Tuesday, November 27, 2007
sad goodbyes
Last night, I went to J's house to drop off my key, collect my petsitting pay and say goodbye to Dixie and Belle. They will be moving away sometime in the next 2 or 3 days. I'd like to say we had a nice visit but I started blubbering and had to make a quick getaway because I was embarrassed for myself. J was very nice about it and said that they'd miss me. I hope none of my other petsitting clients move away or subcumb to illness or anything like that ANYTIME soon because I need a break from sadness at the moment!
extended absence
I will be off work (at the library, at least) until Monday as Roomie's nuptials are on Saturday. I will be running errands for her and just being a general (or make that General) flunky since she has no time off from work. KT has asked for all the morbid details of my little 5-day adventure but I don't know how much of that I'll be able to deliver since I'm sans internet at home. I will try to get to an internet workstation somehow during my time off so KT won't be on pins and needles waiting :)
Monday, November 26, 2007
Monday update
Here's hoping everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend! If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you had a great weekend anyway!
I am still recovering from sectional sofa trauma. I did go into R-t-G Saturday and pick out another living room suit that will hopefully fit through my #!#*^$^%^ 31 inch wide front door :) We'll see on Tuesday....
Thanksgiving was nice and uneventful for me. I went over to my Mom's house (no more moving-in pressure from her, thank goodness) and watched her cook for a while then we ate lunch. Cornish hens, dressing, cranberry sauce, Sister Schubert's yeast rolls and pecan pie. It was a pretty modest spread by usual Thanksgiving standards but I figured it just provided less opportunity for extreme overindulgence. I left Mom's and visited my friend T and her mom for a little while. Several of my other friends were already there and then we had a treat when my friend A and her husband dropped by with their new baby, their first. Little N was as cute as a button and seemed to enjoy meeting all the new people and sitting in their laps. As cute as she was though, I still sat her in my lap, looked deep into her little liquid baby eyes and felt no desire whatsoever for any of my own.
The Day After Thanksgiving found me freezing my @$$ off at 4am standing in line at JC Penny for a pre-lit tree. Not only were there none left at 4:03 when I got to the disply, but the display model set out was capital U-G-L-Y and I wouldn't have bought it anyway. I decided to head down to Circuit City for my big girl tv, WHICH I DIDN'T GET after standing out in the cold for 45 minutes! The man in front of me got the last one. I traveled over to K-m to try for one of theirs, froze my @$$ off for another 45 min and didn't get one there either. Finally, in disgust, I went and got breakfast (and lots of coffee) at IHOP before heading back to my petsitting house and piling back up in the bed for a well-deserved nap.
I did end up getting a tv on Saturday, though not at the same great price. I have hooked it up and watched several movies and it is grand. The people on the screen look so BIG! They are like lifesize AND you can read the credits or the intro material some movies have. I usually have to go stand next to the tv if I want that kind of info...exciting stuff!!!
Yesterday, Roomie had her wedding shower so there was punch, cake and little sandwiches had by all. She got a ton of nice swag for her new house, including a pre-lit Christmas Tree! She and the future hubby plan to put it up Tuesday. I put up mine yesterday with Roomie's assistance for the last time. We both got a little teary-eyed, not like her new house is not 5 minutes down the road and her DH won't be calling going, "Is my wife there? Could you send her back home?" I'm beginning to get sad and have some random teary-eyed moments. We've been best friends for 18 years and roommates for 6-7 years. I'm just trying to adjust to not having her friendship to myself anymore. I just hope I don't have a crying jag during the wedding. She's already said she'll be crying and if she's crying, I'll be crying so it's waterproof mascara all around!
Another parting-is-such-sweet-sorrow moment: I'm losing another petsitting client, make that two!! Not to illness this time thank goodness, but Dixie and Belle (oh yeah, the owner too) are moving away Wednesday! Dixie is one of my top favorite dogs to take care of and I'm going to miss her something terrible :( I'm going over to their house briefly this evening to drop off my key, pick up payment for my last job and say goodbye. So sad...
Alright! 6pm has arrived and I'm headed home!
evenin' ya'll
htw
I am still recovering from sectional sofa trauma. I did go into R-t-G Saturday and pick out another living room suit that will hopefully fit through my #!#*^$^%^ 31 inch wide front door :) We'll see on Tuesday....
Thanksgiving was nice and uneventful for me. I went over to my Mom's house (no more moving-in pressure from her, thank goodness) and watched her cook for a while then we ate lunch. Cornish hens, dressing, cranberry sauce, Sister Schubert's yeast rolls and pecan pie. It was a pretty modest spread by usual Thanksgiving standards but I figured it just provided less opportunity for extreme overindulgence. I left Mom's and visited my friend T and her mom for a little while. Several of my other friends were already there and then we had a treat when my friend A and her husband dropped by with their new baby, their first. Little N was as cute as a button and seemed to enjoy meeting all the new people and sitting in their laps. As cute as she was though, I still sat her in my lap, looked deep into her little liquid baby eyes and felt no desire whatsoever for any of my own.
The Day After Thanksgiving found me freezing my @$$ off at 4am standing in line at JC Penny for a pre-lit tree. Not only were there none left at 4:03 when I got to the disply, but the display model set out was capital U-G-L-Y and I wouldn't have bought it anyway. I decided to head down to Circuit City for my big girl tv, WHICH I DIDN'T GET after standing out in the cold for 45 minutes! The man in front of me got the last one. I traveled over to K-m to try for one of theirs, froze my @$$ off for another 45 min and didn't get one there either. Finally, in disgust, I went and got breakfast (and lots of coffee) at IHOP before heading back to my petsitting house and piling back up in the bed for a well-deserved nap.
I did end up getting a tv on Saturday, though not at the same great price. I have hooked it up and watched several movies and it is grand. The people on the screen look so BIG! They are like lifesize AND you can read the credits or the intro material some movies have. I usually have to go stand next to the tv if I want that kind of info...exciting stuff!!!
Yesterday, Roomie had her wedding shower so there was punch, cake and little sandwiches had by all. She got a ton of nice swag for her new house, including a pre-lit Christmas Tree! She and the future hubby plan to put it up Tuesday. I put up mine yesterday with Roomie's assistance for the last time. We both got a little teary-eyed, not like her new house is not 5 minutes down the road and her DH won't be calling going, "Is my wife there? Could you send her back home?" I'm beginning to get sad and have some random teary-eyed moments. We've been best friends for 18 years and roommates for 6-7 years. I'm just trying to adjust to not having her friendship to myself anymore. I just hope I don't have a crying jag during the wedding. She's already said she'll be crying and if she's crying, I'll be crying so it's waterproof mascara all around!
