answers and another game

LBE/ FD

There are a few movies that make me a touch shiny-eyed. A few were even mentioned as answers that ya'll gave in the comments. Along with Pay it Forward (which managed to squeeze a tear out towards the end), the following that made it in your comments made it into my misty-eyed list as well:

Braveheart : at the end, when you know he's dying and his love's ghost shows up...waiting for him.

City of Angels: Just after the angel clips his wings, becomes mortal to be with this woman to just have her die the day after of a horrible accident.

I didnt count the number of times I've had tears because I was laughing too hard because they're too numerous to count. Liar Liar was one for sure.

The two I had alluded to in my entry were Save the Last Dance and Bruce Almighty. Oh sure, Bruce Almighty had plenty of tears similar to Liar Liar. That's to be expected with Jim Carrey, well....for those that enjoy Jim Carrey's type of comedy. However, Bruce Almighty also made me produce tears for another reason.

I'd just left Pennsylvania and had been on the run for about 5 weeks by the time Bruce Almighty was hitting the movie screens. My nerves were still raw from the abuse I'd gone through for more than a decade. Bruce Almighty was actually our second movie date (the first being the second XMen...which we ended up going to twice!) and we figured a nice comedy would be in order to keep things light. Although I didnt say anything to him, the arguing in the one scene really got to me and top things all off the tension of the frustration the characters were going through with their communication problems was a bit much for me to handle at that particular time. Needless to say, silent tears flowed for several minutes while watching. That specific scene is actually still a tad rough to watch.

Save the Last Dance is one I watched with my dad while I was out visiting during that same trip (my parents place was after my brother's house and before Dallas). I was fine for a good part of the movie, until the scene where the two leads kiss. You'd think I'd have tears of happiness because of all the difficulty the characters were facing and they worked beyond what others thought of their relationship (inter-racial relationships and how they affect the feelings of those around them), but no...not me. I ended up with tears of sorrow pouring down my face during that scene. The hurt I'd been carrying around for years, the desire to be wanted...needed...just like what I was seeing on the screen was enough to stir those tears up. The movie doesnt really produce that effect on me anymore because I have a man who loves/wants/needs me more than I ever had before.

While I was in reading the 12 or 13 blogs I check daily, I found a game in whimsical’s entry for the day. The object is to pick 6 unspectacular things about yourself, list them and then tag 6 others. I usually don't deal with this type of game to be honest, but I did promise I'd put an answer in here. Mostly because it was intriguing enough to warrant answering and partly because my answer would have been too long to stick in her comment section. So here it is, 6 unspectular things about me. If you wanna play along feel free. Im like whimsical and wont be tagging anyone.

01) I eat my pizza backwards....unless it's a stuffed crust, then I eat it the normal way. Top things all off, many times I'll remove the topping and eat it last. Why? Because the crust is dry and I dont like a dry crust.

02) I love puzzles. Im particularly fond of Logic puzzles and Sudukos right now. Of all the ones I enjoy, those two really give the ole grey matter a good stretch.

03) I always have to have something on here at home. Sometimes it's the tv and sometimes it's music, anything that makes noise. To have no background noise makes me feel extremely lonely. Even when Im curled up with a book....the tv's going or at least something instrumental like Chopin or Yanni playing in the background.

04) I still do many things the way I learned growing up right down to hanging the toilet paper so the loose end goes OVER the roll (ya aint the only one whimsical!) to folding clothes. This makes things difficult in retail situations when their way of folding items doesnt match up with mine. From what I hear, my brother's the same way....

05) I absolutely must sleep on the side of the bed closest to the bathroom. The only thing that trumps that is the location of the A.C. as I simply cannot sleep close to that at all. If the bathroom and the A.C. are on the same side of the room, I'll sleep on the opposite side of the bed.

06) I still keep up with my baby book. They dont make them like they used to so Im thinking of scanning the pages and removing my data so I can enter the child's info when and if it decides to come along.

Ok...anyone that wants to play along, put your answers below or feel free to start the game up in your own blogspot.

they've corrupted even the little ones


Rose is Rose comic strip for Sunday September 14th:
A squirrel is looking in as Pasquale and his neighbor's baby Mimi are playing with orange and blue Play-Doh

Pasquale: Which Play-Doh color would you like to start with, Mimi?
Mimi: Dat wun! (points to one of the cans)
Pasquale: Shall we make the same thing as last time?
Mimi nods

Squirrel 1 (thinking): Just as I suspected! I've got to warn the others! (jumps down off the window sill)
Squirrel 1 (to Squirrels 2 & 3 who are seated on the ground): Up there! (points up to the window) You won't believe your eyes!

