Marcus Buckingham

Yesterday I had the astounding opportunity to photograph an event held by Ideation Consulting and TCHRA that had Marcus Buckingham as their keynote speaker. They also had Sara Christensen from Ideation Consulting present about her People-Centric work environment philosophy, and Jody & Cali from CultureRX present their "Work Sucks: and how to fix it" philosophy.
I was totally inspired. If none of you know how Marcus Buckingham is, I suggest you follow the link and read up. He has appeared on Oprah and is a world renowned motivational speaker. He has a strength-based work idea where we don't work on our weaknesses to make us better but work on our strengths to make them better and in turn - make us a better and more productive employee. He wasn't talking to people like me, the employees, but to our managers and HR professionals to focus on our strengths but inspired me also to FIND my strengths and gear my work and my manager to see that just because I don't do a certain task well doesn't mean I am a bad employee, I just don't do something well and ya know what - that's ok, because someone else out there has that as their strength.
A lot of what he said can be related into child rearing. For instance - a lunch mate told this story - a woman was having issues with her daughters report card. She consistently was failing/scraping by in Math while she excelled at English. The mother, after hearing Marcus speak, decided that this is what she was going to do: she got her daughter a tutor for math - just so she would pass and she let her daughter THRIVE in english, her strong point. The school was astounded that the mother didn't care her daughter was just recieving a "D" and she was ok. The mother said "why not? She isn't good at math, that's ok. I don't care as long as she graduates". It spoke to me - Let your kids do what they are good at and figure out why they are failing in the other subjects but if they just aren't interested, don't push it. We don't all need to excel at all things!
Anyway - if you don't know Marcus Buckingham, look him up - his book is "The Truth About You" (well one of them, but this one is his most recent), it's not in stores yet but shortly!!!

The Soundtrack to my life!

I just did this on myspace but wanted to see different responses. I didn't think the iPod was feeling me today. Oh and I skip songs that aren't mine!

Opening Credits: Sledgehammer - Peter Gabriel
Waking Up Scene: Blister in the sun - Violent Femmes
Car Driving Scene: Rock Me Amadeus - Falco
High School Flashback Scene: The Former Years - Katie Sawicki
Nostalgic Scene: Mudfootball - Jack Johnson
Bitter, Angry Scene: Til You're Dead - Melissa Ferrick
Break-up Scene: You Can Make History - Elton John
Regret Scene: Every Single Day - Lucy Kaplansky
Nightclub/Bar Scene: Total Eclipse of the Heart - Bonnie Tyler
Fight/Action Scene: Give Me A Beat - GirlTalk
Lawn Mowing Scene: A Long December - Counting Crows
Sad, breakdown scene: Let it Go - Marc Billz
Death Scene: Your Song - Elton John
Funeral Scene: Hummer - Smashing Pumpkins
Mellow/Pot-smoking Scene: To Let You See Me - Melissa Ferrick
Dreaming About Someone Scene: I Enjoy Being A Girl - Doris Day
Sex Scene: Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! - Abba
Contemplation Scene: Hard to say Im sorry - Chicago
Chase Scene: Dirty Laundy - Bitter Sweet
Happy Love Scene: Beautiful In My Eyes - Joshua Kadison
Happy Friend Scene: Life's A Dance - John Michael Montgomery
Closing Credits: How Far We've Come - Matchbox 20

All in all, I'd have to say not far off. some of it actually makes sense!!!!

Goin for the gold

Oh oh oh I love the Olympics! Ok so I like watching gymnastics (they don't call it gymNICEtics), and swimming. I want to catch some diving too. Softball isn't too bad either
LOL

My Very Second!

So a while back I did a picture restoration for someone, got some cash from it, that was cool. Then I kinda did a wedding for a friend, just some candid reception shots, again no big deal, it was a favor and gift for her. This past weekend, however, even though it was for a friend, was my very first (and I say second because of the two listed above) project that is out in the ether. My friends parents have their 40th Wedding Anniversary and she commissioned me to make a DVD using pictures of their wedding, children, grandchildren and lives together.
HOWEVER, when she played the DVD at the party she wanted me to have some business cards. Well, that required me to have a business name and information available. What a scary step to take. And once I finish cleaning up the pictures I'll publish the address where send people to look at my pictures. I never did get around to making business cards but I did make some brochures with my skills listed.
Very scary indeed.

Must Document before I forge.....

