Trying out BloggerBot. Here's a pic of Me 'n Hub 

So let me try to describe the latest family drama, maybe you'll find it amusing... note that all these calls occured in within about a 30 minute span.

Backstory: within 2 months after Mom died, Stepdad procraimed his love for my Mom's former friend of 30 years, and proposed to "her". After much fuss from the family, they called off the engagement, though at some point last year, "her" started wearing the ring again. My sister suspects they secretly got married, but when she asked him a couple weeks ago, he said no.

CALL #1: Sis calls, tells me she got a letter from Grandma A. saying she heard Stepdad got married. Sis is pissed over this and the whole "her" situation.

CALL #2: I call Gram Q. to say hello and let it slip that Sis got a letter from Grandma A. saying she heard Stepdad got married. Just making conversation.

CALL #3: Gram Q. calls Aunt D. and tells her that I told her that Sis got a letter from Grandma A. saying she heard Stepdad got married.

CALL #4: Aunt D. "accidentally" calls Stepdad and "her", then asks them if they got married. They say no. Aunt D. tells them that I told Gram Q. that Sis got a letter from Grandma A. saying she heard Stepdad got married.

CALL #5: Aunt D. calls me to tell me she "accidentally" called Stepdad and "her" and asked if they got married, they said no. I get out of her that she spilled the whole story, blew us all in. I start to freak, then calm down (trying not to upset her, she's already unstable) and just tell her she shouldn't have said anything.

CALL #6: Stepdad calls Gram Q. and asks her, "what's this I heard that you think we got married?" To which my ever thinking Gram says, "I didn't say that"... and proceeds to protect my involvement as the second-level gossiper and tells him that Aunt D. "has a big mouth." Stepdad says he wouldn't get married without telling the family.

CALL #7: Gram Q. calls Aunt D., who must be on the phone, because Gram Q. gets her answering machine. Gram Q. leaves a message on Aunt D's phone telling her she "has a big mouth."

CALL #8: Gram Q. calls me all upset, worried that she started drama with the gossip because Aunt D. has a big mouth. Worried about me because I am going to have lunch with Stepdad and "her" tomorrow and upset that she made it uncomfortable for me. I calm her down and tell her not to worry, we were just making conversation. I'll be fine at lunch. We both agree, again, that Aunt D. most certainly does have a very big mouth.

CALL #9: I call Stepdad to fess up to the gossip, but tell him we didn't believe it anyway, we were just making conversation, and that Aunt D. has a big mouth. Stepdad says he wouldn't get married without telling the family. I say, "ok, see you at lunch today".

I at least prevented CALL #10 which could have been the call to Sis to tell her how after her first call, the gossip spread like wildfire and caused this drama. Whew!

Lunch will be so fun today.

So the last time I looked at the clock last night, it was 3:37am. I think my multivitamin kept me up. I got about 3 hours sleep. And right now, you'd think I'd be tired, but I'm all wound up. Family drama.

I stayed up and watched the last episode of Queer as Folk. My Showtime is on the fritz, so I missed it on Sunday. Blasted digital cable. Can't live with it, can't live without it (ok, I could if I had to, but only if it were an emergency).

There's more psychological benefits to TV than people are aware of. There's this little thing called DISTRACTION which is one of the most effective ways (I've found) of surviving the constant, painful memories that can haunt you if you're brain is not otherwise occupied.

And cable is cheaper than therapy.

NO REALLY, WHY AM I STILL AWAKE AT 2AM AND TAKING STUPID ONLINE QUIZZES????


You're an Etch-a-Sketch!! You're the creative,
artsy type who doesn't need to actually utilize
a single muscle group in order to have fun.
Doesn't matter though, you're still cool.

What childhood toy from the 80s are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

HELP ME! CAN'T PULL AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER...


Non curo. Si metrum non habet, non est poema.
"I don't care. If it doesn't rhyme, it isn't
a poem."
You are a type A personality. You like bright
things, you don't call in sick to work, and you
have devastating opinions about art.


Which Weird Latin Phrase Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Online shopping sprees are fun... Jenny, I DID order an NPR shirt that day! Does that mean people will think I'm smart? What about the people who aren't aware of NPR, will they think my shirt is promoting the National Piglet Roundup? Why am I still awake?

