la verdad yo no la he visto, pero todos los que si lo han hehco, me han dicho q dan unas grandes ganas de chillar, mas kuando se muere la mentada mamá de bambi, de allí -creo yo- que toda la gente, cuando no kieren q les cuenten el final de una película, alguién por molestarlos les dice q el protagonista se muere XD jaja

El resto de la lista va así:

1. Bambi (1942) -no la vi-

2. Ghost (1990) -si la vi-

3. The Lion King (1994) -si la vi pero no me acuerdo-

4. E.T. (1982) -la vi por pedazos-

5. Titanic (1997) -si la vi... 3 veces... no por gana propia-

6. Beaches (1998) -no se cuál es-

7. Philadelphia (1993) -la vi por pedazos, no me acuerdo.

8. Watership Down (1978) -ni idea...-

9. Boys Don't Cry (1999) -creo que si la vi, creo...-

10. Steel Magnolias (1989) -no y ni ganas me dan-

Bueno.. algo así esta la lista, la saqué de aquí. Haber... y usted cuál si vio y lo hizo chillar? (a mi ninguna de esas, la que si me dio cosito fue "En busqueda de la felicidad' - "the pursuit of happiness")

[/caption]

The Caribbean Countries rank like so "Country - 2008 rank, 2007 rank" :

• St. Lucia - 21, 24
• Barbados - 22, 23
• St. Vincent and the Grenadines - 28, 30 
• Dominica - 33, 37
• Cuba - 65, 61
• Suriname - 72, 72
• Trinidad - 72, 79
• Grenada - NO DATA, 79 (not sure what happened there. This is the reverse of what usually obtains.)
• Jamaica - 96, 84
• Belize - 109, 99
• Guyana - 126, 123 
• Haiti - 177, 177

There were a total of 180 countries on the list. As usual most caribbean states aren't even listed! In all fairness though, they do have something of an explanation for this.

• Corruption Perception List for 2008
• Hi-res Map of world showing CPI

• Procrastinate.
  
• Forget to do my laundry after seeing it lying there limply on the floor all day.
  
• Remember that I need to do laundry, then say "oh I'll just do it later; I won't forget."
  
• Write lists of things I need to do on my hand, instead of my agenda.
  
• Forget I have written something important on my hand, and then go and wash my hands. With soap.
  
• Suck snot all day instead of blowing my nose.
  
• Give in and blow my nose.
  
• Forget to transfer my laundry so when I finally do it smells funky like something is already starting growing on it.
  
• Turn off my alarm so I get a few more precious minutes of sleep in the mornings.
  
• Is late because I didn't wake up on time.
  
• Need to rush to get ready so I'm not late for school.
  
• Never use a book mark.
  
• Don't wear my retainers 24/7 like I'm supposed to.
  
• Do silly little things like write lists or read emails when I should really go to bed.

Nothing makes Newscoma and me laugh harder than giant floating heads.

So you know exactly how much I was pleased to find a list of the 10 Greatest Floating Heads of All Time on OMGLists.

They cover everything from the Great Oz to Frylock to Jambi.

Here's a little video clip to put you in the mood before you get your meckalecka hiney in gear and "head" over to check out all 10.

Species: Methods

Deer:  starvation, predators

Rabbits:  starvation, predators, myxomatosis

Pandas:  starvation, absurdly short mating period

Polar Bears:  starvation, wolves, other polar bears, extreme temperature sensitivity of domain

Lions:  infanticide, starvation

late Cretaceous era reptiles:  starvation, infanticide, predators, periodic global catastrophes

Ants:  predators, self-consumption of eggs

various Raptors:  fratricide, starvation, DDT

Baleen Whales:  inefficient feeding method, long gestation
period, inability to cope with sonar

Humans:  starvation, warfare, contraceptives, ideology

Notes:

1. Many species (for example, deer) exhibit a consume-till-there's-nothing-left sort of behavior.  This trait is reproductively successful when competition over resources is fierce, but leads to large-scale resource depletion and subsequent starvation when allowed to continue uninhibited.

2. Humans are not exempt from this trend.  Easter island, Australia, Norse-era Greenland, various regions of Africa all serve as examples.

3. Every environment has its carrying capacity, dependent on natural factors as well as consumption levels of the inhabitants.  Options after depleting resources beyond point of recovery are limited to 1) die.  2) go elsewhere.