I'm slowly forgetting my dream so I must write it down before I totally forget.

I had a dream (obviously) that Amy got a job and it was on the moon. So we went, and some how our entire HOUSE was transported up there with us, we didn't need any special apparatus or anything, just had to be there. It was dark, very dark. I took Murphy outside to potty and she couldn't go into the street because it wasn't really a street.
Then I got a panicked feeling that during our tenure on the moon we would run out of light bulbs and it was a most horrible feeling. So we went on a ride (in the Daewoo we haven't had in years) and found a mall like structure so we went to it, but it was office buildings, well I refused to let that be the end so I kept walking around it until I found an Emporium. (an emporium of all things) and it had light bulbs, so I decided that it was time for us to eat since we found out at least WHERE we could buy light bulbs. So we sit down in this cafeteria like place with long tables and sat across / amiss a family also working the same job was and we talked for a few minutes about life on the moon and the guy told me there was INTERNT on the moon. I was so excited that i could email my family.
Time moves slower on the mooon than Earth so when my alarm was going off ths morning i kept say, no it's not 20 more minutes, it's really like 45 minutes. I woke up late. b

I have always tried to be polite in my years. I've held doors for strangers, let pregnant women and elderly (or anyone that looks like they have more to do than me) cut me in a grocery line. I've said my pleases and my thank you's and done my best to give a wave to the people that let me in while merging or yielding. I've let people copy my homework, look at my test answers, steal words from my essays. I've all but bent over backwards for friends that are homeless, boyfriends whose cars have died, and housed kitty cats that are going to be put down.
I listen to my friends when they cry, laugh when they laugh, and rage when they hurt. I am friend like no other and to have me on your side makes you have a leg up. I am an auntie that adores her squishees, a daughter that is always the best, and a grand-daughter that always listens to the same stories 5 times because it's her gram's inclination to tell her those stories.
I have a very strong work ethic, if you say you are going to do something, you do it. If you are hired for a job, you complete it. You show UP everyday and on time and you come prepared to do your job. You don't talk back to your boss, you do as they say and you keep your mouth shut until after hours, and if that means that sometimes I take my job home with me, then I have to.
On the flip side I have an attitude. I don't take kindly to people who hurt others, who hurt animals or children. I glare at parents that let their children run amuck, or won't answer them when they are obviously trying to get their attention, who scream at the top of their lungs and do nothing to satiate them. I have little, to no, patience for people that drive poorly, use improper English, and use the word "like" ad nauseum. I have no tolerance for people that don't value life and are quick to gun down someone that doesn't agree with them (gang bangers, white power, etc)
I also like things the way I like them. If I ask you for a cheeseburger plain and it is your job to give me a cheeseburger plain, I expect my cheeseburger plain, and please, do not be offended when I get pissed off that my cheeseburger has pickles and ketchup and mustard on it and I had to drive all the way BACK to your establishment to get what I wanted in the first place. That is your job, do it correctly. Especially do not mark your product "Double Checked for Accuracy" if it is still coming to me wrong. I like certain flavors together, they are harmonious to my pallet and to have it any other way is just not worth my money. So when I ask if you if there is crab in a ragoon and you say NO and one comes with crab in it, I will not take kindly to you, especially because the taste and smell of crab makes me want to vomit.
I get frustrated when trying to ask a question, and because you don't speak the same language I do, you misunderstand me and answer something I didn't ask. Please don't think I'm mad that you are speaking another language, I am not. I'm frustrated at the situation. Because of that I ask the g/f to ask for me, she has more patience than I do and handles issues like that better than I do. I do this because it's easier on me, and easier on the person I'm trying to communicate with.
With all this said I believe that I'm a just person, a morally competent person, and someone that is more than able to raise a child with a proper belief structure and moral code. I believe that I can teach a child the value of life, the value of friendship and family, the value of a dollar, and the value of a job well done. And while I do have my quirks and my impatience is widely known, I do have a partner that will help me out. Anyone that truly knows me, my personality, my wit, my talents, my family values, my...CHARM...my anything will rightly agree that me as a parent is right as rain. (I don't know what that means.) They will tell you it would be ashame if I never had a child to pass along my knowledge to, my name, and my being.
I agree.

Lather. Rinse. Repeat. Soap in eyes may cause watering.