In the last frame you see Pasquale sitting on the floor with 5 orange squirrels with blue noses and several empty Play-Doh cans scattered around). Mimi is standing nearby with a huge grin on her face looking extremely happy (rainbow, hearts, candycane, beach ball and a music note around her head indicating how happy she is). Three squirrels are on the window sill, peeking in from outside.

Pasquale: We could try making something else.
Mimi: Morr Skwurls!

Squirrel 1: It finally happened!
Squirrel 2: They've outsourced squirrel production!
Squirrel 3: The blue noses are kind of cute!

killin time

The first words coming to mind are "Not much is going on over here", however I know better than that...shoot YA'LL know better than that. I know once I get writing...well let's just say we all know that's not going to be the case. *laffz* So go get your last potty trip out of the way, grab a drink and a sammich ...because I suspect this is going to be one of my usual marathon ones.

For the last little while hubby's been complaining about his foot hurting him. It's the same foot as last time and the pains started the same. We both knew exactly what the pain was and some of what aggravates the condition. By Thursday last week, he came home in such pain that I just looked at him in that way I have. You know what he said? *laffz* "Yeah, I know, I told the boss I wasn’t going to work tomorrow and that I'd be going to the dr's first thing in the morning". Heh heh heh. The kids at the school I worked for in New Orleans always did say I had "that look". The same one their moms would give them when they did wrong. I guess I haven’t lost my touch. *gigglez* Anyhow, he went to the dr’s, they diagnosed the gout, put him on some meds and told him to stay home (the side effects of the medicine would make it impossible to work in a “clean room”). There was supposed to be a follow up visit in 7 days but since I was already scheduled for an appointment on Tuesday, that's when he went in. The dr had x-rays done just to make sure there wasn’t anything else going on in there. The dr told him he needed to stay out of work for another 2 days so Friday was his first day back in a week. He’s been taken off one of his allergy medicines because it’s known to make hearts race. Well gee…he’s on high blood pressure meds; maybe he shouldn’t have been prescribed it in the first place. Ok. I can’t blame this doctor for that because he’s not the one who put him on it. The dr has also told him that he needs to go back to decaf and he doesn’t like that much because Mt Dew runs in his veins. It seems like every time he gets the gout it’s because he’s been hitting the Mt Dew and salty snacks pretty heavily. I keep telling him that he should quit smoking and then he won’t need the salt on everything. As for the Mt Dew, he really needs to drink more water or decaf coffee. For the week that he was supposed to be home and off his feet, we decided that it would be the best idea to just keep him downstairs. There is a lot that he can do downstairs while seated with all the books and DVDs we have. I also brought the laptop downstairs so he wouldn’t be without internet, although he couldn’t play his online game….ah well. At least he had a way to check his emails and work his MySpace if he wanted to.

Since hubby was home for the week and for the most part grounded to a seated position with his foot propped, I spent a good deal of my days downstairs as well. Some of the time I spent working on that sampler that I had started before we moved (which I put down the minute we were in this townhouse and I had access to my computer 24/7 *laffz*). I’ve got almost all the border done but ran out of one of the colors so I’m separating the rest of the floss skeins and getting them cut down to manageable lengths before continuing work on the piece. Once the border’s done, I can finish up the interior of the piece. While downstairs, we watched a few movies. We watched the Bucket List with Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson. It was a sad movie due to the subject matter and the ending, but it had quite a few very funny moments. One in particular was when Morgan’s character is re-admitted into the hospital and Jack’s character pops in for a visit. You see, there’s this particular very rare coffee that Jack’s guy raved about and insisted on drinking. Well Morgan’s character found out what it was made out of and printed a copy of the article that discussed it and had it with him for when Jack’s guy showed up. He handed the article to Jack’s character and watched as it was read. The look of shock on Jack’s guy’s face and Morgan’s character laughing until he cried was absolutely priceless. We also watched A League of Their Own, Water Horse (very much like Free Willy) and a few others I can’t remember.