Another parting-is-such-sweet-sorrow moment: I'm losing another petsitting client, make that two!! Not to illness this time thank goodness, but Dixie and Belle (oh yeah, the owner too) are moving away Wednesday! Dixie is one of my top favorite dogs to take care of and I'm going to miss her something terrible :( I'm going over to their house briefly this evening to drop off my key, pick up payment for my last job and say goodbye. So sad...
Alright! 6pm has arrived and I'm headed home!
evenin' ya'll
htw
Daft Punk
I'v never heard of them but I have become enchanted by this little song....so fun! Also, I wonder how long it took these two young ladies to get this routine down???
(via @ The Library)
(via @ The Library)
i covet...
the new Amazon Kindle! Unfortunately it's $400 :(
It'll be awhile before that's on my shopping list. Roomie moving out has put me in dire straights replacing furniture, dishes, etc.
um...plus I did go ahead and get my big girl TV this weekend! No more 17" tv for me!
It'll be awhile before that's on my shopping list. Roomie moving out has put me in dire straights replacing furniture, dishes, etc.
um...plus I did go ahead and get my big girl TV this weekend! No more 17" tv for me!
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
weird (read: scary) science
I have long labored under the impression that chimera's were mythological creatures, but I obviously need to revisit this. My Seed Daily Zeitgeist led me to an article about human chimeras. Interesting stuff, no doubt, but when they got to the two ladies who bore no genetic similarity to their own children I started to wonder. The article even brought up the question of DNA evidence in crimes. All we need is a psycho chimera serial killer and they'll never catch the bastard (I'll be fair: or the bitch)! I've just always thought of DNA (and it has been touted as such) as the do all and end all of proving all sorts of things and this information does away with that notion.
Of course, geneticists have been having a field day with this. For instance, did you know that in 2003 Chinese scientists merged rabbit ova and human skin cells to produce live stem cells for research? Or how about the group of scientists from Stanford U of CA's Institute of Cancer/Stem Cell Biology who have created mice with 1% human cells? Know about that? They want to study Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. There is a wild digression at that point where the author hypothesizes that the mice's human cells could migrate, produce human sexual organs and allow two mice to give birth to a human embryo. I'd say the jury is still out on that one but these are human cells people, not a playdoh set! Be careful with what you're doing!
Very good movie line for this post, very relevant, from one of the Jurassic Park movies when Ian (Jeff Goldblum) says something to the effect of "you were so focused on whether you could, you didn't stop to consider whether you should"......'nuf said.
htw
Of course, geneticists have been having a field day with this. For instance, did you know that in 2003 Chinese scientists merged rabbit ova and human skin cells to produce live stem cells for research? Or how about the group of scientists from Stanford U of CA's Institute of Cancer/Stem Cell Biology who have created mice with 1% human cells? Know about that? They want to study Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. There is a wild digression at that point where the author hypothesizes that the mice's human cells could migrate, produce human sexual organs and allow two mice to give birth to a human embryo. I'd say the jury is still out on that one but these are human cells people, not a playdoh set! Be careful with what you're doing!
Very good movie line for this post, very relevant, from one of the Jurassic Park movies when Ian (Jeff Goldblum) says something to the effect of "you were so focused on whether you could, you didn't stop to consider whether you should"......'nuf said.
htw
january flick
for my money, there are few things I enjoy more than a good monster flick! I have just scene a trailer for Cloverfield (haha, see that pun there?)which will be in theaters 1/18/08. Have a look and tell me what you think.
the cleanup effort...with tears
FURNITURE DELIVERY DAY
I have been up since 7am and cleaning like a mad woman! Roomie and I have been attending to our separate areas of the house all week. I helped her take some stuff over to her new house and I have been making (practically) daily trips to the Jimmy Hale Mission thrift store to drop off donations. I’m determined that this clean up will not be a rearrangement of the crap that is here. It will be a true cleaning in every sense of the word.
I’m now having a bit of lunch and trying to recover. I think my poor vacuum may revolt and leave. I really hope that they arrive on the 12 or 1 side of the b/w 12 & 4 delivery window so I a)won’t be late for work and b)can have time to drop off all the stuff in my car at the JHM thrift store on the way into work.
One of the local radio stations starts early and plays all Christmas music all the time until Dec 26th and that has been the only thing that has made the past few days bearable. I can sing and bop along while tidying and it doesn’t feel so much like work. I L-O-V-E Christmas music and look forward to this radio station’s programming all year long! I know it annoys some people beyond reason as it isn’t even Thanksgiving yet, but it makes the best season for me. Every task can be accomplished with a song on my lips :-D
With all that said, did I mention I have the air conditioning on in this house?!? You gotta love this southern weather :-D Last week I had to put salt on the porch in the mornings for the little crust of ice that had formed and this week shorts and flipflops are standard. Of course, this is also one of our tornado seasons here and it certainly feels promising, especially if another cold front comes through anytime soon.
Among the more interesting things I’ve found while cleaning…my ninth grade yearbook! What is it about school pictures that make them so utterly horrifying to look at later in life? Looking through these annuals makes me consider the question of which I hated more: high school or college (either time). I honestly can’t say at this point.
I could so go for a nap right now, but I know as soon as I drifted off the furniture guys would be here. I’m just so tired and it will only get worse since I have to eventually get dressed and go to work this afternoon. The library closes as 9pm and it’ll be another hour home just to get up and do it all over again. KT and her dh are heading to his parent’s house for Thanksgiving so I said I’d do her brown bag program tomorrow afternoon. I have vowed that this time I will go down early and make sure everything works including the remotes for everything.
I am not exaggerating when I say that EVERY TIME I’ve done the program for KT, something has not worked or has gone wrong. One time the scheduled speaker didn’t show up! Another time I received some faulty intel that no one wanted to watch the documentary that was scheduled so I just went to the library’s collection and selected another one. Unfortunately, I had to attend the state library convention that day so I got my coworker, Daxx the Magnificent, to put the movie in and he was nearly lynched by the contingent that had wanted to see the other movie. There were even complaints at the front desk. I should have outted my source of the faulty intel but I did not. It wouldn’t have accomplished anything if I had. Now though, I show what’s scheduled no matter what anyone has to say about it. It’s a free program after all and we feed them so it would be in their best interests to just be quiet. I never expect that of course, but it’s nice to think about sometimes.
Okay, so am now officially antsy. My feet hurt too bad to really begin a new cleaning project so here I sit at the dining room table….glued to the window. I feel like somebody’s dog, staring out the window in desperation for them to be home. I want to see that brightly colored truck slowing to make the turn into the driveway!
I’ve done 5 loads of laundry, started the dishwasher, dismantled my bed and slid it into the living room, moved the old recliners to make room for the new, vacuumed everything 2 or 3 times, had a talk with Binky concerning her upcoming stay in the cardboard Pet Waggin’ while my bed is being assembled, cleaned the kitchen, packed up Roomies silverware and spices, gone through the mail….I have nothing to do but wait now. But hey, at least there’s Christmas music! I guess I’ll have a look at my What On Earth catalog, maybe look through my slow cooker cookbook for some dinner ideas….