I think I'm having a bit of a problem with people that are "sue happy"
Not that this case that I'm talking about has anything to do with "Sueing" anyone, but it has to do with an injunction to against a Rochester city council member who might have voted with his own best interest in mind.
There is a guy saying that one of the council members is voting to allow a certain construction company a contract because his lumber company might benefit. Ok, I can understand that, the two companies have done business in the past. The claim, however, is silliness. Last year the two companies had only $6,000 worth of business. That is so minimal, it's laughable! $6,000 for a construction company is an "Oops! My regular lumbar supplier ran out of 2x4's and I need some really quick!!!!" and it was a one shot deal. Seriously.
Did you hear about the woman whose daughter got kissed on a school playground and she sued the school board? Yep.

I can't imagine what our kids are going to grow up and do.

Don't people realize that the more they SUE the more they end up paying at the store/company? SOMEONE has to pay for their windfall.

I hope more judges start throwing out bogus cases.

I want to know how OJ Simpson can be found not guilty of murder by a court and then turn around and have a civil suit brought upon him for - what, I can't remember, but basically the same thing, like wrongful death - and be found guilty. I'm perplexed.

People, what happened to personal responsibility? There used to be a time when I was walking down the street, tripped because I wasn't watching where I was going and got up and walked away. Now someone would sue the city for that tree root or the raised concrete that made them fall. And on top of that, they sue for about $750,000. FOR FALLING? I could see if you broke your leg and didn't have insurance, or if you had insurance and your premium went up or it was more out of pocket but seriously. Or you were a professional runner and couldn't ever work again. But seriously.

I read the back of my shampoo bottle in the shower one day - and I can't quite remember which shampoo it was but it said "Idiot warnings" and I giggled!
How much warning is too much warning? Do we need a "Contents are hot" on a coffee cup? Shouldn't that be EXPECTED?

Do you know all those papers you sign when you buy a house? It's because someone got away with something BIG and they can't have that again.

I think that is all I have to say right now.

I'm Gay, Give Me Sherbet!

MMMMM Thanks Paul!

Vending Machine!

May 24, 2007

End of the day.

Getting kinda hungry.

Trot down to the vending machines.

Oh My God! Twizzlers, perfect!

I put my money in the machine....I watched as the wheels turned...and then I watched as the wheel stopped turning, still clutching my strawberry goodness in it's hold.

NO! I have no more change. I have nothing. I sobbed.

I filled out the refund request - lots of good that will do me now, I'm hungry and have just this carbon copy to keep me satiated.

*sigh*

Lets move forward 378 days.

I got my refund! Guess what I'm going to go have for a snack this afternoon?!?!?!?!?


Rolos!

I put in a request on 12/27 too - I was so hungry for lunch that I wanted a Egg & Cheese & Bacon bagel for a buck 50...I put in my money and it wouldn't open the little slidey door.
I finally got that money refund back today too. I'm loaded!

Watch out vending machine!

Jobs, Bottle Caps, and Trips

So I've officially changed jobs. My "old" job was sunsetting since the company decided they didn't want to use it anymore. The day my job was to go part time I was able to pick up a different job on site doing something drastically different. I am now in an office with 5 or 6 other people (not jumping for joy on that one) but I have my own little corner and no one bugs me or can see what I'm doing at all.
I have new pictures of the kids up...well of MOST of the kids. Erika didn't send me any new ones yet. Theirs are still from Christmas. That's what you get for slacking.
I even have one of the dog. I love my puppy.

I had an odd dream last night that there was a group of people that had the ability to control the minds of people to make them think they were someone else (the mind controllers were someone else, that was) as well as makes the person being controlled not know where he/she lived or what they were doing or anything of the sort...People observing the mind controlling could tell because the controllers had to have a soda bottle cap (not the new ones, the old ones) attached to someplace on their body. They were trying to get the human race to off themselves. They were succeeding. My friends and I took off in a raft. It was kinda hilarious. We don't raft.

The g/f and I just decided that we *might* be going to Duluth this summer, the weekend before we go to Massachusetts. I love Duluth.

Sitting in this office is dangerous. I get some free food stuffs - mints and ice cream treats.
mmm

Fudge bars mmm

I think I need to eat an orange!

Third Annual Camping Extravoganza

Went camping!
Came back from camping!

Let's see - where do we start.