OK, in ordering my Chocolate Body Glosser, I picked up a few other items... Aquolina Pink Sugar Glossy Shower Gel (how can you go wrong smelling like sugar)? Too Faced Bunny Balm in Pineapple Pin Up (you can't get much cuter packaging!), and Philosophy Amazing Grace Perfumed Body Gloss (Amazing Grace smells so... well... Amazing... and in a convenient spray moisturizer...)

I know, I know... I'm going to be EXTRA GLOSSY. People will be forced to wear sunglasses to look at me. I will be able to kill ants just by pointing my leg at them... Don't worry, I won't use them all in the same day... most of the time =)

I also got a few free samples, including Versace Eau de Toilette, I hope it smells good. For some reason, alot of expensive colognes smell like bug spray to me. Chuck tried on a sample of Kenneth Cole Black today (as opposed to the Kiton he normally wears which I LOVE) and to me, it might as well have been Raid Black. Must be something along the lines of how cilantro tastes like soap to some people.

(... if you're going to buy something at Sephora, you can use coupon code SURF3 to get an additional "deluxe" sample)

As Jenny mentioned, we were in Ithaca yesterday. While in a little Kitsch store, I spotted foam clown noses. Backstory: Aaron hates clowns, I have belly button issues. Aaron often "pokes" fun about belly buttons (AAAHHH, even mentioning it is KILLING ME)... So I don't hesitate to harass him on the clown front....

So I covertly had Chuck buy 3 foam noses... armed Jenny, Chuck and myself... and as we got in the car, we all put on our noses... to our delight and to Aaron's disgust. We kept our noses on for most of the 2 hour ride home.

So here we are, 3 clowns and Aaron, riding in a green VW Bug through the countryside... Aaron spots a kid out raking in his yard, when suddenly, the rake breaks and the kid is left holding up an empty rake stick. So Aaron turned the car around*, we pulled up to the yard, looked at him with our clown noses, pointed and laughed... and drove away.

*OK, this part didn't actually happen... we didn't go back... Aaron started to, but we (me) chickened out. Aaron said we were all clown-talk and no action. We were pretty amused at the prospect of what could have been the funniest event in our lives... brainstorming things like yelling to the kid, "we got the call and came as fast as we could"... Protecting America, one site-gag at a time, as members of the Volunteer Clown Association of America... BAH HAH.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, food fragranced beauty products are really becoming popular. Sephora has a whole new line of yummy products. I just ordered the Chocolate Body Glosser.

I've used the Michael Kors Leg shine and love the look but not so much the fragrance. I think chocolate will be much better, since, let's face it, I'm the one who has to smell ME the most, so I'm picking something I like. I just hope I don't start craving Hershey bars!

The other yummy things they now have:
Coffee & Cream Morning Body Scrub
Triple Layer Cake Hair & Body Wash
Great Pumpkin Mask
Kiwi Ice Exfoliating Body Scrub
Watermelon Slush Exfoliating Body Wash

An excerpt from "Motherless Daughters", a book by Hope Edelman, sums up how I feel today and every day since October 6, 2002...

"Ask any woman whose mother has died ...
and she will tell you that her life is irrevocably altered;
that this one fact forever changes who she is and who she will be."

I miss you Mom.

So much hubub about obesity in America. Books, movies, Atkins, South Beach, Zone, Sweatin to the Oldies. I've read it all and I'll read it all again under a different headline. The thing is, I think alot of us know HOW to lose weight. We know that if we eat apples instead of oreos and tuna filet instead of Chicken Crispers®, we'll be slim & trim. But here's the harsh reality... EVERYTHING THAT IS BAD FOR YOU IS DELICIOUS. And though it may not be good for the body, it can be good for the soul.