The week before hubby had his problem flair up; I spent a few days watching several other movies. I’m a real sucked for animated movies so I watched Monsters Inc, Brother Bear, Finding Nemo, and The Emperor’s New Groove. Ok, ok, so I’m a kid at heart! I did catch one movie on TV that simply moved me to near tears. I very rarely cry during a movie, although I do come pretty close. The only 2 times I cried (actual tears falling and not just welling up) while watching a movie wasn’t exactly because of the content (one was a comedy for goodness sakes!) but more because of a particular scene triggered a memory or an unfulfilled want/feeling/desire. Well the one that came really close this time was Pay it Forward with Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt and Haley Joel Osment. It is a very touching story about a teacher who gives an assignment for extra credit to his class and the child that uses his imagination and runs with it. Over the course of the movie, the idea takes off and reaches farther than anyone could ever imagine. The child, who only sees the failure of his own attempts, never realizes how much of an impact his idea had on others. That is, until a reporter who was helped in ANOTHER CITY tracks the story backwards from the executive that helped him, to a prisoner, to an old lady living on the streets (that just happens to be the boy’s grandmother)…that just happens to be going to the boy’s birthday party and invites the reporter over. Suddenly, everyone realizes just how big his project got. The ending is very much a tear jerker (ok ok…one did leak out).

I think I’m going to leave this entry right at this point as the rest of what’s been going on is pretty much a whole entry on itself. I will leave you all with these questions. Have you ever cried while watching a movie? What was the movie? What was going on in the movie that triggered the tears? Why did it make you cry (what was the memory or the unfulfilled want/feeling/desire the scene triggered)? I’ve got two that I’ll share if you’ll share yours.....

.oO(wow...that was a trifle shorter than usual...)

this n that

Just another entry in the vein of a Seinfeld episode....alot about nothing. Ive got a few more pix on the computer desktop that I wanna get shared before I file them away. This first one to the left my hubby's tat. For the life of me I cant remember if there was a story behind it or not. It's a pretty cool dragon though. I wouldnt want anything quite that big on myself...just something small and enough to help identify me. Not that that's gonna happen because I really hate needles.

This picture to the right is the plant that has the bloom from my bee and flower picture. Personally, I think the bugger's a weed. The door to the right of the plant is my neighbor's and the cement to the left is my front step. This next picture to the left is of the same type of plant. At least the blooms and leaves are the same. It's that big plant behind the mailboxes. To show you how tall the plant is fully grown, it's 6' behind the mail boxes and the top of the mailboxes is taller than me and Im 5'5" tall (official measurement from the dr's office).




The picture to the right here is those bushes in the front of my townhouse. Strange thing...they look like they're going to be blooming.....*AGAIN*. I fully expect the flowers will emerge by next week or so. I've never known a plant that blooms more than once in a season....but both of this will be. *sigh*


There's a townhouse in my cul de sac for rent. It's been empty for at least 8 months. How do I know? Because it was empty when we moved in. They have brand new windows in the second story..those were replaced just a couple months ago. I think they really want to rent this place out as they have 4 "For Rent" signs in the windows. I got a good look at the property owner when he was in the neighborhood the other week and considering the state of the world today (and where many of America's boys and girls are right now), Im not sure this place is ever going to get rented to be honest. No offense, but I know I surely wouldnt rent from him.


A little bit of nothing aka just sharing pix

So not much has been going on here. Well...if I go into the last couple dr appointments, you'd think I was really busy that's for sure. I'll save those for another day.

As you all know, I *generally* have my camera with me while Im out and about. I must have taken a good hundred or more over this last month or so and for the first time since we've moved here, I've actually managed to capture images other than the iggy-type pix.


There are several of these small trees (pictured left) outside the IHOP entrance to Manassas Mall. A few weeks back it went into bloom. Although flowers in general aggravate my allergies, I thought the flowers on this tree were very pretty. I got this shot just before the tree was in total bloom. If Blogger will let you click and increase the size on this, you can see some of the tightly closed buds behind the ones that are bloomed out.



The picture to the right has a tree with what looks like dead leaves on it. The bank that I go to has about 8 of them bordering its property. Upon a closer inspection on our last trip there, this Wednesday, I noticed that they werent leaves at all but a 3 sided bloom. The bloom itself looks alot like those three sided nuts. For the life of me, I cant remember what they're called.


This picture on the left was one I took a few days ago. The plant is in my neighbors yard next to his front door and hangs over the wood fence between our two yards. I had taken to ignoring it because as far as I'm concerned, it's a weed. However, a couple days ago I saw some movement near it. My first reaction, after seeing what was flying around the blossom, was to run away as Im afraid of certain insects...particularly ones that fly and can do me harm. In this case, the first thing I thought of was this awesome picture I had seen online of a bee hovering near a flower. The desire to attempt to get a similar picture overrode my usual fear of the insect and I clicked this shot. I more than likely wont get a great shot like this again because I doubt that the need for the picture will overcome the ingrained fear...but you never know.