We left Rochester at 2:00 (ish) and convoyed with A and H&J. We drove across Minnesota to LaCrosse WI and followed the Mississippi River about two thirds the way down then crossed over into "Dairy Land USA". We arrived around 4 hours later and were relieved to find Mike ready to haul our stuff to the camping area (this was NOT a campground, just a hunk of land in Wisconsin)
Started putting up tents, ours first, H&J's, then A's. Got the Loo standing and ready and then put up J&D's. A&J showed up and popped up their tent then J&B showed up and popped up theirs. J&D showed up last, we already had the fire up! Mike provided us with enough wood to last all weekend and loaded it up to survive through the thunderstorms!
Friday we all had some drinks and goodies. Chatted about the drive and whatever else came out of our mouths. It was a bit chilly but it wasn't too horrible. Finally went to bed around 2ish maybe? I don't know since I don't use a watch while I camp. I was determined to sleep without the rain tarp on the tent so it could feel like we were under the stars. It was nice but C-O-L-D. I didn't sleep much. Finally put on some warmer pants and dry socks and fell asleep. Murphy kept us nice and warm lol

Saturday was nice and warm. We had breakfast, played some lawn games, took a nap, ate some lunch, and then Mike took us over to the tunnel that was to be for a train but it never happened, I guess...It was nice, and cold, and dark.

Got back to the villa and found that dinner was done. We had pork loin that had been marinated in all sorts of different marinades - but since it was smoked, it didn't really matter. We had pasta salads and chips to round off the meal. Later that night we played music and sat around the fire - again! Much warmer Saturday night.
Got up Sunday a little later than normal, had breakfast and watched as B&J packed up and then A & her son pack up too. J&B had planned on heading back early since J's uncle had died. A went home as it was already a long weekend for her toddler as it was! Which left us with 8. We had lunch and played more lawn games and hung out around the fire. Dinner was too be a deep oil fried turkey but no one thought to bring the oil so it was smoked turkey! We also had chips and calico beans. During dinner it started to rain so we all (10 people and 8 dogs) piled into one of the larger tents and ate dinner. After a while the g/f, dog, and myself ran to our car...it was hailing and we wanted to hear the weather so we left. There was a tornado that touched down near Galena IL, which was about 10 miles from where we were so it was really horrible weather. It died down a bit so we walked back to the villa and found that the loo had fallen over (thankfully the girls had cleaned it out earlier that day so not as much was left) and J&D's tent blew down and had 6" of water in it! Our tent had no water but was damp enough to just say we are going to the car to sleep. Woke up, ate some breakfast, tore down camp and then had some lunch and then packed up and headed home! We convoyed home with H&J and I slept ALL the way home. I had to potty and no one would stop so sleeping was the only alternative.
I finally got all the pictures on the net!
Oh and One of the J's and B got stuck in the mud trying to wash out the loo pail. That was hilarious. *snicker*

Confessions of a TV Junkie!

I got a DVR because I thought it would be more convenient to have a contraption that I didn't have to manipulate record shows for me. Not only shows, but I could fast forward through commercials! NO LONGER would I be a slave to the TV, wasting hours through commercials and boring Reality TV spots like when Ryan says, "And we'll find out......after the break" I know that we aren't going to see who is eliminated from AI until like 5 minutes before the end of the show, so guess what I can do now...I can get through the first 55 minutes in about 5 minutes of fast forwarding and not miss a hell of a lot. BAM! I save 50 minutes of TV watching right there. So I thought I would be a better person, have more time to do things around the house, more time to devote to hobbies and not be tied to a mechanical object that dictates to me when I need to sit down and watch a show.
Oh how wrong I was...well kinda. I don't only watch less TV, I watch less TV more. What do I mean? Well, funny be that if you have DVR you can record a show while you are watching one, or you can watch a show on the DVR while TWO other shows record. What did that mean for me?? No longer did I have to chose between watching Desperate Housewives and Family Guy, or Ugly Better and Survivor, or anything against American Idol. I could effectively DOUBLE my TV watching in less time than it would take to watch DOUBLE the amount of TV, but still more time than if I just watched the one show that I wanted to watch.
I found myself taping shows that I didn't really care about - Super Nanny and Wife Swap. I would record shows that I just "kinda" liked just so I could have something to watch when I came home for lunch. At one point I looked at my DVR TV show line up and saw 43 shows scheduled to be recorded. FORTY THREE! In one week! If those are all hour dramas (which most are!) that's a full time job!!!!
Enough I said. Enough. I got rid of all the shows that were on hiatus, the shows that were cancelled (or changed names like Big Brother and Survivor do that depending on their season title)
I got rid of the shows I just "kinda" liked and realized that I was still ahead of the game. Some of the shows were for Amy (Deadliest Catch, Wife Swap, Super Nanny). Then I felt better. I am seeing the upcoming line up for this season and I don't see much I want to add to my list. Last year at this time I was faced with such dilemnas as "I have 3 shows here! What am I going to do?" God.
So after all the weeding is done, here are the contenders that are still on the DVR