On that note, if calories and health didn't matter, this is what I might have eaten today:
- A big bowl of Captain Crunch
- A Pellegrinos Buffalo Chicken Wing Sub
- A few or ten original Krispy Kremes
- A Venti Mocha Frappucino with whip
- A (ginormous) molasses cookie from Starbucks
- A Banana Caramel Crepe at Simply Crepes
- Two slices of pepperoni pizza from Pontillos in Pittsford
- and the modest dessert of a frozen Faux Ho

I'll add that THANK GOODNESS they don't actually SELL entire bags of the chewy, defective Whoppers... someday they might... I called Hershey and asked about them... told them they are yummy and they should sell them... Jenny would call me "unusual" for doing so. Takes one to know one.

Saw Guster on Saturday night. They are just the best live non-heavy-metal band ever (what can I say, I'm a reformed 80's headbanger).

After the concert, Hubby, Jenny and Aaron and I went to the RIT carnival, got a funnel cake, then went to Krispy Kreme and got donuts. Strange coincidence or does listenting to Guster lead to sugar binges? I think maybe.

On a separate note, I thought I found some really irreverent t-shirts at Bogus t-shirts ... but then I found T-Shirt Hell, which has some doozies. Most are unnecessarily sick... but my fave clean one says, "I'm what Willis was talkin' 'bout".

Free Samples --> P*nis Reading

Found a website with lots of links for free stuff... so I surfed a bit - gotta love samples and such... found a link for a free sample of Astroglide... was curious... clicked... lo and behold, the site has an entire "Astrofun" section with an especially nice little gem on "The Ancient Art of P*nis Reading". I kid you not.

The internet. Enabling proliferation of obscure information since 1994 (all information posted prior to 1994 was actually useful).

Oh, and screw the lo-carb thing, get a free sample of Smorz cereal and eat the whole thing while on your way in from the mailbox.

** I edited this blog because I think some crawlers or unseedy characters were finding me based on the words...

Rochester is all abuzz about the Fast Ferry. It's finally here (after a long trip from Australia). The ability to take a nice, leisurely trip to Toronto is within our grasp.

I think alot of people here get the impression that the Ferry is supposed to save time or money. To the contrary, it's a bit pricey and with drive time to the lake added on to sailing time, a longer trip overall. But you won't to concentrate on driving or get all nervous pulling up to the border guard and when they ask what you're going to Canada for, blurt out "BIRTHDAY!" as opposed to the rational response of "we are travelling to your great land to celebrate our friend Tina's birthday at the lovely Butterfly Conservatory in your wonderful country."

You can even eat, drink, shop, connect to the internet, watch tv or catch a movie on the Ferry. They may even have gambling. SIGN ME UP!

The flipside... we may be recieving large groups of drunk Canadians on our shore soon. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Hallelujah! Jamba Juice now has "Enlightented Smoothies - 1/3 less calories. All Jamba". Not to say that I care about the calories in a Jamba. They could contain 3000 calories and I'd still partake. But it's nice to know that if they ever open Jambas here and my addiction is allowed to be fully recognized, I could potentially keep from doubling my body weight by favoring the lo-cal versions.

Jenny will NOT like them because... guess what they contain... yep... Horrenda (Jenny's name for Splenda). She's like a bee that can sense fear. She can tell in seconds whether something contains horrenda.

Thank you to Paula K. for keeping me up to speed as I sit here in this God-Forsaken Jamba-Juice-Deficient land of NY.

AAAAAAHHHHHH, I take it back, there's a Jamba in NYC now!! Sadly, still an 8 hour drive away. DAMMIT!

Must travel. Must get Jamba. Life force is fading...

In the early 80's, in Vegas, I used to hang at "Sev" (7/11) and play arcade games. I liked Asteroids, Centipede and Frogger, but I kicked butt on Pac Man. I had a pattern - and it worked like a charm. In the mid 80's living back home in Rochester, starting to date Chuck who had a Nintendo, and spent more hours than I care to admit playing Tetris.

Now you can play Frogger online.

Food Fragrances are the New Black

Jenny and I love beauty products that smell like food. Some of my favorites include DuWop Buttercream Lotion, Jaqua Girls Marshmallow Cocoa Body Whip, Chocolate Head hair conditioner, Aqualina Pink Sugar fragrance, and the no-longer-available Skinmarket Brown Sugar Body Scrub (which smelled so yummy, it started a bad self-sniffing habit).