4. Blatantly unnatural methods of population control (condoms, education, ideology) may be better options than starvation and/or warfare.

5. Blatantly unnatural methods of controlling resource consumption rates (pigovian taxes, various other market-correcting mechanisms, ideology) may also be preferable to starvation.

i guess an introduction is in order. i'm carly, and i'm currently a student/teacher at stanford university. more specifically, i'm the designer in residence at the d.school this year before launching into phd research at stanford. i used to keep a blog a long time ago, but i haven't updated regularly since my junior year of college. the site is still up here if you're interested. i think i wrestled with the fact that i really liked updating but started feeling conflicted about what sort of content was appropriate to post to the web. i couldn't write about everything that was going on in my life anymore - just some (probably less interesting) things - and that made it stressful. i also have this way of constantly trying to outdo myself, so eventually i raised the proverbial bar pretty high with my posts... and felt bad when i didn't have the time to post updates of acceptable quality + length.

enter the seven things blog! seven things - that's all i have to post every day. maybe some context, too, maybe not. who knows. maybe they'll be totally superficial, like seven things i saw on my way to work today, or maybe it'll be the result of many weeks of work, hours of pondering and reflection. above all, i want to keep this fun to read and fun to update.

sound good? i'll see you back here tomorrow :-)

Honeycology is an eclectic assortment of the ideas that I have, the poetry that I love and write, the music I vibe to, political views I hold, the people who piss me off and the men and women in my life that make this journey all the more bearable.  This is not a popularity contest. I write for yours truly and if you gain something from it, all the more better. If not, kick rocks peace be unto you.

What better way to get things started than with a list…everyone loves a good list so here you go.

You can suck up thank me later. :)

The Not So Random 20

1. Lactose Intolerant…only SilkMilk vanilla allowed in Fruity Pebbles.

2. I sing, write and I can draw a mean stick man. I’ll post pictures just for you

3. Most days I’m full of smiles with a good sense of humor. I’ve fallen in love with my smile…

4. Sensitive, emotional, naturally kind-hearted, very sensual but always a lady.

5. I’m not shallow or overly obsessed with the physical or monetary world but I do like nice things and provide myself with the things I enjoy.

6.  Open minded but I am convicted in certain beliefs.

7. Very outspoken but know when its time for silence.

8. I don’t like admitting defeat. I work hard, play hard and love even harder.

9. My favorite smell is the “right out the shower” scent on a mans neck.

10. Never been “in love” but I’ve loved too many time to count.

11. I have questioned many things, answered those questions, only to questions the answers and conclude that I don’t know much.

12. My favorite colors are red, fuchsia and turquoise (not worn together) and I’m a sucker for roses and orchids.

13. Music addict. Indecisive. Stubborn. Realist.

14. Whatever happened to jelly flip flops?!

15. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my family!

16. I have blue and grey rings around my eyes.

17. I’m the best a pretty good cook. These thighs didn’t come from eating salads.

18. I over think and overanalyze nearly everything.

19. Strong minds, soft lips, and real mans swagger are my krytonite.

20.  I have about 3 unfinished novels…im a scatter brain

21. The beach at sunset is possible my favorite place in the world right

22. No piercing or tattoos, no make up or any jewelry. Just smooth, soft, sexy brown skin :-) and a Colgate smile.

Marlon Brando in The Godfather: The greatest movie ever? A new list is here for all your fight-starting needs.

• Can't get enough lists? Can't get enough official reminders that you should see The Godfather? In what it's calling "the most ambitious movie poll ever conducted," Empire has a new list of the 500 Greatest Movies Of All Time, voted on by readers, critics, and "150 of Hollywood's finest." Start your quibbles! I have many, but I can't argue with most of the top 20.

Paramount Pictures, Getty Images

The top selling song of the 70's?  American Pie by Don McLean.  As a side note, Roberta Flack's Killing Me Softly with His Song (also on this list), was written about Don McLean.