Brothers & Sisters (I like family dramas, there are just so many story lines)
Criminal Minds (I loooooooooove behavior analysis. I wanted to do that when I was a kid)
CSI (Vegas style)
Desperate Housewives (Falling out of love with it, so it may not stay much longer)
Dirt (again, falling out of love...think I won't record next season)
Dirty Sexy Money - LOVE IT
Eureka (it's cute.)
Family Guy (hello, do you know me at all??)
Ghost Whisperer (it still makes me cry)
Grey's Anatomy (because I'm part of that generation that is sucked in)
Heroes (they best have a good start to next season, I'm getting kinda bored!)
House (I will never take this off of DVR, even if they cancel it for 10 years.)
Monk (As much as I watch the show, sometimes I just can't figure out how it's done...)
Numb3rs (I might be done with this show too...not sure)
Private Practice (I'm on the fence still, but LOVE kate walsh!)
Pushing Daisies (it's on there for Amy, I personally think it's dumb)
Psych (Love Gus)
Riches (eh. This last season was kinda bad.)
Ugly Betty (This show makes me laugh my ass off)
Dexter (I need to get showtime back before this comes on again!!!)
The L Word (6 episodes left of the series...*sigh* Last season actually rocked!)
Weeds (again, right now I can take or leave it, but next season looks better, it's going to shake up a bit)
Ace of Cakes (I love to see what they can do with a lump of confection goodness)
America's Next Top Model (I missed this past season, I couldn't fit it on the DVR LOL!)
American Idol (I'm so hooked it's not funny)
Big Brother (Still, after all these seasons, I am still hooked on the antics of pent up house guests, so glad Ryan won!)
Deadliest Catch (For Amy)
Hell's Kitchen (Watch when I'm bored...it's the same show every season)
Project Runway (it's FIERCE!)
Top Chef (I'm falling out like with it. I can't taste what they are making and it drives me nuts)
Survivor (hello, how many seasons have I watched now? Why stop now??)
Amazing Race (I could take or leave it...I watch it if I happen to catch it now)

That's 32 shows if you are counting. If I got rid of all the ones I was iffy about it'd be 9 down, plus Amy's shows....I guess it's not as bad as I thought, but still. I spend way too much time watching TV. Admiting it is the first step.

I actually took a big step this month and said we should get rid of cable (DVR and all) and just have netflix. We'd watch what we could on tv when and if we caught it, but otherwise it was movies and extended basic cable.

I think I had to overdose and hit ROCK BOTTOM before I could make that kind of realization....besides I can catch American Idol and most other shows online anyway hehehhehe

Virtual Tour of my Carry Bag

Virtual Tour

Because I have very little to blog about I thought I'd take you a virtual tour around my hand bag.
This is not a land of ladies cosmetics or bobby pins. It's the bag of a commuter girl that has to ride a bus 30 minutes to and from work.

I use my over-the-shoulder bag when going to and from work, it holds more and is more comfortably slung across my body than my stiff purse or kelly-esque stiff purse.

First thing I pull out is my bus ticket - it's red with 7 punches punched
Calculator - never know when you might need to calculate (not that my phone doesn't have a calculator on it or anything)
Stride - winterblue gum
iPod and head phones
Two tubes of softlips - One Vanilla and the other is winter mint (which I am now applying to my lips)
RPU bill - I have no idea why it's in my carry bag
Happy Bunny note pad for ideas to jot down
Wallet which has various receipts, a nickel, work key, license and Mayo Health Club card, and some various eating out punch tickets. Of course the pet co and petsmart scan cards.
Check book
2 Oranges
Sudoku book and favorite pen
Date book with all sorts of goodies in it! Stamps and private passwords and reminders and directions
2 Coke bottle tops that I stole from the recycling bin (HEY If they aren't going to use their 3 points, I certainly will!)
Random pens, none that are my favorite, but will work when in a shortage
Keys! House, desk, and car key
Cell phone - nope, no messages.
Camping sign up sheet
andddddd
Hand Sanitizer. Cos you just don't know about public transportation.