Now there are a few new ones I must try, including Jessica Simpson's new Dessert Beauty line, which has Whipped Body Cream With Candy Sprinkles. Mmmm.

And The Bakery, which has White Chocolate Mousse Bath BonBons.

And Fresh Body Market, Inc., which has Coco Banana Slush (body soap).

Now I just need Krispy Kreme to bottle that wall-o-glaze scent and I'll be set for life. Heck, I'd bet the glaze itself could double as product. I'd wash with it, moisturize with it, condition my hair with it, soften my cuticles with it, let it get hard and crumbly, then exfoliate with it... I think I'm on to something here...

Poor Monkey

BONUS - found this flash animation while searching for monkeys... ***HILARIOUS***

Cheeky Monkey

The other day at lunch with Jenny and April, I commented that cartoon monkeys are like Benicio Del Toro... sometimes very cute, other times, rather non-cute.

Good Looking Benicio:


Not so good looking Benicio:


Good looking Monkey (Lia Studio)


Not so good looking Monkey:

As you may know, I love Peeps. They were always the staple of my Easter Basket. Sis's special item was chocolate covered marshmallows (yuck, imho), Bro loved the straight-up chocolate and I was lavished with Peeps.

Last year, Jenny and I got Guster hooked up with the Peeps Fun Bus and this year Guster created a Peeps basket for a charity auction.

While looking up how they make Peeps (after Joel's curiosity was peaked when I told him that marshmallows are "extruded"), I found that you can buy a limited edition Peeps t-shirt with proceeds going to Easter Seals. Mine will arrive after Easter, but let's face it, anytime is a good time for Peeps.

Trend Alert

Apparently the hot new thing is to take a product geared toward children and add alcohol.

First came 'juice box' wine. Now there's vodka ice-cream. Time to jump on the bandwagon and market Jello-shot Jigglers.

Mascot Aerobics

While we're on the subject of costumed characters, Abby told me that she heard that the guy who dresses as the Moose mascot for the Rochester Amerks hockey team loses 7 lbs a game! Which, with my twisted thinking and ever-present quest to lose weight quickly (me and about 1 billion other women's)... this info sparked an idea...

Characterobics!... don't just wear a mascot costume... learn to BE a mascot. Lose weight while building your fallback career.

Brilliant! Richard Simmons - lookout!

However, after reading the "Troubleshooting" section of MascotNet - The Comprehensive Site for Mascots and Administrators - [section #5: Hugging/Touching Children: Don't let our hand stray to any part of a person that could be interpreted as unacceptable. Many mascots have lost their jobs due to "straying hands"] I'd say my theory (from yesterday) is not so far fetched. It's a costumed-character conspiracy, I tell ya!

The Characterobics class will teach proper conduct, utilizing advice from our own Rochester Moose who says, "When dealing with children, I have always practiced "the head and back" rule. When interacting with them, you mess up their hair, pat on the head, etc. For hugging it is on the back, above the belt."

When I was 15, I visited DisneyWorld. I met Pluto. Pluto touched my butt. I have been uncomfortable around large, costumed characters ever since. Everyone thinks I'm crazy, but it doesn't seem so crazy now that Tigger has been arrested!

I'm picturing this secret society of mascots and other various character-types... who's main goal is to see how much they can get away with in the name of I-can-barely-see-through-the-mouth of-this-giant-head-which is-why-my-paw-accidentally-grabbed-your ...

I had a crush on Christopher Lambert after watching Highlander back in 1984. I was surprised when I saw the trailer for The Punisher - there he was and hadn't appeared to age a day!! Then I went to the site and... it's NOT Chrisopher. It's Thoman Jane. Completely different guy.

A new "liberal" radio station has launched called Air America. Basically to offer the other side of the conservative radio - the Rush Limbaughs and such.

I want to hear it mainly because the liberals also happen to be comedians and humor is about the only way I can stomache politics.

More pics from Florida, including the puppy, Piglet, and a crazy bird.

Retail Therapy

Jenny got me these great new Sniff tissues that have my likeness on them and say "Retail Therapy". I am a firm believer that purchasing cute gifties for others or for yourself can improve your mood. I generally like to find things that are adorable but that you don't have to be a lottery winner to afford. I always tell my hubby, "you're lucky I shop the way I do". I'm not sure he truly knows how much I could spend were I to buy Marc Jacobs handbags or Jimmy Choo shoes. Alas, unless I find them at a sample sale for 95% off, I am unlikely to own either.