Here are the top selling songs of the 1970's (according to the RIAA and NEA):

The Carpenters - Close to You - 1970
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Ohio - 1970
The Grateful Dead - Uncle John's Band - 1970
Loretta Lynn - Coal Miner's Daughter - 1970
Joni Mitchell - Big Yellow Taxi - 1970
James Taylor - Fire and Rain - 1970
Edwin Starr - War - 1970
Three Dog Night - Joy to the World - 1971
Janis Joplin - Me and Bobby McGee - 1971
John Denver - Take Me Home Country Roads - 1971
John Lennon - Imagine - 1971
Led Zeppelin - Stairway to Heaven - 1971
Carole King - It's Too Late/I Feel the Earth Move - 1971
Marvin Gaye - What's Going On - 1971
Isaac Hayes - Theme From Shaft - 1971
*Don McLean - American Pie - 1971
Santana - Oye Como Va - 1971
The Staple Singers - Respect Yourself - 1971
Rod Stewart - Maggie May - 1971
Harold Melvin/Blue Notes - If You Don't Know Me By Now - 1972
Johnny Nash - I Can See Clearly Now - 1972
Chicago - Saturday in the Park - 1972
Derek & The Dominos - Layla - 1972
Al Green - Let's Stay Together - 1972
Helen Reddy - I Am Woman - 1972
Bill Withers - Lean On Me - 1972
Stevie Wonder - Superstition - 1972
Stevie Wonder - You Are the Sunshine of My Life - 1973
Neil Young - Heart of Gold - 1972
Jim Croce - Time in a Bottle - 1973
Allman Brothers Band - Ramblin' Man - 1973
Thomas Dorsey/Marion Williams - Take My Hand Precious Lord - 1973
Roberta Flack - Killing Me Softly With His Song - 1973
Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road - 1973
Gladys Knight & The Pips - Midnight Train to Georgia - 1973
Charlie Rich - Behind Closed Doors - 1973
Carly Simon - You're So Vain - 1973
Barbra Streisand - The Way We Were - 1973
Harry Chapin - The Cat's in the Cradle - 1974
Billy Joel - Piano Man - 1974
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Free Bird - 1974
Shirley Caesar - No Charge - 1975
K.C. & The Sunshine Band - That's the Way( I Like It) - 1975
Linda Ronstadt - When Will I Be Loved - 1975
Bruce Springsteen - Born to Run - 1975
Aerosmith - Walk This Way - 1976
George Benson - This Masquerade - 1976
Weather Report - Birdland - 1976
Abba - Dancing Queen - 1977
The Bee Gees - Stayin' Alive - 1978
Jimmy Buffett - Margaritaville - 1977
The Eagles - Hotel California - 1977
Fleetwood Mac - Go Your Own Way - 1977
Queen - We Are the Champions/We Will Rock You - 1977
Waylon Jennings/Willie Nelson - Mama's Don't Let Your Babies... - 1978
Kenny Rogers - The Gambler - 1978
The Village People - Y.M.C.A. - 1978
Charlie Daniels Band - The Devil Went Down to Georgia - 1979
Gloria Gayner - I Will Survive - 1979
Sister Sledge - We Are Family - 1979
soundtrack recording - Grease - 1979
Blondie - Heart of Glass - 1979
Bob Seger - Old Time Rock & Roll - 1979
Sugar Hill Gang - Rapper's Delight - 1979

Here's that groundbreaking first hip/hop single - Rapper's Delight by Sugar Hill Gang:

Enjoy!

Gift shopping is now in style, though I'm highly confused over wishlists since people you know who don't know each other might get you the same thing, which is sweet but not practical. To remedy those situations, the gift givers will have to communicate through you, and that blows the whole surprise element away, and that's practical but not cool.

Because I've been asked to make one, and in no particular order:

Made on October 12, 2008 6:32 PM

• Bigass bottle of Nenuco cologne CHECK
• T-shirts

or...

• Long sleeved shirts

I now generally like bright, contrasting colors (light blue and dark orange aka brown) on my clothes. And uniqueness in design like funny phrases or multiple-layer additions. Or weird graffiti-esque splashes. I prefer short-sleeved and collared over long-sleeved; I'm somewhere between Small and Medium (Small in the Men's section is a safe bet); I'm kinda thin.

• Microsoft X360

'coz my friend, who is a more avid gamer than my sister, has one I've played on or...

• Nintendo Wii

'coz my sister has one I've played on.

• Long wristbands

Something like forearm braces that cover half of your forearm. Maybe leather, if that doesn't seem too hot.