And that is what it's like to find yourself wedged into my carry bag.
On the way HOME from work I scrunch up my lunch bag and shove it in there too.

New Business for me!

Unique Gifts for Graduations! Anniversaries! Birthdays! Weddings! Vacation Memories! Milestones! Retirements!

Do you have a special occasion coming up that needs a heart felt gift?
Send me your pictures either on CD, on a photo card, or to be scanned

What you will get:
- A personal discussion to go over the details and options
- Your pictures set to the music of your choice in a variety of different formats (Discussed at meeting)
- A copy of scanned photos on a CD
- As many copies of your DVD that you want (Additional per/CD cos incurred)
- Your DVD will be ready on your schedule, not mine (proper allowance for time, please)

Pricing varies - Please email for quote
Prices vary based on amount of photos and services needed

Min picture package: 100 pics Approx Running Time : 10 - 15 Minutes DVD
Ultimate Package: +/- 900 Approx Running time: 1 hour DVD

And the winners are...

And dang that Paul for doing this and inspiring me to do the same. I don't mean to copy ideas but it was a good one.

Here is a list (and how I got the list) of my top ten favorite songs.

I started my list with 32 fabulous songs ranging from my childhood to adulthood. Immediately I decided to eliminate the songs that came out before I was born. There went Abba's "Fernando", Beatle's "Eleanor Rigby", Grateful Dead's "Scarlet Begonias", Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline", and Pink Floyd's "Mother".
This left me with 25 fantastic brilliant songs. I decided to further down my list by eliminating songs I hadn't heard within the past year. This got rid of Blair's "Have Fun, Go Mad", Blur's "Song 2", Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", Devo's "Whip It", Styx's "Mr. Roboto", and Men Without Hats "Safety Dance".
21 songs, and how the heck am I supposed to pick which ones I like the best. So I decided to have a contest with the songs. "Which would I rather listen to right now" contest and pit them against one another. Oh it broke my heart to loose the rest.
I cut loose Kim Carnes' "Bette Davis Eyes", Lo Fidelity All Stars "Battle Flag", Antje Duvekot's "Dandelion", Ani DiFranco's "Little Plastic Castles", Madonna's "True Blue", Debbie Gibson's "Lost In Your Eyes", All Saint's "Never Ever", Bonnie Tyler's "Total Eclipse", Beastie Boys "Paul Revere", Peter Gabriels "In Your Eyes", and Beck's "Ramshackle".

What could be left after those awesome songs were let go, you might ask?!? Well hold on to your seats for this fine chunk of awesomeness.
(And these are in, by no means, ANY particular order, I could barely let go 11, never mind rank 10!)

To Let You See Me - Melissa Ferrick (1997)
Bring The Noise - Anthrax (1991)
Grey - Chris Pureka (2004)
Once In a Lifetime - Talking Heads (1980)
In Your Room - Bangles (1988)
Magnolia Street - Catie Curtis (1999)
Come On Eileen - Dexy Midnight Runners (1982)
Call & Answer - Barenaked Ladies (1998)
Brass Monkey - Beastie Boys (1986)
Bittersweet Symphony - Verve Pipe (1998)

And that, my friends, is the most eclectic top ten you could possibly ever find. (Well, MF, CC, and CP kinda all go together)

Hodge Podge Post. EVERYTHING!

American Idol

Who didn't see that coming? Enough said.
I'll be happy with whoever wins. They are all good. I'd prefer for DCo to win though. Obviously.

Softball

Had a great game last night. I don't play on the team but I have my own shirt! I'm #1 because I'm cool like that, but my friends decided to name me, and it came out "Boston" YAY!
So anyway, I kept book last night for the first time. I enjoyed it. I didn't like hollering out the names, but I got used to it!
We won! Monday we won something crazy like 32 to 12, last night it was 24 to 12. Everyone had a great night, specially GP and the g/f! Z was a great pitcher and everything was fun. We didn't get home until 11 though, so I'm still kinda sleepy

Camping

Before camping, the g/f and I went over to our friends house - the girl who is hosting the event and her g/f. We hashed out all the details of how to feed anywhere from 14 people to THIRTY FOUR people! Our first annual Memorial day camping trip was for my birthday, 10 people were there....last year we grew to 19ish. This year it's 34 and 5 of ours from last year won't be going!
We decided to make one night - on your own, one night of ribs/pork loin, and the next night would be a deep fried turkey. Charge people $10 or so to have 2 hot breakfasts and 2 hot dinners. The rest of the cash, if any left over, would go to H's parents for hosting our troop. There will be no reason to pay for a campsite or firewood since it will all be provided. I sent out a lengthy email today and haven't heard anything back yet...except from B saying "THIRTY FOUR?!? Christ Ro!" so lol...