COME ON brightly colored truck!
Well, here I am, at work and only 30 minutes late. My lovely, beautiful sectional sofa WOULD NOT FIT THROUGH THE FRONT DOOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I had to give up and return my lovely, beautiful sectional sofa :( :( :( After the delivery guys left, I cried like a spoiled baby. The salesman at R-t-G said it would not be a problem to swap the credit out but it HuRt My FeElInGs in the biggest way. Saturday, door measurements and tape measure in hand, I will head back to R-t-G and pick out another sofa. Since I'm off W, R and F next week, I'm hoping I can schedule delivery then.
Ya'll. Seriously. I'm sad.
...........and I didn't have time to unload my car at the JHM thrift store before work so I'll have to do it afterwards and I needed to go to store as well *sigh, long suffering* It'll be midnight before I get home and in bed.
Yes, I'd like some cheese with my whine thank you.
htw
11:45am
I have been up since 7am and cleaning like a mad woman! Roomie and I have been attending to our separate areas of the house all week. I helped her take some stuff over to her new house and I have been making (practically) daily trips to the Jimmy Hale Mission thrift store to drop off donations. I’m determined that this clean up will not be a rearrangement of the crap that is here. It will be a true cleaning in every sense of the word.
I’m now having a bit of lunch and trying to recover. I think my poor vacuum may revolt and leave. I really hope that they arrive on the 12 or 1 side of the b/w 12 & 4 delivery window so I a)won’t be late for work and b)can have time to drop off all the stuff in my car at the JHM thrift store on the way into work.
One of the local radio stations starts early and plays all Christmas music all the time until Dec 26th and that has been the only thing that has made the past few days bearable. I can sing and bop along while tidying and it doesn’t feel so much like work. I L-O-V-E Christmas music and look forward to this radio station’s programming all year long! I know it annoys some people beyond reason as it isn’t even Thanksgiving yet, but it makes the best season for me. Every task can be accomplished with a song on my lips :-D
With all that said, did I mention I have the air conditioning on in this house?!? You gotta love this southern weather :-D Last week I had to put salt on the porch in the mornings for the little crust of ice that had formed and this week shorts and flipflops are standard. Of course, this is also one of our tornado seasons here and it certainly feels promising, especially if another cold front comes through anytime soon.
Among the more interesting things I’ve found while cleaning…my ninth grade yearbook! What is it about school pictures that make them so utterly horrifying to look at later in life? Looking through these annuals makes me consider the question of which I hated more: high school or college (either time). I honestly can’t say at this point.
I could so go for a nap right now, but I know as soon as I drifted off the furniture guys would be here. I’m just so tired and it will only get worse since I have to eventually get dressed and go to work this afternoon. The library closes as 9pm and it’ll be another hour home just to get up and do it all over again. KT and her dh are heading to his parent’s house for Thanksgiving so I said I’d do her brown bag program tomorrow afternoon. I have vowed that this time I will go down early and make sure everything works including the remotes for everything.
I am not exaggerating when I say that EVERY TIME I’ve done the program for KT, something has not worked or has gone wrong. One time the scheduled speaker didn’t show up! Another time I received some faulty intel that no one wanted to watch the documentary that was scheduled so I just went to the library’s collection and selected another one. Unfortunately, I had to attend the state library convention that day so I got my coworker, Daxx the Magnificent, to put the movie in and he was nearly lynched by the contingent that had wanted to see the other movie. There were even complaints at the front desk. I should have outted my source of the faulty intel but I did not. It wouldn’t have accomplished anything if I had. Now though, I show what’s scheduled no matter what anyone has to say about it. It’s a free program after all and we feed them so it would be in their best interests to just be quiet. I never expect that of course, but it’s nice to think about sometimes.
1:45pm
Okay, so am now officially antsy. My feet hurt too bad to really begin a new cleaning project so here I sit at the dining room table….glued to the window. I feel like somebody’s dog, staring out the window in desperation for them to be home. I want to see that brightly colored truck slowing to make the turn into the driveway!
I’ve done 5 loads of laundry, started the dishwasher, dismantled my bed and slid it into the living room, moved the old recliners to make room for the new, vacuumed everything 2 or 3 times, had a talk with Binky concerning her upcoming stay in the cardboard Pet Waggin’ while my bed is being assembled, cleaned the kitchen, packed up Roomies silverware and spices, gone through the mail….I have nothing to do but wait now. But hey, at least there’s Christmas music! I guess I’ll have a look at my What On Earth catalog, maybe look through my slow cooker cookbook for some dinner ideas….
COME ON brightly colored truck!
2:45PM
THEY'RE HERE!!!
6:10PM
Well, here I am, at work and only 30 minutes late. My lovely, beautiful sectional sofa WOULD NOT FIT THROUGH THE FRONT DOOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I had to give up and return my lovely, beautiful sectional sofa :( :( :( After the delivery guys left, I cried like a spoiled baby. The salesman at R-t-G said it would not be a problem to swap the credit out but it HuRt My FeElInGs in the biggest way. Saturday, door measurements and tape measure in hand, I will head back to R-t-G and pick out another sofa. Since I'm off W, R and F next week, I'm hoping I can schedule delivery then.
Ya'll. Seriously. I'm sad.
...........and I didn't have time to unload my car at the JHM thrift store before work so I'll have to do it afterwards and I needed to go to store as well *sigh, long suffering* It'll be midnight before I get home and in bed.
Yes, I'd like some cheese with my whine thank you.
htw
Sunday, November 18, 2007
blog reading levels
The blog reading level widget (or whatever...I just like the word "widget") is making its way around the blogosphere now. It was well represented when I just went through my bloglines account. All kinds of blogs from all kinds of places are having a go at it.....and everyone else's blog has a higher reading level than mine. I'm trying to decide how I feel about that.
I originally discovered the little device on one of the more politically aggressive blogs that I like to read and his level was College (Postgrad). The blog's author was bemoaning the higher rating, saying that he'd rather have a blog that everyone could read and understand than have one that limited his readership.
I'm leaning towards feeling that way about mine. Sure, I'm frequently childish and silly, but I do try to be entertaining as well as informative. One of the factors that I thought may have been a big contributor to the rating is that, due to the fact that I know my young niece reads my blog, I severely limit language and other....content. Sometimes I regret that when I find something SO freakin' funny that it just begs to be shared but I get over it pretty quickly and move on.