If I were a splurger, I'd buy this Dooney & Bourke bag, which is just the most adorable thing I've laid eyes on since Tom Hanks rolling around in his underwear with that Dogue de Bordeaux in Turner & Hooch. But at 220 bucks, I can't justify spending that kind of money on a purse when family members can barely pay for their groceries.

Some less expensive but nearly as cute alternatives are online at Amici Accessories... found through my InStyle mag. Or maybe a replica Prada or Louis Vuitton bag from fashionflairs.com - very cute and many are under 30 bucks!

I also bought two of these new Body Whips at Parkleigh yesterday. A body cleanser and a Sugar Whip exfoliating cleanser. I can barely stand that they're not edible. They looks like it. They smell like it. They feel like it. I bet I could've gotten hubby to eat some... would've been funny... but entirely too cruel (not to mention I'd be living in fear while anticipating revenge).

And to help others while I help myself... I bought this very cute t-shirt designed by Joie, to support the fight against cancer through the Entertainment Industry Foundation.

Deep Fried Fatty Goodness

Apparently in Britain they call a sandwich a "sarnie". Apparently Americans aren't the only ones who love to indulge in mega-calorie meals. The hot dessert in the UK is called the "Suicide Sarnie" - a deep fried chocolate sandwich covered in chocolate sauce and ice cream - with 1000 calories per serving!

Here's the recipe:
1. Take two slices of white bread and liberally smother in chocolate sauce.
2. Dip in batter and deep fry.
3. Cover in more chocolate sauce and sprinkle with sugar.
4. Serve with a dollop of vanilla ice cream.

Make it, eat it, then run 10 miles to work it off (or not =).

Horse Help

I have yet to see one in action, but apparently Guide Horses are all the rage. Now we're not talking being led around by Hidalgo here, they're miniature horses, compact and painfully adorable.

Apparently, Guide Horses are great for people who are allergic to dogs, love horses, want an animal that lives longer and can live outside when off-duty (as if).

Sign of the Apocalypse

These are the new urinals at
the Virgin Atlantic clubhouse at JFK.

I want to know why CNN thinks they have become the National Enquirer. Here are real headlines from CNN.com...

Dog requires sex change to live
Future Boy Looks Ahead
Gay Mormons in love

What do I look like, a Nuclear Physicist?

drove home very slowly in the snowiness tonight... hoping something good would be on NPR... it was an interview with Physicist, Brian Green, about his String Theory and how the math indicates that there may be 10 dimensions, not just the measly 3 that we can perceive. I felt like I was high, in a bathtub with Donald Sutherland, Boon, & Katy, contemplating the existence of other universes under our own fingernails. Oooh.

Additionally, shouldn't a braniac math-wizz physicist have a better name than Brian Green? How can that compete with an I'm-very-quirky-but-super-intelligent name like Albert Einstein? All I could picture was Brian Austin Green (of Beverly Hills 90210 fame), throwing on a nerdy pair of glasses and singing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" to communicate his theories on the creation of the universe.

At the end of the interview, I felt slightly more intelligent (I know, the opposite of what one might think would happen when listening to a physicist explain a new theory)... but I felt good that I could follow his thought process. Which means, Brian Green is really good at talking to the less-intellectually-fortunate without making them feel like they should be wearing a helmet to work.

So when I got home, I looked up the NPR show and linked through to The Official String Theory Web Site and was pleasantly surprised to see that the man is blessed with more than just good intelligence genes, he's handsome too. Let me consult my quantum physics equations to determine the odds of getting superior intelligence, ability to relate to common folk, and handsome all in one man. Its a 1 in 2,398,746,899.27 chance.

Mya Update

I'm biased, but I think my niece Mya is just adorable. See for yourself.

I'm Baaack

Well, I'm back Florida. I did meet the puppy on Tuesday, became very attached to each other (puppy cried whenever I left the room), then had to leave the next day. I wonder if she'll remember me when I see her again in a couple months.