This Weekend

That's about it. Heading to Cologne this weekend for some R&R with the brother & Sister - in - law and nephew (on the g/f side). The SIL called today and asked me what kind of ice cream I liked from Schwann's and I about lost my head with excitement to yell out "COFFEE" I swear it sounded like I had tourettes, since taken out of context all anyone heard was me holler "COFFEE" down the hallway. But she laughed, and I groaned and all is well. Going to be brining our small camping grill to make burgers on for Mother's Day. The g/f's mom will be in Arizona and mine will still be in MA the SIL is the next one in line that is a mom. Might have to make her a cake with the nephew or something. That'd be fun! I might make up a batch of sugar cookies and have him decorate them for his mom. They love my cookies. (Because I can BAKE like a champion)

Brianna Lane

I'm listening to Brianna Lane right now...I've been listening to her for a couple of years now and have had the greatest pleasure of meeting her several times and having once also spent a night at her house since she is roomies with a friend of ours. I can say w/o bias that she has such a remarkable voice and her song writing is outstanding. She really captivates my imagination while she sings. She keeps my interest, so visual, and so impactual. If you ever want to try out a new artist - PLEASE try out Brianna Lane I promise you a good listen and hope you buy her albums. (Of course, you kinda have to like women singers, ones that play their own guitars)

American Idol - Final Four

I have to say that I'm quite amazed that the final four on AI consists of Jason and Syesha. I knew David A and DCo would be there, but Jason and Syesha? I thought Michael Johns and Carley would be there, or Brooke (never thought Carley would go before Brooke though!)
I've had a few favorites through the competition this year and DCo has been my top favorite followed in random order on a week to week basis: Jason, Carley, Brooke.
Last night we were watching AI and right smack in the second line of DCo's first song we had a Weather Advisory come on.

So with David A - I'm sick of ballads. The only time I've seen him get a bit edgy and "rock" was Neil Diamond week with Sweet Caroline (Which, he massacred by far) and with Coming to America (and he even made it ballad like). I'm listening to his "Stand By Me" from last night and I am not overly impressed. I can hear him inhaling and it drives me mental.
However, "Love Me Tender" was good. I am, by no means, an Elvis fan so I'm not biased. I like how he arranged it ... still don't like listening to him inhale!!!!
Solidly - I would have to say that if he wins I'll be ok with it, but will not listen to his music.

DCo - "Hungry Like The Wolf" was pre-empted for me, so I'm listening for the first time right now. I didn't hate it, but it wasn't my favorite of his songs, still I liked better than David A. "Baba O'Riley" was fantastic.....It's only teenage wasteland. This was definitely his week to shine, and my my, I think he did! I'm glad to see him with his guitar and without. He is pretty good, and the only Idol I have ever purchased anything from.

Syesha - When she started singing "Proud Mary" I thought - Uh oh! This song is way too big for her, the judges said pretty much the same thing. BUT I liked it better than that of the original. Her second song "A Change is Gonna Come" was very nice. I didn't know the original so I had nothing to base it against, but I really enjoyed it. I was moved during the judges review when she cried like she did. (No, I did not cry, but I felt something for her feelings) Overall - I think she had a solid night, but I think she will be in the bottom 2.

Jason - Jason Jason Jason...forgetting your lyrics this far in the game? Tsk Tsk. However, if any of you have seen the same performance from Bob Dylan himself you'd know he has forgotten his OWN lyrics to his own songs, so who are we to critique that? I figured that he'd do a reggae hit "I Shot The Sheriff" wasn't what I thought, maybe "One Love" but...I can't talk to that song, I'm not a fan of reggae music so I didn't like it. "Mr. Tambourine Man" - a drug song. I'm not shocked. (Followed from a Reggae hit?) Even though he forgot the lyrics and my defense of that, I still didn't like his vocals on it.
Obviously, if he doesn't go home, it's because he has a huge fan base that overlooks such things and he played to them.

I checked DialIdol.com and found the DCo was #1 (YAY), Archie was #2, then Syesha, with Castro OUT. I can see that.
Fox is pimping Archie to win. He should just go be with Disney and forget the rest of this.