I do wish I had something profound to share, but I don't...or at least, not often. As my level of anxiety and frustration ebbed away after my last grad school class, I've been headed back down the slope toward my normal, relaxed, nonchalant self and that has been more precious to me than anything else. So, middle school-level readers and up, log on and have fun!
htw
I originally discovered the little device on one of the more politically aggressive blogs that I like to read and his level was College (Postgrad). The blog's author was bemoaning the higher rating, saying that he'd rather have a blog that everyone could read and understand than have one that limited his readership.
I'm leaning towards feeling that way about mine. Sure, I'm frequently childish and silly, but I do try to be entertaining as well as informative. One of the factors that I thought may have been a big contributor to the rating is that, due to the fact that I know my young niece reads my blog, I severely limit language and other....content. Sometimes I regret that when I find something SO freakin' funny that it just begs to be shared but I get over it pretty quickly and move on.
I do wish I had something profound to share, but I don't...or at least, not often. As my level of anxiety and frustration ebbed away after my last grad school class, I've been headed back down the slope toward my normal, relaxed, nonchalant self and that has been more precious to me than anything else. So, middle school-level readers and up, log on and have fun!
htw
Saturday, November 17, 2007
! ! ! this just in ! ! ! ....continued
OMG!
The patron I just told you about is filling out online applications for nursing jobs! Woe to the medical profession!
The patron I just told you about is filling out online applications for nursing jobs! Woe to the medical profession!
! ! ! this just in ! ! !
Patron: I'm on your library's homepage and I need to know how to get to the internet from here.
Me: ......
Me: You are on the internet.
Patron: Where do I put my little address thing in then?
Me: See where the address that says www.-----.org is? Erase that and put yours there.
-------------------------------------
Oprah just chose Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth for her latest book club choice so naturally we are experiencing a run on that, but did you know he also wrote a book called "Pillows of the Earth?" I have the reserve card here to prove it!
Me: ......
Me: You are on the internet.
Patron: Where do I put my little address thing in then?
Me: See where the address that says www.-----.org is? Erase that and put yours there.
-------------------------------------
Oprah just chose Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth for her latest book club choice so naturally we are experiencing a run on that, but did you know he also wrote a book called "Pillows of the Earth?" I have the reserve card here to prove it!
Thursday, November 15, 2007
book awards reading challenge
okay guys! I got my reviews for Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress and The Book of Lost Things up on the Book Awards Reading Challenge website if you want to check them out!Happy Reading!
htw
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
weird trivia
did you know that the literal translation of "coca cola" into Chinese is "bite the wax tadpole"?
hmmmmm..........
hmmmmm..........
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
of friends and furniture
Me, Allison, and Polly
So the Polly-Allison-Holley friendship trio struck out on seeing the Dolores Hydock concert…extra tickets did not present themselves. We ended up grabbing a quick dinner at Zoe’s and went to see Lars and the Real Girl. What a great movie! I don’t usually enjoy drama but this was one of the most entertaining movies I’ve seen in the theater in quite some time. There are funny elements to be sure but I sniffled plenty in the meantime.
It seems like mental illness is often portrayed as debilitating, but Lars’ delusion with Bianca empowered him to change into a better person, to relate to his brother in a more intimate fashion, to take part in the community like he’d never done before. Through this broadening of his horizons, Lars learns how to live. It was a real treat to see a drama in which there are no angst-ridden women. Now, don’t get me wrong…as an angst-ridden woman myself I understand the popularity of the stereotype but you don’t often see it from the other perspective. The only ones that come to mind most immediately (and on opposite ends of the spectrum) are Psycho and Failure to Launch.
To round off the movie in fabulous girls-night fashion we went to The Cheesecake Factory for after-movie dessert and coffee. Polly and I were so happy for the opportunity to really catch up with Allison. It had definitely been a year since I’d seen her but I think it hadn’t quite been that long for Polly. While we were all in library school together we spoke nearly everyday and saw each other at least once a week, then Allison graduated and got sucked into the work of a new job immediately. Polly and I weren’t on the same educational track since she’s getting school media specialization and I was a public library person so we didn’t have an opportunity to take another class together after that. All of this to say that it’s been awhile since we’ve been together and we had a FaBuLoUs time gabbing all night.
Sunday I had a fab&fun lunch with Katie and the kids at her mother’s house. We had yummy salad and lasagna, the girls ran around screaming and being incredibly cute, and we watched Mystery Science Theater 3000 The Final Sacrifice. I have never seen this program before and it was really similar to me and Roomie watching movies. Lots of commentary and laughter, not a lot of plot….
That afternoon Elizabeth and I (yes, I do indeed love the big screen) went to the movies to see Fred Clause.
1) I love Christmas movies.
2) I have a deep not-quite-polite affection for yummy, very-tall Vince Vaughn.
3) Hey, Paul Giamati, Rachel Weiss, Kevin Spacey?
4) I won’t ruin it for you, but it’s worth it for the Siblings Anonymous scene alone.
I will be purchasing this little gem for my Christmas Collection!
!!!!TRUMPETS AND FANFARE!!!!
Today was the big day and (I apologize for the brief third person narrative) Holley has grownup furniture! Said furniture will be delivered on the 20th so I have got SoMe MoRe ClEaNiNg to do before I can let strange people in this house without dying of embarrassment. I went to Rooms-to-Go and had the best time picking out what I wanted! It’s going to be a whole new place when the sofa and recliner get here and I also got a new bed! Mom and I had lunch and also went to Sam’s to look at TV’s…very expensive stuff there. I’ll be waiting to see what kinds of offers are made during the after-Thanksgiving and after-Christmas sales.
Tonight’s movie selections, so far, have been National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (complete with hot cuppa cocoa) and 9 to 5, one of my favorites!
It seems like mental illness is often portrayed as debilitating, but Lars’ delusion with Bianca empowered him to change into a better person, to relate to his brother in a more intimate fashion, to take part in the community like he’d never done before. Through this broadening of his horizons, Lars learns how to live. It was a real treat to see a drama in which there are no angst-ridden women. Now, don’t get me wrong…as an angst-ridden woman myself I understand the popularity of the stereotype but you don’t often see it from the other perspective. The only ones that come to mind most immediately (and on opposite ends of the spectrum) are Psycho and Failure to Launch.
To round off the movie in fabulous girls-night fashion we went to The Cheesecake Factory for after-movie dessert and coffee. Polly and I were so happy for the opportunity to really catch up with Allison. It had definitely been a year since I’d seen her but I think it hadn’t quite been that long for Polly. While we were all in library school together we spoke nearly everyday and saw each other at least once a week, then Allison graduated and got sucked into the work of a new job immediately. Polly and I weren’t on the same educational track since she’s getting school media specialization and I was a public library person so we didn’t have an opportunity to take another class together after that. All of this to say that it’s been awhile since we’ve been together and we had a FaBuLoUs time gabbing all night.