If the puppy had come earlier, I might have enjoyed my "vacation" a bit more. I don't think that staying with the in-laws in a retirement community in Middle Bumble Ef Florida can count as a vacation. There must be research that shows humans can only tolerate 3.8 days of visiting relatives. I was there for 7.4 days - you do the math.

Here are some pictures of the little fuzz ball herself.

XX Car

Volvo is designing a car by women for women. At first, I thought that adding in an indentation to accomodate pony tails into the headrest was a bit OTT... then I realized, I have had to take my hair down before to get comfortable while driving, and curly-haired ladies, you know... after you've had your hair up for a while, then take it down, it poofs out so you look like Carrot Top on a bad hair day - and have to drive around looking like a madwoman... so maybe it's not so crazy after all.

The puppy's not coming today. Supposedly tomorrow, but now I'm not getting my hopes up.

Went and saw "50 First Dates" last night (at least there's a movie theater nearby), it was very cute. Made me think of PT *;) - Hawaii is so beautiful and such an interesting culture. I read a good article about it in National Geographic - about how many years ago, Native Hawaiians were forced to give up their culture and language, and more recently, there is a resurgance in rediscovering the traditions.

So I'm in Florida on vacation. Not my idea of an ideal vacation by any stretch of the imagination. Smack dab in the middle of the state... nowhere near beaches or good shopping or young people... in a retirement village... where the most exciting thing to do is play Monkey Train (have yet to figure out what that is, but my Mother-in-law is excited to get us to play)

But let me try to relay the positives:
- it's warm, 85ish... until tomorrow anyway, when the high will be in the 60s (still better than 30s)
- my in-laws are getting a puppy tomorrow
- got to have Chicken Madeira at The Cheesecake Factory (after driving one hour each way)
- I'm not at work

Sooo, that's about it.

Other than that, I want to say to PT *:) that I owe you a BIG thank you for the Valentine's Day giftie, brightened my day. Sorry I'm such a slow-poke loser in thanking you.

And I want to thank Jenny for packing Piglet and tell you that I saw the super-skinny lady. Eeww. This woman we saw last year, she looks both 90 pounds and 90 years old, a sun-worshipper with wrinkles in every crack and crevice (or as Joel might say, crev-ah-se ;). She's probably only 65. Inspired me to wear my hat in the sun this year! I do not want to get old and decrepid... but if I do, I'd rather be plump than look like a slim-jim with arms.

Ooh, if you live in the LA area, you should apply for this Blowout show on Bravo - it looks like fun! What would be even more fun would be if Tiger Woods and Tobey Maguire were the ones doing the blowdrying!

Change of subject...
C'mon, Lord of the Rings didn't have to win EVERYTHING. Thanks goodness Sofia Coppola pulled out Best Original Screenplay. Billy Crystal was funny, the women looked great, Sting looked hot "playing" that chunky monkey or whatever Jenny figured out it was called. It was a fun evening. Perhaps, someday, I will be there as the little sis of a famous actor.

This year Jenny and Aaron, veteran Winterluders, invited us along to Ottawa. Jenny booked hubby and I at the Alanbury House Bed & Breakfast, complete with resident cat Penelope and jacuzzi tub. It was wonderful.

We skated, ate Beavertails, saw a great trampoline exhibition by the Canadian Olympic skiiers and snowboarders.

I finally committed and bought a snowboard. I went to The Lounge on the recommendation of my friend Tony (who designed their website). I was told to talk to Josh. I walked in, met Josh, gave him my backstory (still a beginner, don't want to fall, etc.)... he walked over to the rack of snowboards and pulled out the Solace by Ride, made especially for women....

When I saw the beautiful little pandas staring up at me... the clouds parted, angels sang, and the heavens spoke, "this is the chosen one".

Josh pulled out a couple more less pricey options, but I'll be honest, given that the techie specs of the board seemed to fit my needs better, I was willing to pay extra for cuteness. I don't think I had a choice. The snowboard had chosen me.

I haven't had a chance to ride it yet, but even if I never ride it, just looking at it brings me happiness. I may just hang my zen board on the wall in my living room and use it for art instead of sport.