Robin Scarey - CANCELLED!

The "Powers-that-be" Be at it again.

I was flipping through the internet yesterday - through my daily onslaught of trashy tabloids via email and there were 4 words I saw that I just didn't want to see! In simple, but non-retractable words I saw "Men In Trees, Cancelled" NOOOOOOOO I wailed (in my head)! It can not beeee. I always enjoy the light hearted dramedy and their beautiful scenery that makes me say "I want to move to Alaska" every single week. I am captivated by Jane and her Snow-Plow/Sanitation Worker husband Sam....the saga of Patrick losing his memory and poor sweet Annie's battle to move on. I even bawled with Marin when she thought Jack wasn't going to return even though the spoilers told me he would. I enjoy watching Mom-Mai and Chief Celia battle for Patrick and by god, I even like Ben the bartender and Theresa. (I don't like the hooker and the priest though.)
Much of my disappointment sits with this shows constant moving around. It was most likely their demise. That and it didn't have a lot of publicity.

**UPDATE 5/9/08** Appears they have now cancelled Women's Murder Club too. Rat bastards. **Update Done**

Of course, with the cancellation of ANY good show, I had to think back to OTHER good shows robbed of their future by being yanked just too soon. Studio 60. Definitely yanked too soon. That show made me howl! Book of Daniel. It was cute and witty....and so what if the guy thought he was conversing with Jesus. Close to Home (between Ghost Whisperer and Numb3rs). And even though it ran for a few seasons - Everwood was definitely axed before it's time. Sisters was a mid-season hitter that didn't make it. Cashmere Mafia doesn't look like it's coming back either! I even liked Big Shots with all it's business with the fellas. The L Word shouldn't be done after 5.5 seasons...I wish it to go longer, obviously (good solid run for lesbians on a premium channel!) Popular should have stayed good, like season one! Wonderfalls! I loved that show. Definitely loved that show! Quite the obvious show that was cancelled before it's time was Family Guy but by thanks to the nice powers-that-be, came back and proved to be a billion dollar windfall, now signed on until 2012!!! 4400,

I think that is as far back as my memory goes, come back to me with other one/two-season "Cancelled before their time" shows. I love to travel down memory lane

On the day I turned 33...

Or should I say weekend, or entire WEEK? The G/F treated me to HuHot on Thursday and then a movie! Friday night we spent time with J & B playing cards, Saturday night was the PARTY at J&B's! Sunday we were at J & B's for a cookout. Such a nice and relaxing time!
The party was very nice. Kate was there, Vaz & her g/f, Alissa and hers, H & J, Dana (Jamie was away), Amber, J & B, G, Rox and Amy came over for a bit! Gary & T were there too along with the boys and their girls. Rox brought me strawberry pretzel desert! Nice! Kate got me a gift card for iTunes, way more than that was expected, but love her for it dearly anyway!
I had a tiara, it said BITCH. It rocked.
Did I mention I might have had too much to drink?
I had a very nice 33rd birthday. Not many people remembered it though...Only Susie online sent me a Happy Birthday note....(all my friends here remembered because of the party), and my mom and sister called. Meg didn't, nor did Chris, or my gram...the three that usually remember. Ah well...It's still 100 times better than my 23rd birthday. - Another story for another time
(Gram, Gramp and Meg ended up calling...they didn't forget)

Baby Mama

Oh what a funny movie Baby Mama is. If you live under a rock and don't know what this movie is, it's about a woman (Tina Fey) that has put motherhood off and finally wants to have a baby. Apparently, medically, she can't. She harvests her eggs, gets some sperm and has them implanted into a surrogate (Amy Poehler), someone that appears to have less class and intelligence than that of Tina Fey's character.
Steve Martin plays a whacky-earthy-health nut - guru that lightens the mood and at one point made me feel really uncomfortable with his eye contact!
Oscar (Conrad from Weeds) gives some humor as the door man who applies the name "Baby Mama" to Tina's surrogate.
Not to mention the lisp-having birthing coach Siobhan Fallon!
I really enjoyed the movie and I'm pretty sure I snorted once or twice. I believe half way through the movie I though "I need to own this when it comes out".
I've been missing Ms. Fey on SNL, especially when she is with Amy. I was thrilled to see them back together again!
Other SNL cast members that appeared: Will Forte, Fred Armisen,