Sunday I had a fab&fun lunch with Katie and the kids at her mother’s house. We had yummy salad and lasagna, the girls ran around screaming and being incredibly cute, and we watched Mystery Science Theater 3000 The Final Sacrifice. I have never seen this program before and it was really similar to me and Roomie watching movies. Lots of commentary and laughter, not a lot of plot….
That afternoon Elizabeth and I (yes, I do indeed love the big screen) went to the movies to see Fred Clause.
1) I love Christmas movies.
2) I have a deep not-quite-polite affection for yummy, very-tall Vince Vaughn.
3) Hey, Paul Giamati, Rachel Weiss, Kevin Spacey?
4) I won’t ruin it for you, but it’s worth it for the Siblings Anonymous scene alone.
I will be purchasing this little gem for my Christmas Collection!
!!!!TRUMPETS AND FANFARE!!!!
Today was the big day and (I apologize for the brief third person narrative) Holley has grownup furniture! Said furniture will be delivered on the 20th so I have got SoMe MoRe ClEaNiNg to do before I can let strange people in this house without dying of embarrassment. I went to Rooms-to-Go and had the best time picking out what I wanted! It’s going to be a whole new place when the sofa and recliner get here and I also got a new bed! Mom and I had lunch and also went to Sam’s to look at TV’s…very expensive stuff there. I’ll be waiting to see what kinds of offers are made during the after-Thanksgiving and after-Christmas sales.
Tonight’s movie selections, so far, have been National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (complete with hot cuppa cocoa) and 9 to 5, one of my favorites!
quiz time!
I'm (not) sorry to subject you yet another get-to-know-you-quiz because I love them. I got this one from my friend Nancy via email and was supposed to send it back out that way...oh well.
1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Holley Carburetors....does that count?
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? yesterday
3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR OWN HANDWRITING? I don't dislike it, but it is quite illegible so I print everything. The only thing I sign is my name.
4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? smoked turkey
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? nope, my brother has taken care of the continuation of the family name for me...thanks Dave!
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? definitely
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Noooooo! Not me......
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? yep, the little suckers are still there and my appendix is still hanging around as well but I have managed to dump the gall bladder
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? uh, no.
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Mueslix. I feel like I should be ashamed of that but I'm not because I discovered it while I was in Ireland. Albeit the American version is not as tasty but I still enjoy all the textures. I bet you didn't expect this length of answer from a cereal question, did you?
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? nope, why bother?
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? about some things, yes. about other things, a resounding no.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? a nice natural vanilla bean is quite good if I feel like braving the lactose intolerance in return :)
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? eeeek....I plead the fifth. Oh okay, it's usually teeth and eyes.
15. RED OR PINK? flowers-pink, clothes-both(shirts only though), cars-red, shoes-neither
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? weight
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Dana
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? I don't know if this applies exactly since I posted it on my blog instead of emailing it to everyone. Short answer, yes. I'd love people to post it on their own blogs. It's fun to learn about other people without having to ask.
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? denim skirt, dingy white sneakers...hey people, I'm a librarian. We can get away with the skirt/sneaker combo.
20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Nachos with Suzy not 30 minutes ago!
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? the HVAC blower, patrons typing, there's a kid whining downstairs, and a few tutors in the corner going over some reading exercises with their charges
22. IF YOU WHERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? kelley green
23. FAVORITE SMELLS? cinnamon, pizza and horses....although not all at once.....ooooh, and puppy breath!
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Carrie (coworker)
25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? definitely, Nancy's rockin' cool!
26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? hockey, steeple chase, curling, strong man competitions, ultimate fighting, ninja warrior, motor cross, monster trucks
27. HAIR COLOR? dark brown with a fairly healthy sprinkling of gray working its way in
28. EYE COLOR? dark brown
29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? sometimes, but my glasses are more comfortable...I have dry eyes :(
30. FAVORITE FOOD? right now I am obssessed with Mexican food, but I do love pizza. Have any of you been to Red Robin? D-vine
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? if it doesn't feature C-4 and automatic weapons or prat falls and sophmoric humor, chances are good I'm not going to pick it on my own....I can be talked into others occasionally, as will be discussed in another post
32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? 9 to 5 last night....Dolly, Jane, and Lily had me laughing just as much as the first time I saw it
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? kelley green
34. SUMMER OR WINTER? winter
35. HUGS OR KISSES? hugs
36. FAVORITE DESSERT? warm p-b cookies, or warm sugar cookies
37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? could be anybody...I'm not going to submit the whole process to scrutiny
38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? a$$holes of the world, unite!
39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? Waiting: True Confessions of a Waitress (people....tip your servers, seriously!)
40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? the library's logo
41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? don't watch network tv...only DVD/VHS
42. FAVORITE SOUND? running water.
43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? bleck! pink floyd
44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? when I didn't have one
45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? does a smart mouth count? I do have a great library junk brain.
46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Birmingham, Alabama/Baptist Medical Center Princeton
47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? haven't they asked this like 4 times now?
at your lie-zur-ay,
htw
1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Holley Carburetors....does that count?
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? yesterday
3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR OWN HANDWRITING? I don't dislike it, but it is quite illegible so I print everything. The only thing I sign is my name.
4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? smoked turkey
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? nope, my brother has taken care of the continuation of the family name for me...thanks Dave!
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? definitely
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Noooooo! Not me......
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? yep, the little suckers are still there and my appendix is still hanging around as well but I have managed to dump the gall bladder
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? uh, no.
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Mueslix. I feel like I should be ashamed of that but I'm not because I discovered it while I was in Ireland. Albeit the American version is not as tasty but I still enjoy all the textures. I bet you didn't expect this length of answer from a cereal question, did you?
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? nope, why bother?
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? about some things, yes. about other things, a resounding no.
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? a nice natural vanilla bean is quite good if I feel like braving the lactose intolerance in return :)
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? eeeek....I plead the fifth. Oh okay, it's usually teeth and eyes.
15. RED OR PINK? flowers-pink, clothes-both(shirts only though), cars-red, shoes-neither
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? weight
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Dana
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? I don't know if this applies exactly since I posted it on my blog instead of emailing it to everyone. Short answer, yes. I'd love people to post it on their own blogs. It's fun to learn about other people without having to ask.
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? denim skirt, dingy white sneakers...hey people, I'm a librarian. We can get away with the skirt/sneaker combo.
20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Nachos with Suzy not 30 minutes ago!
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? the HVAC blower, patrons typing, there's a kid whining downstairs, and a few tutors in the corner going over some reading exercises with their charges
22. IF YOU WHERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? kelley green
23. FAVORITE SMELLS? cinnamon, pizza and horses....although not all at once.....ooooh, and puppy breath!
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Carrie (coworker)
25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? definitely, Nancy's rockin' cool!