• DBDs of:
  • How I Met Your Mother
  • Supernatural
  • Heroes
  • Brothers and Sisters
  • Dexter
  • Weeds
  • Anything funnyish or fantasyish
• Things that might help a budding artist (cartoonist/painter/sketcher):
  • A really nice sketchpad

  that I'll probably be too scared to use other than for final forms

  • Wacom tablet
  • Scanner CHECK
  • Adobe Photoshop CS3 CHECK
  • Nice HB, 3B, 5B and 7B pencils TRIPLE CHECK
• External Harddrive

I'm a pseudo-power user when it comes to diskspace. I use a lot of it.

• Multiple Ear Piercings

These are really hard to giftwrap.

• Macintosh laptop

But I'm not holding my breath for this, as I have an WinXP laptop that's sort of working, or...

• Windows laptop.

Though I still don't like Vista.

• Digital Camcorder
• 3-6 month Gym Membership

since they say uninformed newbies quit at the 3 month mark. I plan to look for work after my 18th Birthday, so 3 months is just about right.

• Denim Jeans
• New Eyeglasses

though, again, this is a hard gift to wrap.

• Digital SLR Camera
• Sony PSP NOPE
  

or...

• Nintendo DS NOPE
  

but actually, not really.

• iPod Nano

or...

• iPod Touch
• World peace

Note that there are crossed-out items. I already have these items, or simply thought vaguely of them, so I put them on here for reference.

Okay, truthfully I am having trouble sleeping, and I'd rather go to bed thinking good things than bad. And seeing as it is 2:30AM central time, let the lovefest commence so I can get some rest!

I LOVE:
Chris
the month of October
Autumn
the smell of leaves
the song Ayo Technology by Milow
pumpkin spice lattes
realistically, everything pumpkin
learning new things
the word "belligerent" (it makes me laugh!)
aquafina water
lo mein noodles from Ichiban back home
bathtubs the size of a small pool
Disney movies
curling up with a good book
the city of Toronto
hockey season
holding hands
meetups
things that are too awesome to be coincidences
pedicures
the smell of books
sleeping in!
writing silly haikus 

 
There are plenty of things that I still love but miss because of changes in my life. I think these things deserve their own list. 

I MISS :
my family
my best friend
going ghosthunting
waking up on sunday to my mom cooking a big breakfast for the family
Sunday dinners at my grandmother's house with the entire family
not having to worry about being an adult
Irish dancing with friends at the local pub
my car
going to the beach
 

So what do you love? and miss?

Share the love, cheer me up, give me something to smile about!

1. Quicksilver - I've tried to use Spotlight to do the same features, I really have. However, it's no contest. Quicksilvers extensive features that Spotlight doesn't have make my computer fast, easy, and intuitive. 
2. Pages - The way pages (pun not intended) come out and the general finish of the templates gives Pages the win over Microsoft Word. If only I could use Pages on my Windows-based work PC.
3. Adium - If you chat on multiple networks, and I think we all do, Adium is a must have. Constant updates and bug fixes keep you connected with ease, and the extensive library of addons allows you to customize everything from the dock icon to the emoticons.
4. Parallels - As I've covered in a previous post, Parallels win the virtual machine battle over VMWare Fusion for me. I often need to use Windows for work related reasons, as well as the occasional romp in Linux, which makes Parallels a necessity with a new install.

Dec. 08 = finish previous

Jan. 09 = drawing, origami, piano, Shakespeare

Feb. 09 = finish previous

Mar. 09 = last call

Apr. 09 = painting, photography, guitar, Shakespeare

May 09 = guitar, piano, Mein Kampf

Jun. 09 = finish previous

Jul. 09 = finish previous

Aug. 09 = bartending course, detox, skydiving, hot air balloon ride

Sept. 09 = last call

Oct. 09 = driver's liscense

And then I met Zenbe Lists through the Apple iPod Touch. Zenbe has an amazing and FREE app for the iPhone/iPod Touch that has greed me from the trap of my calendar, which should be for scheduled appointments and not for all the minutiae.

Don't have an iPhone or Touch? Not a problem. Zenbe is at http://lists.zenbe.com -- and, yes, iPhone/Touch users, your lists sync in the cloud!

And of all the list apps Ibe seen, this one is by far the best and most practical.