It truly is a thing of beauty.

Be Like Mike.... 's Sister

If you want breast accoutriments like Janet Jackson, search no longer.... you can buy them at Tribalectic.com (attaching barbell sold separately).

Even though I bought a snowboard this weekend, I can't help but wish with all my heart and soul that this was me, at Monkey Mia resort in Australia, petting dolphins.

I was very saddened to hear that Adam Sandler's dog Meatball died last month. Of all things, he died of a heart attack. He was only 4.

Today was Go Red for Women day to promote awareness of heart disease in women. Apparently women don't recognize their heart attack symptoms and just the awareness could save your life.

They say that most heart attacks start slowly. Here are the symptoms:

- Chest discomfort... in the center of the chest... lasts more than a few minutes, or that goes away and comes back
- Discomfort in other areas of the upper body... can include discomfort in arms, back, neck, jaw or stomach.
- Shortness of breath
- other signs may include breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness

To learn more, go to the American Heart Association site. If you enroll, you can get this very cute pin.

Movies Movies Movies

Daniela has been using Netflix for years and recommended it many times over. Last month I FINALLY signed up and I love it! For $20 a month, you get as many DVDs as you can watch... three at a time. Each time you send one back (even if it's a month later), they send you the next one in your queue within days.

I started off renting Colin Firth movies:
Pride and Prejudice: Vol. 1 (vg)
Pride and Prejudice: Vol. 2 (vg)
My Life So Far (g)
Fever Pitch (g)

Then went for a semi-mainstream George Clooney movie:
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (vg)

And moved on to Indy flicks:
Y Tu Mama Tambien (vvg)
Whale Rider (vvg)
The Shape of Things (good, but pissed me off)

Today I received 'I'm With Lucy', which likely isn't good, but rented it because I liked Gael Garcia Bernal in Y Tu Mama Tambien. Side note: Gael is also going to be in the new Pedro Almodovar movie, Bad Education.

And coming soon, my queue contains:
Capturing the Friedmans
Lost in Translation (worth watching again)
Queer as Folk: Season 1 (also worth watching again)

I like Netflix not just because it's convenient, but because it's so easy to search for movies... think how difficult it would be to go to the video store and find all the movies for your Christopher Guest Movie Marathon Party.

Another marketing point they should pick up on... the ability to rent Malibu's Most Wanted without getting dirty looks from the Skater Punk Video Store Clerk. (Not that I'D do that, I just recognize it as a benefit).

Strangeness

Couple strange things occured on my ride home... first, I'm stopped by 3 deer standing smack dab in the middle of the road. I beep, they barely move... I yell, "get out of the road!" Again, hardly a flinch... I yell again, "don't MAKE me come over there!"... they wander off very slowly...

Observation: the deer this year have extra fluffy fur

Than, a guy on a bike rides by. Why is that strange, you ask? Because he's riding his bike at 10pm, on a Wednesday, in 23 degree weather with a wind chill factor of about 97 below. Strange!

Bubblicious

Janet Jackson SOOO meant to do that. You don't wear a solar-burst ring thing without expecting it to be seen.

Celebs are just out of control with their antics these days. On that note, why is it that it seems like the only male nudity you see these days are old guy's butts? Jack Nicholson (Something's Gotta Give), Danny Devito (Big Fish), Harvey Keitel (every movie he's in)...

I love all things Aveda. Not only are their products wonderful, but they also donate to Rare to help protect the planet. Couple of my faves:


Curessence Damage Relief
Shampoo and Conditioner


Hand Relief lotion

... meanwhile... elsewhere in the world...
Dead Whale With 5 Foot Penis Explodes Onto Streets of Taiwan.

I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried.

Ma'am, would you like some fries to go with that bicept curl?

Jenny & I worked out today... fourth day this weeks... very good, you say? Yes, but for dinner, I followed up with a bacon cheeseburger and fries.