The last picture Im going to show for tonight is one that I got on the same day as the bumblebee picture. I had just gotten into the truck and fastened in when I looked back over towards the townhouse (you can just see the bay window in the background of this picture) when a little bit of movement caught my eye. There....on the fence was a squirrel. My reaction (slowly grabbing the camera and firing it up) caught my hubby's attention and he looked over. When he realized what my target was, he slowly climbed in the truck and waited until I was done. I brought the camera up and very quietly asked the squirrel for permission for a picture and snapped the shutter. The cheeky little bugger just sat there so I asked for one more (with a please) and zoomed in for a really nice shot. The second shot was cropped down and the result is sitting up in my banner right now.

Thank you, and you , and you and YOU!!

squirrel walking across a wire with a huge acorn on its back with Inspired Comment fonted underneath
Like I answered back to punkn in my last entry, I was waiting for the perfect picture. So here it is, my take on iggy's Blinky the 3 eyed fish inspired comment award. If it wasnt for all of you who that left those wonderful comments in our entries that kept our creative "mooses" energized , this wouldnt have been nearly as fun. Thanks!!

WOW the excitement!

It's been unbelievably exciting and funny in Blogger the last few days. There've definitely been a few reads that need to be rated NFODWR (No food or drink while reading) for sure. It's been so much fun, I became rather inspired today while talking to iggy this afternoon.


There are a few people that deserve awards for their contributions to the fun. I've got a couple made up and ready to go.


The first award goes to iggy for the wonderful stories he tells:




old fashioned spinning wheel with Awesome yarn spinner written underneath



The second I made today is going to punkn for her Bushytail series:



black and white drawing of a lady at an old churner and it's fonted to say Ye Olde Churner Award for shit-stirring at it's finest

GUILTY

10am- International War Tribunal court





In anticipation of the pesty guy's arrival, Bushytail and Nutkins made sure that all the Chipmunk-Guard was armed to their little buck teeth. They couldnt chance his escape, not now, not when they were so damned closed to their goal. Justice would be had and until the pesty guy was charged, sentenced and safely tagged for further monitoring, they wouldnt be leaving anything to fate. Ok, so the bazookas were a bit of overkill, but they had to be sure everything went according to their plans.



Pesty guy arrived, heavily guarded by several hundred Chipmunk-Guards and the charges were read. The complaint had been filed by Bushytail, Nutkins, Cuzin Chuck, Cuzin Chippy, Chuzzelwit and the rest of the Squirrel community against iggy aka Rocky aka Pesty Guy for damages for the following charges:


stalking & harrassment of all things orange, fuzzy and flying
the wrongful deaths of Lil and Tiny Bushytail
and the rustling of unnaturally colored sheep



Prosecutor: Bucky "Squeaky" Squirrel.
Court Clerk: Hammy "Decaf" Bushtail.
The case was presided over by Her Honor Slappy " The Animaniac" Squirrel (Bucky's mom).

Slappy reviewed all evidence and Pesty Guy was found guilty of all counts. He was fitted with an ankle monitoring device. His sentence was to do another Virtual Walk, this time in the United Kingdom. His main contact there shall be Tori. When he groaned, it was pointed out the charges could have been much much worse and the next offense would cost him a trip through Canada. Pictured below is the front page of the filing.





ut oh, they're serious

Wanted poster for iggy aka rocky aka pesty man. For the stalking and harrassment of all things orange fuzzy and flying. Last seen wearing a pair of Garmonts and handling a camera. Suspect is possibly in the company of a small herd of OCHAs. Proceed with caution. Reward ten thousand dollars.

These fliers have been going up all around town here...I think they're serious....


little critter: You sure don't have much to say today
bear: I know...I cant figure it out.
little critter: Im guessing writer's block.
bear: gotta be

Yeah...maybe that's it. I must have sprained something up there while attempting to come up with some witty things to say. I know there's plenty that can be said rattling around up there....

FALLOUT!

Norristown, Pa- Early this morning the results of Orange Conehead-Alien's affair with the Loving Lamb Sheep arrived in a quiet corner of a local farm in Norristown. The farmer and his wife were, to say the least, extremely shocked at the hue of the lamb. Officials say that no paternity test is necessary as it's blatantly obvious who the father of this lamb is.