• You can create your own lists to organize your tasks.
• You can put a due date on the tasks.
• You can check off the tasks and they will move to the bottom.
• Everything works!

My productivity is up because I'm not spending time rotating my tasks on my calendar. If it's on my list, then it's not done. Grocery lists, wish lists, goals, all of that. It's all in there and available on the web. Easy and available.

It's Zen.

Of those on this list, I particularly like (and often use): number 6 (see?); nombre diez es muy bueno; as Safire himself would have said "Number 12"; it also behooves me to list number 15; I like number 17 a little, but I like number 18 big time ; who wouldn't like number 24; I think numbers 32 and 33 are redundant; but I like number 32 because I dislike being repetitive and number 33 for the same reason as the previous number; 36; number 42!!; and finally 

At any rate, and without further ado, here's the skinny [list] on How to Write Real Good:

1. Always avoid alliteration.
2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3. Avoid cliches like the plague-they're old hat.
4. Employ the vernacular.
5. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
6. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.
7. Parenthetical words however must be enclosed in commas.
8. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
9. Contractions aren't necessary.
10. Do not use a foreign word when there is an adequate English quid pro quo.
11. One should never generalize.
12. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said: "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."
13. Comparisons are as bad as cliches.
14. Don't be redundant; don't use more words than necessary; it's highly superfluous.
15. It behooves you to avoid archaic expressions.
16. Avoid archaeic spellings too.
17. Understatement is always best.
18. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
19. One-word sentences? Eliminate. Always!
20. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.
21. The passive voice should not be used.
22. Go around the barn at high noon to avoid colloquialisms.
23. Don't repeat yourself, or say again what you have said before.
24. Who needs rhetorical questions?
25. Don't use commas, that, are not, necessary.
26. Do not use hyperbole; not one in a million can do it effectively.
27. Never use a big word when a diminutive alternative would suffice.
28. Subject and verb always has to agree.
29. Be more or less specific.
30. Placing a comma between subject and predicate, is not correct.
31. Use youre spell chekker to avoid mispeling and to catch typograhpical errers.
32. Don't repeat yourself, or say again what you have said before.
33. Don't be redundant.
34. Use the apostrophe in it's proper place and omit it when its not needed.
35. Don't never use no double negatives.
36. Poofread carefully to see if you any words out.
37. Hopefully, you will use words correctly, irregardless of how others use them.
38. Eschew obfuscation.
39. No sentence fragments.
40. Don't indulge in sesquipedalian lexicological constructions.
41. A writer must not shift your point of view.
42. Don't overuse exclamation marks!!
43. Place pronouns as close as possible, especially in long sentences, as of 10 or more words, to their antecedents.
44. Writing carefully, dangling participles must be avoided.
45. If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a linking verb is.
46. Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.
47. Everyone should be careful to use a singular pronoun with singular nouns in their writing.
48. Always pick on the correct idiom.
49. The adverb always follows the verb.
50. Take the bull by the hand and avoid mixing metaphors.
51. If you reread your work, you can find on rereading a great deal of repetition can be by rereading and editing.
52. And always be sure to finish what

Enjoy!

S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y NIGHT!

Well, the weekend's here and instead of being out getting a little of that Saturday night fever (or special, whatever), I'm here with you talking about porn. I hope you appreciate the things I do for you.

So, thinking about the Elton John song, I decided to try something risky. I plugged into my porn machines and I looked up videos that have "fighting" in them. Is it because, as Bush said, "there's no sex in your violence?" Well, no. More like a disgusting cocktail of me being bored along with professional curiosity and a dash of apparently the need to punish myself a bit. My results were... interesting.

So tonight I tell you: Saturday night's alright for fighting (although Carnal Knowledge in no way endorses, suggests, or gets off to violence in any way)(Unless it's funny)!

First up: Merry Fighting With Her Two Boyfriends. What starts out as some apparently good natured and friendly wrestling and goofing around with a German girl who's name would seem to be Merry and two of her male friends eventually turns into - what else? - a threesome. I have no idea what's being said in this clip and I don't know that I care to find out. Merry's cute and although tattoos don't really do it for me, she has a gorgeous body. It could get a lot worse than this.