Also this week... Jenny brought in a GINORMOUS tub of Laffy Taffy. I only like the banana flavor, so I'd root through and pick out all I could find... getting more scarce with each passing day. Today, with my stress level high and no yellow wrappers visible, I desperately dumped out the tub and managed to find one last handful of golden buried treasures. Barely a minute passed and I had devoured six of them. Take time to read the jokes, you ask? NOPE... peel, eat, peal, eat, peal, eat... I stopped myself with four left, which I brought to Joel, shaking, and asked him to save me from this downward spiral...

I'm scared because I'm well aware of the fact that you can buy a whole tub of JUST BANANA. I have done so in the past and it wasn't pretty. Three women, one tub, gone in 3 days... works out to a 20-a-day habit. That's 750 calories worth of sugary banana heaven in one day!

Now you know why I'm worried the addiction will kick back into full swing. Damn you Willy Wonka!

Hello, my name is Tina, and I'm a product addict, with newly restored internet connection and a weakness for clever marketing...

These Lube-in-a-Tube lip balms from Urban Decay are cool-looking, cool-sounding, and probably taste yummy. The description on Sephora reads: This rich, creamy shea butter and mango-enriched lip balm leaves your lips smooth and kissed with a hint of sexy, vanilla-mint infused color. Gotta get me some NYC.


Also just ordered some new Cleansing Queen goodies. With names like Liquid Lingerie, Sugar Daddy, and Butter Me Up, how can you resist?

I know alot of us are bunny huggers, but this Penguin Batting game is still fun.

For the past few weeks, my internet connection had been getting worse and worse, to the point of driving me insane.

When I first call, they say "no problem found, it must be your computer". So I delete many applications & files, check for viruses, reinstall my operating system... no improvement. Call again... they send two burly-guy techs, who show up, reaking of smoke, get snow and dirt all over the rugs (yes, I was too meek to ask them to take their boots off... I HAVE seen "The Cable Guy"... but honestly, shouldn't they have a policy...), and tell me "can't find a problem". So I install an upgrade to my OS (XP) and overwrite the old one. Still can't connect.... dying to book flights for Florida and/or Vegas but connection is too slow or gone. Pulling hair out. Another service call, another big burly technician (who wears grocery bags on his feet so as not to dirty the carpet)... yep, it's the modem... it was shot.

Back to lightning speed and getting my internet fix nightly. Hopefully will blog more now.

ME, as told by dictionary.com...

...in terms of my job:
Entry: disappointed
Function: adjective
Definition: saddened
Synonyms: aghast, balked, beaten, blue funk, cast down, chapfallen, complaining, defeated, depressed, despondent, disconcerted, discontented, discouraged, disenchanted, disgruntled, disillusioned, dissatisfied, distressed, down, downhearted, foiled, frustrated, hopeless, let down, objecting, shot down, taken down, thwarted, unhappy, unsatisfied, upset, vanquished, worsted

...in terms of my environment:
Entry: freezing
Function: adjective
Definition: cold
Synonyms: arctic, biting, bitter, chill, chilled, chilly, cold, cutting, frigid, frost-bound, frosty, gelid, glacial, icy, nippy, numbing, one-dog night, penetrating, polar, raw, shivery, Siberian, snappy, wintry

...in terms of my marriage:
Entry: enamored
Function: adjective
Definition: in love
Synonyms: amorous, attracted, besotted, bewitched, captivated, charmed, crazy about, crazy over, devoted, dotty, enchanted, enraptured, entranced, fascinated, fond, gone, gone on, hipped on, hooked, infatuated, loving, nuts about, silly about, smitten, stuck on, taken, wild about

...in terms of missing Mom:
Entry: brokenhearted
Function: adjective
Definition: devastated
Synonyms: crestfallen, crushed, desolate, despairing, despondent, disappointed, disconsolate, grief-stricken, grieved, heart-sick, heartbroken, heartsore, inconsolable, miserable, mournful, prostrated, sorrowful, wretched

Not only is Google a great search engine, but they are the coolest company ever. I noticed today that their language page not only includes Italian, Portuguese, German and the like, it also includes Klingon, Bork, bork, bork!, Elmer Fudd, Hacker, and, ymay avoritefay, igPay atinLay!! atThay isay ootay unnyfay!!

If not for family/friend proximity issues, along with the fact that a shack in CA costs more than four houses on my street put together, I'd strongly consider trying to get a job with them.