According to the farmer, 5 months ago he heard a loud ruckus outside in the sheep pen. When he went out to check on the commotion, he found evidence that "some critter" had been digging to get under the fence as well as pieces of orange plastic embedded in the gate. He moved all the sheep into his barn for the remainder of the night. The next morning, when he checked on them, each ewe had orange smudges on her rump. Officials originally chalked it up to teens playing a prank and "tagging" the sheep with spray paint.


orange lamb standing in a field

SCANDAL!!

Right on the heels of the grass-roots program to elect our beloved Orange Conehead-Alien, the following news story was leaked to the internet :

Report: Orange Conehead-Alien has sex with sheep!

The big question is whether or not the public will be willing to over look this fettish of Mr Conehead-Alien. When asked why he chose sheep, he responded "Because there is this guy that has been lurking around with a camera lately and making the squirrels all skittish. They are impossible to catch nowadays."

Vote 2008






While surfing around on the 'net, I found this grassroots movement for someone we all know and love. Unbelieveable! My biggest question is......By law can our beloved OCHA run? Someone better flip him over and make sure he's MADE IN AMERICA.

Mystery fish solved!


Thanks to some diligent work from iggy and an email from Jenny, the Visitor Services Coordinator at The Nation Aquarium in Baltimore, I have finally come up with a name for the mystery fish from my last entry. Thanks to Google I now have a picture (albiet not one I took) of said fish to show all of you. Here is her email with the info:

I’m pleased to hear you enjoyed your visit to
the National Aquarium
in Baltimore. The fish you are describing is one of my favorite fish called the
lookdown, part of the Jack family. Their name comes from the blunt forehead, high-set eyes and low-set mouth giving the impression it is “looking down.” They can be found up here in the mid-Atlantic waters when they are younger, then they
move south to tropical waters. All of our specimens are adults in the Atlantic Coral Reef exhibit.

I hope this information has answered your questions. If you are interested in learning more about our animals and get an insider’s view of the Aquarium, you may be interested in participating in one of our behind-the-scenes tours. The Gallery Tour(
http://www.aqua.org/immersiontours_gallery.html) would let you get up-close to the lookdowns when you participate in their morning feeding! We hope to see you soon.

The National Aquarium in Baltimore

The wait was well worth it though. Infact, if I had to wait a bit longer to assure there wouldnt be quite so many inside and I could see things at my own leasure...I woulda done it happily. Yeah....this Aquarium was definitely worth the trip. The only ones that come even close to being worth the trip are the
this floor to ceiling pic is a green frog with a white underbelly and red eyesThey had these floor to ceiling pictures in the main concourse area. The pictures were made accordion style so that if you looked at it one way you saw one type of critter. If you saw it from a different angle, a different critter entirely was seen. It took me a moment to figure it out because I was snappin my camera and I'd look back and think I missed a picture LOL....so I went back to get the shot and when I looked back up, a different pic was there (one that I had snapped already). *laffz* They had the requisite sharks jaws set up in this area too. As opposed to the aquarium in NOLA (New Orleans, Louisiana), this one had a staff member set up to take your picture for a fee. Dont ya just love when they realize they're missing out on an opportunity and start charging for it. Thanks but no, I got my own camera and can do it myself if I ~really~ want a touristy trinket (besides, isnt that what the gift shops and cafes are on nearly every level are for?).

Isnt this a freaky shot? We were going past this one area with tubes of water just bubbling through. It was very dimly lit with the light mostly coming from the top of the tubes so the place simply glowed a bit. I originally took a shot with the flash and of course the light just bounced everywhere so in this shot I covered my flash and let the lights up top do all the work. It almost looks like something out of Star Trek....or those beaming lights they like to add to some of the alien abduction type movies. I think next time Im going to grab a clip of these on video.


One of the first places we headed to was the shark and rays area. This particular exhibit was for the reef life. The picture to the right is one of the better shots. We all know how hard it is to get a good shot in an aquarium. It's always a tad dark and if you use your flash, you generally wreck your shot. The only way to get a decent pic most times is to put the lens right up to the glass and pray you get the critter you're aiming for. LOL! There was one type of fish I was hoping to catch on "film" but they were just way too fast. Three or four would go speeding by and be gone before the shutter could click on your camera. They were this really unbelieveably shiny silver. The only way I could catch them was on video and then it didnt even do their beauty any justice. Whatsucks is that the website to this place doesnt even have a picture to share in here of them. *pouts* Actually, they do...but they dont have it labelled. It's the one they have posted on the animals page....next to where it says fish. They just dont have a link for that specific type. Ah well.