And then, oh my God, it does: Sexy Farm Girl Fight (round 1). Seriously, there's quite a few more rounds to this, which just appears to be an excuse to have some girls strip each other in a horse pen and then do some rudimentary wrestling moves on each other and then a little face sitting while commentators hoot and holler rodeo-style. Incredibly ridiculous. But I'd still take it over the WWE any day of the week (including Saturdays)

From there, we go to something called 4-Chick Fight! It's really just two glistened up chicks rolling around in oil and scissoring. I know it's every guy's fantasy to either witness or pay host to this kind of party but take my advice, fellas: That shit is incredibly messy and kind of underwhelming in person.

From there we go to a 3 Girl Nude Pillow Fight. This could not be more accurately titled, let me tell you. Three lovely naked women have a tame little pillow fight and then form an excited make out triumvirate while grooving to some crazy European techno. I wish my Saturday Nights had a little more of this in them.

From there, my searches for "fighting" clips kind of hit a dead end (which was probably for the best). Everything else I came up with was basically some variation on "Two bitches fight for that cock." Boring. Or "So and so fights to swallow that down." Also boring (and a bit of over exaggeration, let me tell you). Or these bizarre Japanese clips where it's some kind of competition split into rounds with judges and commentators and everything, only seemingly each challenger is competing to see who can molest a girl to completion the fastest. Not really boring, just more... uhhh... Yeah. Stuff like that makes me scared as hell of ever going to Japan, you know? Meanwhile clips like Street Fuck Her Not Street Fight Her! make me want to move to Japan right now. But I'll wait to finish packing my bags until after this post is finished.

Oh, and here's a clip of two guys performing wrestling moves on each other, nestled in with the other clips I've shared with you already. It's pretty gay in the way that pretty much all wrestling is. Don't believe me? Go open up your high school yearbook and look at pictures of the wrestling team in action.

So, having hit pretty much a dead end after those clips, I thought, "Eh, what the fuck, I'll just look for clips that have something Saturday specific to them." Christ, look at me. I'm stupid.

The best I can offer you from the Saturday specific clips is Saturday Night Jive, a fairly ho hum entry into the low budget/possibly amateur let's-rent-a-hotel-room-and-make-a-sex-tape-in-it genre. The nicest thing I can say here is... Well, at least with sex tapes, everyone can feel like a star for two - maybe two and a half - minutes.

Other than that, it seems to be universally accepted that Saturday is the day for men to film themselves jacking off. I didn't know this before, but I sure as hell got the message now, thanks. Take for example: Saturday 15 December 2007 black basque, which I include out of all the other possible entries because it's so date specific, in case you thought might've thought that he just filmed it on a Wednesday and called it a Saturday.

To give you something actually hot to view, I present to you a clip called simply Courtney Simpson and Sativa Rose. It's about two girls hanging out at work at the end of a day (a Friday, no less, because Friday is such a better day for porn that Saturday) and talking about their plans for that night: parties. They're both hoping to get fucked later, and one of them, Courtney Simpson, brilliantly suggests, why not just start now? A wonderful idea, ladies. And so they do start right there on the couches in the lounge at work, because all of their coworkers are gone (not really), especially their asshole boss (no, not really either). As they're beginning, the other young woman, Sativa Rose, remarks that she's glad he (of all possible coworkers) won't catch him because he's a huge dick. And then a few minutes later when he catches them, they could not be more pleased to get him, an old disgusting British man, to join them. The girls are incredibly cute but I still have to call bullshit on this.

There's a rumor that Sarah Palin will be on tonight's Saturday Night Live to spoof her spoofer, Tina Fey (one of CK's favorite people ever).

Is The Little Mermaid sexist? (The answer is yes.)

A Sativa Rose interview.

And just for my co-blogger, with love: Nina Hartley would prefer to be called a cougar rather than a MILF, thank you very much.

And now, for your moment of zen: ORGASM CONTEST!

Flavored coffee, black is my favorite way to start the day.  And continues until the afternoon begins.

Red wine is my relaxation in the evening.  I probably like it a little too much, but it's healthy, right?

Buying books seems like a healthy addiction, but it can override common sense.  I can go to a bookstore and purchase 10 books for a $10 and not have time to read any of them before more books find their way into my shopping bag a few days later.  I do have a reading and writing addiction which seem to fit in with my book problem.