26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? hockey, steeple chase, curling, strong man competitions, ultimate fighting, ninja warrior, motor cross, monster trucks
27. HAIR COLOR? dark brown with a fairly healthy sprinkling of gray working its way in
28. EYE COLOR? dark brown
29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? sometimes, but my glasses are more comfortable...I have dry eyes :(
30. FAVORITE FOOD? right now I am obssessed with Mexican food, but I do love pizza. Have any of you been to Red Robin? D-vine
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? if it doesn't feature C-4 and automatic weapons or prat falls and sophmoric humor, chances are good I'm not going to pick it on my own....I can be talked into others occasionally, as will be discussed in another post
32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? 9 to 5 last night....Dolly, Jane, and Lily had me laughing just as much as the first time I saw it
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? kelley green
34. SUMMER OR WINTER? winter
35. HUGS OR KISSES? hugs
36. FAVORITE DESSERT? warm p-b cookies, or warm sugar cookies
37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? could be anybody...I'm not going to submit the whole process to scrutiny
38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? a$$holes of the world, unite!
39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? Waiting: True Confessions of a Waitress (people....tip your servers, seriously!)
40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? the library's logo
41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? don't watch network tv...only DVD/VHS
42. FAVORITE SOUND? running water.
43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? bleck! pink floyd
44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? when I didn't have one
45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? does a smart mouth count? I do have a great library junk brain.
46. WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Birmingham, Alabama/Baptist Medical Center Princeton
47. WHOSE ANSWERS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING BACK? haven't they asked this like 4 times now?
at your lie-zur-ay,
htw
! ! ! this just in ! ! !
another funny reserve card :)
this one I didn't know but the Amazon word search set me straight in no time....
on the card--Traveling Done the Nile on a Skift
according to Amazon--Down the Nile: Alone in a Fisherman's Skiff
the patron did not leave me an author's name, so I'm just guessing on this one
this one I didn't know but the Amazon word search set me straight in no time....
on the card--Traveling Done the Nile on a Skift
according to Amazon--Down the Nile: Alone in a Fisherman's Skiff
the patron did not leave me an author's name, so I'm just guessing on this one
Saturday, November 10, 2007
my life...bulletted
- so I'm petsitting Tucker and Cole for a few days and Tucker IS KILLING ME! I don't know what she's been feeding him but I have suspended the giving out of treats for the duration of my visit so hopefully he'll stop with the noxious clouds. On the other hand, I do have to look into his sad, liquid-brown eyes when we pass the treat-area of the house but I'm not giving in....the consequences are just too disastrous.
- My furniture shopping trip has been postponed until Monday (they're open, I checked) so I'll have reports on that later.
- I joined the book group (the store, Milestone Books, hosts its own bookgroup!) my friend Polly belongs to and attended my first meeting last Thursday. We'd read Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. There was great discussion, I met a group of really great people, drank shiraz and ate white chocolate macadamia nut cookies. I don't know how the evening could have been improved! Possibly a stripper, but that would have been it.
- Tonight, the Polly-Allison-Holley trio of friendship is assembling for the first time in....gosh, a year! We are going to have dinner at the Bottletree Cafe, listen to some music, then hit Samford Univ's theater to see Doloris Hydock. There is a slim chance we won't be able to get tickets, in which case we will be going to movies to see Lars and the Real Girl.
everything will be discussed in gruesome detail tomorrow :)
Friday, November 9, 2007
memoir meme
via the Book Diva by way of her friend angela:
If you read this
If your eyes are passing over this right now
Even if we don't speak too often
Please post a comment with a memory of you and me
It can be anything you want
Good or Bad
When finished, post this little paragraph on your blog
And be surprised by what people remember about you.
tag, you're it!
Thursday, November 8, 2007
! ! ! this just in ! ! !
I have in front of me a reserve card for Diana Gabaldon's Firey Cross.....not to be confused with a similar novel she wrote, titled The Fiery Cross....
:)
Patrons are so funny.
I got a reserve card once for Dan Brown's Davinchy Code. I just love those phonetic spellers.
The other jewel in my crown of mistaken book identity was Mary Higgins Clark's Pretend You Don't See Her. I'm just that good because the reserve they put in was for Mary Jane Clark and Pretend You Don't Like Me.....
:)
Patrons are so funny.
I got a reserve card once for Dan Brown's Davinchy Code. I just love those phonetic spellers.
The other jewel in my crown of mistaken book identity was Mary Higgins Clark's Pretend You Don't See Her. I'm just that good because the reserve they put in was for Mary Jane Clark and Pretend You Don't Like Me.....
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
election chaos
I have suppressed all names to protect the guilty :)How did I manage to find myself walking 2 blocks through tall grass on the side of the road to a rusty ol’ metal building housing two old fire trucks and a dingy office? What, you may ask, could bring out HUNDREDS (and I do mean hundreds) of angry, belligerent, yelling, pushing, snarking, and politically aggressive (and some toothless) people out to aforementioned rusty ol’ metal building at 7pm on a Monday night?
Why, the local water/fire board elections of course! Silly you for not guessing!
My dad called last week, proud member of the fire board that he is, to say the I absolutely HAD to come vote so that “his people” could get re-elected and “ol’ man H--------’s people” would not. I learned that ol’ man H------- “uses the water board as a pulpit to direct the actions of his ‘people’.” I wanted to say, “Wow dad! I didn’t know you had so much political fervor!” I said nothing as I wasn’t sure I really wanted to get THAT involved.
So, I parked in the first empty spot on the shoulder of the road I could find, and hoofed it on down to the FD. The fire trucks had been moved out to make room for seating and police lights were strobing from both ends of the parking lot. ALL of the seating was full and the parking lot was standing room only and it’s not a small parking lot. There were “greeters” handing out papers with the opposing sides’ bios and they would tell you, as they handed their little flyer to you, “these are the people who are going to get us out of debt” and similar campaign slogans. There was an obvious police presence to try and keep the peace, yet, when the LAWYERS got up to tell us all how to vote so our vote counted, there was an ominous shuffling in the back of the FD. I had not arrived early enough to squeeze inside but I could hear angry voices and muffled shouts. There was a man with long hair and even longer beard dressed in dirty jeans and a faded plaid workshirt running around with a digital camera snapping off photos like this was an Amber Alert press conference. He wasn’t the only one, just the most conspicuous. Some people were actually filming, not just taking photos.
The lawyers finished dispensing with their legalese and there was a stampede to the voting room door. In the middle of the rush, a man from inside the FD somewhere began screaming, “I want to see those boxes before the first vote goes in there! I want to make sure them things is empty ‘fore the first vote goes in! I want to see those boxes and make sure they’s empty! Show us the empty boxes!” I would not have been the least bit surprised (nor would it have sounded out of place) if he'd thrown in a last minute, "git ur done." I am southern, I like living in the south, but sometimes.....you just notice an overly shallow area of the pool, ya know? I suspect it happens everywhere, but here in the south it seems to be more well-publicized.
