Now get off your ass and go do it! I don't care who you vote for, just GO!

Free The Gnomes!

Nearly 80 Stolen Gnomes found in France! This liitle dude looks alot like my Lothar, which reminds me... one of these days I ought to get the Adventures of Lothar Project off the ground.

And my little Lothar can kick Travelocity's Roaming Gnome's ass any day.

Nesting

Ever have the bed all to yourself and not have to get up? Some mornings I slap the snooze button again and again until I can no longer hide from the world and I have to get up. Other mornings, like this morning, the bed is the perfect temperature, the bed is supporting all your boney parts in just the right way and you wake up all on your own without the alarm and just enjoy it?

When this happens I like to take all the pillows and put them around me in a horseshoe shape, turn off the alarm and puff the blankies (at this point I revert to childhood and blankets become blankies) up over my head with a little air hole and just luxuriate in the little pocket of blankie hug I have created. I call it nesting.

It's very nice and I recommend it to everyone. Try it!

NaBloPoMoGlo

It's NaBloPoMo Day 6! It's early in the game yet, but I knew this would be relatively easy for me. Yes, I'm tootin' my own horn here... but this is rather fun. The challenge will be to write about something actually worth reading and not just crapping out and posting link dumps all the time. I'm saving the links for later in the month when I'm typing one handed. Here's hoping I can continue to toot my own horn whitout blowing it.

Now on with the show!

Blessed Be Babe

Thinking about you Didi...

Artist of The Week!

This weeks Artist of The Week is

Calvin Nicholls!

Many of you have seen his work in various advertisments over the years and if you are like me you wondered at the painstaking detail this guy gets with the tiniest pieces of paper. Simply amazing! Check out his website HERE.

File Under: Really Fucking Weird

Man steals 5,000 pairs of school childrens shoes.
Click photo for full story.



"I always did wonder about his collection of little shoes..."
-Bill Hicks

Wanna Get High?

HERE's a good reason to visit Atlanta!

Yeah, okay fine, this isn't the only reason to visit this fine city but I'm feeling lazy and I haven't been there in five years so I'm not gonna write anymore about it right now. Maybe I'll regale you all with our adventures from five years ago sometime... as if y'all haven't heard them already.

Just for Fun

Ganglion, Gangle-OFF

As some of you know I have a Ganglion Cyst on my wrist and have has it since before wee Jack was born. I don't know exactly how long its been there but based on Jack's age, where the original injury occured and what we were doing at the the time I estimate I've had it at least 6 years. I may have even written about it before... I don't remember.

Anyway, it's coming OFF. Yes folks, I am having a Ganglionectomy! I am having it removed on November 17th which depending on what kind of pain I am in, what they give me for painkillers and how I feel at the time about one handed typing may put a cramp in my intentions to blog everyday this month. Later in the month may be loaded with links because of this. And no, I will not share my painkillers with y'all. I will also be taking before and after photos of my hand because I am weird that way.

How well do you know your friends?

You know how yesterday I said I didn't know where to begin? Well, I've got to begin somewhere so I'll start with THIS GUY. (and more info HERE.)

I know him. At least I thought I did. I knew him well enough to know that he has done jail time for a similiar crime and to have had a fairly regular correspondence while he was in there. He used to work where I am still employed. He was even a guest at our wedding.

Why would I write to a convicted rapist? Because I've known him since we were both 14 years old and I know what kind of life he had as a kid (not pretty) and he had always treated me with almost chivalrous respect. He is amazingly smart and I know how hard he worked to get out of his fathers house, get his GED, get into college and get his life together. I didn't think he would be dumb enough to do what he was charged with and throw all that away.

I honestly believed that something wasn't right the first time he was arrested on these charges and because he was my friend I gave him the benefit of the doubt. I believe in the justice system in this country I also believe that mistakes are made and that maybe, just maybe this was one of those times. Perhaps I was a tad naive, and maybe I still am, but I believe that you stick by your friends and help them out when you can, and at the very least believe them when they say they didn't do it.

Now that his current situation has been made known to me I feel betrayed. But oddly not surprised. I don't know why, but I am not at all surprised. A small, cynical part of me does wonder about his current arrest... perhaps he was just the closest Level 2 sex offender on the island? It's a very small part of me though. VERY small.

I have only seen him once since he got out of jail well over a year ago, spoken to him maybe 2-3 times and I sent him a Christmas card. I don't think I'll be writing to him while he's in jail this time. Here's hoping he's lost my phone number too. Is that terrible of me considering I once thought of him as a friend?



Tomorrow I'll write about something happier or funnier, I promise... like my upcoming hand surgery! Won't THAT be fun?

Artist of The Week

Sorry folks, Artist of The Week got skipped this week because we were out of town. I forgot to mention that.

Hey Dinner! Get In My Belly!

And so it begins... of course now that I have committed myself to this course I don't know what to write. It's not that I don't have anything to write about, rather, it's that I have too much to tell and I don't know where to begin. But right now I need to go make dinner... perhaps I'll write more later, perhaps I won't. In either case I have posted today... only 29 more days to go! Let the party begin!

Wikked Pissah, eh?

What American accent do you have? Your Result: Boston You definitely have a Boston accent, even if you think you don't. Of course, that doesn't mean you are from the Boston area, you may also be from New Hampshire or Maine.
The West
The Midland
North Central
The Northeast
The South
Philadelphia
The Inland North
What American accent do you have?