My grandparents passed onto to me the puzzling gene.  Working on jigsaw puzzles is a good way to work out stuff in your head.  If I've got a problem I need to work out, doing a jigsaw is the best medicine.  I am currently finishing (600 pieces or so)  a 5,000 piece jigsaw puzzle of Florence, Italy.  I will include a picture when I get it done because it is a much anticipated achievement.

Chocolate and cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory are two addictions.  I am currently eating a piece of Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cheesecake and it is heavenly.

 Ohio State football season is my favorite season of the year!  And that explains my favorite color, red.

I love my family and they are my rock.  On a related note I frequently become obsessed with genealogy when I find a new branch in my family tree.  Which leads me to trees - I love them and never feel more at peace with nature than when I am surrounded by them.  I also feel very much at peace when I am surrounded by my wonderful friends.  Cleveland has made me appreciate and look forward to snow.  On the other hand, I adore saunas.  This time of year always reignites my interest in politics (just ask my dad who was here this weekend).  I have become more interested in my blog- and in yours- than I thought I would when I started.  I check email constantly.  But I love getting snail mail.  I also love to send letters and cards. I love meeting new people and going to parties, which go together very nicely, thank you.  My only fashion addiction is Kathy Van Zeeland bags (I've given away everything else!) and I won't confess to how many I own.  I love romantic movies and can watch my favorites over and over. On the TV front...I can spend too much much money at QVC, I tape The View everyday, if I'm home I watch General Hospital with only a little guilt, and when the tv is on, its default station is CNN.  I love to play board games and am a bit competitive.  Especially during March Madness when I become completely obssessed with beating my husband on our brackets.  I go to New York City as often as I get the opportunity (which isn't often enough!).  I love getting into the hot tub on a cool night with my husband. 

Which leads me to my obsession with getting my cat, Scout, to gain weight and getting my dog, Max, to lose the pounds.  Of course, my best obsession is my husband, Jason.  And for #37 I asked Jason what he thought my obsession was.  He thought about for a few minutes and said, "You like to make other people happy."  Maybe I should just make him addictions 1-36 :)

 I'm tagging Kathy & Elena to confess their obessions/addictions.

I just found out my friend Kendra loves sesame seeds.  I too love sesame seeds.

My friend Sam and I decided today that if we were characters on boy meets world, I would be Topanga and he would be Shawn. 

The other night, when I was walking alongside the road, I all the sudden heard some singing.  The volume of the singing increase really, really fast.  So fast that it was alarming.  I was looking around to see who was running up to me singing in the dark.  Then a guy on a motercycle passed by and I realized it was him that I was hearing.  He was singing at the top of his lungs.  I had a good laugh about it.

It's turned to fall overnight here and it's freezing!  My friends and I have all been talking about it because we're all too cheap to turn on our heaters.  I need to go buy a blanket.

I'm at a coffee shop right now and I have a feeling that everyone is looking at my computer screen and reading what I'm writing.  A stout lady just walked by outside wearing a purple, velure leisure suit.  She reminded me of a grape.  People sit outside the shop and smoke.  Don't the cute smoker guys know that they would be way more appealing if they didn't stink?  There is a jock guy working out in Oz Fitness directly across from me.  He seems way more interested in the people who might be watching him than in working out.  He looks like he spends hours at the gym every day.  He's been doing arm presses for 20 minutes now.  An old man customer in the shop just made weird eye contact with me.  The wooden chair I'm sitting in is oddly comfortable and I don't want to move any part of my body except for my fingers to type this and my eyeballs to look around.  Oh, it looks like that chad working out has changed arm press machines.  If I were over there in the gym I might tell him that he has such a hard body but he might want to try out an arm press machine to tone up his skinny arms and to develope pecs that are so big they look like boobs.  I wonder if that would give him a complex or if he would get my dry humor.  He probably would just think I was hitting on him instead of making fun of him and he would tell all his buddies that a 14-year-old girl hit on him today.

Now I'm off on a top secret mission.