I do so wish I could provide to you a description but I did not see this defender of honesty.
While I waited in line for AN HOUR (my father should never doubt my love) I grumbled companionably with the lady in front of me. My main complaint is I wish the people of my tiny rural community would get this riled up and concerned NEXT November. I’ve voted for both a governor and a president since I’ve lived there and it took less than 2 minutes. Those votes take place over the course of a whole day, I know, but I have never seen anything approaching the ferocity of the water board election….maybe on tv.
The only time anything disrupted the noisy peace (at least while I was there ) of the election occurred out of my line of sight and I didn't get a good eavesdrop on it either! A policeman (I think it was the chief but I'm not sure) was standing near my line drinking a cuppa joe and looking authoritative when a man hurried up to him. It was so loud I couldn't hear what he said but he turned toward me to point into the voting room and I hear a fragment, "there's a lady in there and she's....", maddeningly he turned away again only to point back in to the room a second time and say, "...and she won't stop!" He didn't yell, merely said it with some force. Again, I don't know what it was, but Mr. Policeman put his cuppa joe down and started shoving he way through the crowd towards the voting room. Damn the crowd! The only real action was taking place where I couldn't see it!
I got my vote in (or the one written down from my conversation with my father), patted my dad and stepmom on their respective shoulders, and headed on to the house...my good deed for the day done.
I got my vote in (or the one written down from my conversation with my father), patted my dad and stepmom on their respective shoulders, and headed on to the house...my good deed for the day done.
ah, the vicissitudes of rural life............
Monday, November 5, 2007
guilt trip
So I don't guess I've made the formal announcement that my Roomie's getting married Dec 1 and will be a mommy sometime in June. She and her fiancee close on their house Nov 15 or 17 and I'll be by myself for the first time ever. I've been self-sufficient for a pretty good while now, but I have never lived by myself.
I must admit that I am über excited about the prospect. New curtains, new living room furniture, dare I say...a big girl TV to replace the 17 inch tv I've been squinting at for 5 years....I'm excited about all of it.
*screeching car tires*
So yesterday my mom casually drops this 1,000,000 kiloton nominal yield comment, "Anytime you want a roommate you just let me know." Now, I talked to her about this months ago in an if-roomie-ever-moves-out sort of way and she said no, that she would stay at my aunt's house helping out with my grandmother as she is bedridden and my aunt is her primary caretaker. Now, all of a sudden, things have changed and I can't say that I'm in the same mood now as when I made the offer. For one, my mom and I get along much better when we are not too often in the same vicinity. Two, the only thing that tops her dog's hatred of me, is my reciprocal fondness for the little sh!t. He pees on stuff, hates cats, and is SO not an outside dog. I don't want a dog, not even someone else's dog, and certainly not a dog that bites me at nearly every opportunity.
I reminded her of the conversation that took place just a few scant months ago and she said that things had changed, that my aunt would be happier with her out of the house, that she didn't do anything but drain the household and my aunt would never be happy until she left. I could have plowed corn from the drag marks of my heart as I drug it behind me. How are you supposed to answer something like that? I told her I'd think about it but it is so not feeling like a go at this point and I feel HoRrIbLe about it, but only because I know how her feelings will be hurt if I rule it out. Her doctor bills, and just plain fallout from earlier bad decisions dating from my senior year in high school, prevent her from being able to put a roof over her own head without help. I have no extra money to give her and I don't know that I have a place in my home either. Too much has gone on in the past for me to trust her that much.
My plan, as I've mapped it out in my head, is to tell her that I don't want another roommate right now but she will be the first to know if that policy changes. I want some time to myself. Who's to say that, given a few months, I won't like solo living? I might get lonely and change my mind about the company. I don't see that happen, but it's within the realm of possibility.
If it comes to pass that my mom moves in though, what to do with the little sh!t?
TORN!!! Torn like an old sweater!
htw
I must admit that I am über excited about the prospect. New curtains, new living room furniture, dare I say...a big girl TV to replace the 17 inch tv I've been squinting at for 5 years....I'm excited about all of it.
*screeching car tires*
So yesterday my mom casually drops this 1,000,000 kiloton nominal yield comment, "Anytime you want a roommate you just let me know." Now, I talked to her about this months ago in an if-roomie-ever-moves-out sort of way and she said no, that she would stay at my aunt's house helping out with my grandmother as she is bedridden and my aunt is her primary caretaker. Now, all of a sudden, things have changed and I can't say that I'm in the same mood now as when I made the offer. For one, my mom and I get along much better when we are not too often in the same vicinity. Two, the only thing that tops her dog's hatred of me, is my reciprocal fondness for the little sh!t. He pees on stuff, hates cats, and is SO not an outside dog. I don't want a dog, not even someone else's dog, and certainly not a dog that bites me at nearly every opportunity.
I reminded her of the conversation that took place just a few scant months ago and she said that things had changed, that my aunt would be happier with her out of the house, that she didn't do anything but drain the household and my aunt would never be happy until she left. I could have plowed corn from the drag marks of my heart as I drug it behind me. How are you supposed to answer something like that? I told her I'd think about it but it is so not feeling like a go at this point and I feel HoRrIbLe about it, but only because I know how her feelings will be hurt if I rule it out. Her doctor bills, and just plain fallout from earlier bad decisions dating from my senior year in high school, prevent her from being able to put a roof over her own head without help. I have no extra money to give her and I don't know that I have a place in my home either. Too much has gone on in the past for me to trust her that much.
My plan, as I've mapped it out in my head, is to tell her that I don't want another roommate right now but she will be the first to know if that policy changes. I want some time to myself. Who's to say that, given a few months, I won't like solo living? I might get lonely and change my mind about the company. I don't see that happen, but it's within the realm of possibility.
If it comes to pass that my mom moves in though, what to do with the little sh!t?
TORN!!! Torn like an old sweater!
htw
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Book Awards Reading Challenge
So, 4 down and 8 to go before June 30, 2008. I feel confident I can finish in that time period. Here are my entries so far and they are linked to the review I submitted if you're interested...
The Pesthouse by Jim Crace
The Panic Hand by Jonathan Carroll
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
I've also read Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie (pronounced die C-G) but I haven't written up a review for it yet.
The Pesthouse by Jim Crace
The Panic Hand by Jonathan Carroll
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
I've also read Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie (pronounced die C-G) but I haven't written up a review for it yet.
the week (maybe more than one) in review
We just been so busy I haven't had an opportunity to get a blog post into the mix, not even at home to bring in and post later! I just go to bed when I get home...too tired to do anything much at all.