16. The Further Adventures of Charles Westover - DEL SHANNON (1968)
15. Sam Cooke at the Copa - SAM COOKE (1964)
14. St. Louis to Liverpool - CHUCK BERRY (1964)
13. Nashville Skyline - BOB DYLAN (1969)

12. The Four Tops' Second Album - THE FOUR TOPS (1965)
11. Forever Changes - LOVE (1967)
10. Going to a Go-Go - SMOKEY ROBINSON & THE MIRACLES (1965)
9. Live at the Apollo - JAMES BROWN (1963)

8. The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society - THE KINKS (1968)
7. The Beatles - THE BEATLES (1968)
6. Fairytale - DONOVAN (1965)
5. Pet Sounds - THE BEACH BOYS (1966)

4. Odessey and Oracle - THE ZOMBIES (1968)

3. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band - THE BEATLES (1967)

2. Abbey Road - THE BEATLES (1969)

1. Astral Weeks - VAN MORRISON (1968)

I saw this on another blog, so I will again do what I do best. Copy.

FIVE RANDOM/STRANGE THINGS ABOUT YOURSELF

This shouln't be too difficult. I think I have mentioned before that I am NOTHING, if not random, or strange.

1. Mousey is sitting here eating a bowl of cereal and I asked her how I might be strange or random. She said "when we are driving in the car, and talking about something, then you see something else, like a puppy, or a squirrel, and have  to tell us about it, in the middle of the conversation. And then go right back to the other conversation"      Well who doesn't do that?

Mousey says:

 This is Mousey i just hijacked the writers chair. OK, right when we were having a conversation about not knowing what we had for dinner last night, Mum had to blurt out " omigawsh, smell these Kleenex, I think they were sitting on some candles or something". Which automatically proved my point in "strange random things" number uno. I had to write this for her because she was laughing too hard.

2. When the kids come into the house, I greet them with "hello, go wash your hands". Because I don't want the cooties of the world in our house! And you know, they touch things. All the time. And that grosses me out to no end.

I have perfected the art of leaving a restroom using a paper towel, so as not to touch the door handle. Or using my knuckles or elbow or the back of my hand to do simple tasks. I do it naturally, without thinking. I'm sure no one would ever notice.

The one most on board with this quirk is The Boy. We wash our hands everywhere we go. We have our favorite soap smells.  We actually discuss who has soap smells we like. His favorite is U of M Hospital soap. My personal preference is Arby's. And our powder room, Vanilla Brown Sugar.  I'm so glad I could pass this quirk on. It's good to have a companionable quirk.

3. Honey could tell you that I have a small  window of opportunity to be fed. And then I turn into a horrifically crabby  BEAST. I get a splitting  headache and feel sick. This never causes me a bit of problem in my everyday life. Cause I am in control of my own eating. It usually only rears it's UGLY head when we are on vacation, or when Honey is holding me hostage to HIS schedule. He could go all day without eating. Even if he said he was hungry hours ago.

I can be "thinking about eating", or "getting peckish" and it would be ok. But if I am hungry? He has learned that is NOT the time to drive around looking for that certain place that he can't quite  remember where it is. Or try and find the "voted Orlando's best pizza" in a driving rainstorm/ thunder and lightning display. OR not want to stop, because he is not ready yet. I guess you could say he has learned this lesson the hard way. Having actually MET the Beast, on numerous occasions.

I was having a conversation with my Folks last week and they said that my Grandma Georgia was the same way! Another companionable quirk!

4. I am an advocate of personal space. I don't like to sit too close to people. If I can smell them, it's too close. I don't like to talk to people that are thisclose to my face. Ever. Step AWAY.

I don't want to make myself appear to have a phobia about this, cause I don't. I can touch and be touched by others, can give and receive a hug. And we are known gerbils at my house, all piled up together on the couch. Just want to clarify  that.

5. I can remember all the words to every song I EVER learned. And it is taking up way too much space in my brain. I need to find the delete button. Cause I can't even remember what I had for breakfast yesterday.

 A lot of that 70's and 80's music could go. As well as jr. high choir songs. Just ask Mrs. Scmenkman. I launch into "Oh, Shenandoah" every time I visit her and we drive over it. EVERY STINKIN TIME!

I have no need for the entire catalogue of Beatles material. I could keep the ones I especially like and get rid of the rest. TV theme songs? Not necessary for my quality of life. It could go on and on.

So there you have it. A short  list of my random/strangeness.

I will invite you to either tell me something random/strange about yourself, OR you may add your observation to the collection of random/strange about me. Please be kind.