:(
I had my first bookgroup outreach last Wed. Best I could tell based on the name she gave me, this was a bookgroup comprised of ladies who work at a local university...scientist/professor types. They were reading The Book Thief and the lady I spoke with had gotten my name from KT, who mentioned to her that I'd read and loved the book (and met the v. v. handsome author!). So I went to their bookgroup meeting and shared the few anecdotes I had from meeting Markus Zusak. I had a great time and the lady who initially invited me later sent me a lovely thank you not which I have taped to my desk. I love getting notes from patrons...as long as they aren't creepy notes :)
On the patron front, I can remember little of the weirdness that has gone on since I last complained to you guys....except for one. Tuesday night before last (Tuesdays are my late nights here at the biblioteca) a patron (I see him in here ALL THE TIME on our computers) came to me and said he'd been trying to log on to the public computer for 15 minutes and all he was getting was a bunch of wavy lines. I could not even ImAgInE what the problem was! We've really had relatively few problems since the new server was installed but I tromped off to the lab to do my best. We get to the computer, he leans way close to the LCD screen and PUSHES the login box with his thumb resulting in the wavy lines....'cause hey, it's an LCD screen stupid and where were you when Windows came out. But wait, did you notice above where I said he's in here using our computers ALL THE TIME?! I looked at him, he looked at me. I tried to tell whether or not it was a joke. It wasn't.
My only comment, "You need to use the mouse."
His reply, "I've only done this dozens of times, you'd think I could remember that."
Holley exits left.
What do you do? I couldn't very well laugh in his face. I wanted to but that is not good customer service as I've learned it.
Other than that it has been a week of rude kids and impatient people in general. I was helping a lady whose son needed a sports book that had been made into a movie. I was not having the best of luck ferreting out a title for her and we were looking over a general book-to-movie list to see if we could pick one out of the herd, much like a four leaf clover. After about 5 minutes, the little boy behind her stepped up next to her at the desk and said (interrupting us, I might add), "Excuse me, but is there anyone who could log me into a computer."
I stopped, looked at him, looked at my shocked patron and asked, "Do you see anyone else here? I am with another patron as you can see and I will log you onto a computer as soon as I am finished here. You will have to be patient."
I had another little brat do virtually the same thing while I was taking a reference call. Mid sentence I hear, "Excuse me, but I need to get into a study room." After a few seconds of brain boil in which I decided it would indeed be a bad idea to kick the little boy in his underdeveloped cajones, I told him I was on the phone with a patron and he would have to wait until I was finished. I apologized to the person on the phone for my interruption of them to answer Little Lord Fauntleroy and carried on. It wasn't as if he couldn't see I was on the phone as he was standing right in front of me and could SEE that I was busy....oooooooooo, I oftentimes just get so MAD at the impudent little twits.
oh well, enough patron-bashing for today
htw
:(
I had my first bookgroup outreach last Wed. Best I could tell based on the name she gave me, this was a bookgroup comprised of ladies who work at a local university...scientist/professor types. They were reading The Book Thief and the lady I spoke with had gotten my name from KT, who mentioned to her that I'd read and loved the book (and met the v. v. handsome author!). So I went to their bookgroup meeting and shared the few anecdotes I had from meeting Markus Zusak. I had a great time and the lady who initially invited me later sent me a lovely thank you not which I have taped to my desk. I love getting notes from patrons...as long as they aren't creepy notes :)
On the patron front, I can remember little of the weirdness that has gone on since I last complained to you guys....except for one. Tuesday night before last (Tuesdays are my late nights here at the biblioteca) a patron (I see him in here ALL THE TIME on our computers) came to me and said he'd been trying to log on to the public computer for 15 minutes and all he was getting was a bunch of wavy lines. I could not even ImAgInE what the problem was! We've really had relatively few problems since the new server was installed but I tromped off to the lab to do my best. We get to the computer, he leans way close to the LCD screen and PUSHES the login box with his thumb resulting in the wavy lines....'cause hey, it's an LCD screen stupid and where were you when Windows came out. But wait, did you notice above where I said he's in here using our computers ALL THE TIME?! I looked at him, he looked at me. I tried to tell whether or not it was a joke. It wasn't.
My only comment, "You need to use the mouse."
His reply, "I've only done this dozens of times, you'd think I could remember that."
Holley exits left.
What do you do? I couldn't very well laugh in his face. I wanted to but that is not good customer service as I've learned it.
Other than that it has been a week of rude kids and impatient people in general. I was helping a lady whose son needed a sports book that had been made into a movie. I was not having the best of luck ferreting out a title for her and we were looking over a general book-to-movie list to see if we could pick one out of the herd, much like a four leaf clover. After about 5 minutes, the little boy behind her stepped up next to her at the desk and said (interrupting us, I might add), "Excuse me, but is there anyone who could log me into a computer."
I stopped, looked at him, looked at my shocked patron and asked, "Do you see anyone else here? I am with another patron as you can see and I will log you onto a computer as soon as I am finished here. You will have to be patient."
I had another little brat do virtually the same thing while I was taking a reference call. Mid sentence I hear, "Excuse me, but I need to get into a study room." After a few seconds of brain boil in which I decided it would indeed be a bad idea to kick the little boy in his underdeveloped cajones, I told him I was on the phone with a patron and he would have to wait until I was finished. I apologized to the person on the phone for my interruption of them to answer Little Lord Fauntleroy and carried on. It wasn't as if he couldn't see I was on the phone as he was standing right in front of me and could SEE that I was busy....oooooooooo, I oftentimes just get so MAD at the impudent little twits.
oh well, enough patron-bashing for today
htw
let the world know....
. . . .or really just Erica, Elizabeth, and Tammy(no blog, shame on her!). . . . that Katie has now been tapped into the Anita Blake fan club! She is about 5 books in at this point (has cheated a little and skipped ahead to the best part of A Killing Dance...uh huh, ya'll know what I'm talking about) and told me today that she was going to B-a-M to buy as many as they had (or that's what it'll end up being anyway!) so she could finish them all! I told her there'd be no stopping once she started...the darkness has you and it's niiiiiiiice :)
She has suggested an impromptu Anita Blake bookclub meal sometime to discuss.
T, after my firm vow not to discuss Richard with her, I did tell KT that I wouldn't piss on Richard if he were on fire. oooops. I did try. I didn't tell her why though so I held back on the important stuff 'cause I want her to form her own opinion about the sniveling, good-for-nothing (well...not "nothing"), whiney little pissant. Oh, did I type that out loud?
I feel honor bound to start the series over again now, but it demands so much of your attention! I won't be able to get AnYtHiNg done due to the sheer gravitational pull of the series. Yes people, I'm that big a fan. Deal with it.
KP, did you ever mention the series to your wife? If so, what does she think (if she decided to delve in)?
At this point I guess it's important to mention the other important person in the series, um...the author. Laurell K. Hamilton.
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