We went into the aviary at one point and saw all sorts of pretty birds. The lovely little specemin to the left here is a blue-gray tanager. Boy, I really need to get a better camera with a more powerful zoom. This picture is actually a crop of the original photo and as such isnt nearly as sharp as I'd like it. They had some small tamarins caged in the upper levels of the aviary. I love spending time in an aviary, looking at all the pretty birds and listening to their beautiful songs. There's just one problem with it... Thankfully, this was the first trip to one where I didnt have THAT problem! Coming out of the aviary there was this absolutely gorgeous mural on the wall of a tropical rainforest. I've gotten several shots of it and they're in my Photobucket account right now. There was a brilliant orange tropical bird, a dragonfly, a butterfly and this frog (poison dart?) pictured to the right. I wish the wall didnt curve like it did because the one shot would have made a great wallpaper. I think one of the best murals I saw is the one pictured to the left here. This was located in the topmost tier of the aquarium. I ~think~ this is where the divers had access to the reef exhibit, but Im not completely sure. While we were there, there were some divers entering the tank to do some cleaning and checking on the animals. About 2 or 3 were going in while we were up top.


I think the hardest to capture were the sharks, rays and skates. In fact, most of the pictures were so dark I had to do some adjusting on them so you could see more than a faint outline and the flash of their eyes. there were several different kinds of sharks on display. I saw the bonnethead, the sand tiger, a couple of nurses and this beautiful specemin to the right. They dont have him labelled on their site so Im not sure which shark it is. I know it's not a black or white tip reef shark because it's not marked up for that. Im thinking it might have been a sandbar shark, but I could be wrong.




We missed a whole section though because it was very crowded. They had a penguin and puffin feeding that we missed because I couldnt get close enough to get pix and there was just no getting near the animals with the adaptations (puffer fish, octupi, etc) because they were a huge draw for the little ones. Especially since it was feeding time for many of the critters. I cant wait to go back again so I can take my time checking things out. Additional photos are in my Photobucket account.

Baltimore

Although the National Aquarium is in Baltimore, Im going to break this entry up into two parts simply because each has several photos I want to post with it. So this entry is going to be before we got into the Aquarium and afterwards.

When we got into Baltimore, there was no denying where we were. Toto, we aint in Kansas anymore! It was rather obvious when we started seeing these orange banners hanging off the street lights. Each light had 2 banners. The banner on the left said Orioles and the one on the right said "This is Birdland". In the area of the city we were in, they had a section of the road set aside for the bikers. They did it up right though. In many cities where there is a bike lane on the roads, they simply mark it off with white paint on the pavement. In this particular part of Baltimore, they had it actually blocked off with these orange railings. I know I'd feel safer riding a bike with that sort of protection between me and the cars, that's for sure!

As we were approaching the Aquarium, we started seeing some boats. The first one that caught my eye was this older one with the three masts and rigging. It was so cool. I'd like to go back if only to check this baby out! The triangular glass building behind it is part of the Aquarium. We saw the boat for those Duck Tours that I ~think~ iggy had mentioned in one of his entries (or was it someone else??) and I told hubby the next time we visit, we WILL be going on that so to plan for a long weekend. There was also a Coast Guard boat, The SS John W Brown (one of the two Liberty ships still floating today), The USS Torsk SS-423 (one of two surviving Tench class Fleet Submarines in the United States), and what I'd guess to be a tug boat of some kind. Feel free to check out the pix in my Photobucket (LadyStyx account Baltimore folder). I'll leave any history lesson regarding these boats (or ships, whatever your preference) to iggy if he'd like to take on the task sometime.

We ended up parking about a block or so from the Aquarium. My original intention had been to go and get set up in a hotel first and then come back out but hubby had other plans. He pulled us into a garage about a block or so from the Aquarium. The only spots left were in the topmost tier. Thank goodness for elevators! The picture to the right is looking out over East Pratt Street in the direction we'd be heading once we got to the ground floor. The buildings were magnificent. I cant believe I've missed buildings this size in just the time we've been in Manassas.

This picture was actually taken when we were leaving but I'm going to stick it here so you can see it. It's a rather odd building to say the least. The one triangular section housed a good share of the exibits while the other side housed the dolphin exibit, show and the IMAX. There was a covered, elevated walkway between the two buildings. The day was hot and were they ever BUSY!! If I'd had ANY indication the line was going to be as long as it was, I would have gotten tickets in advance. They were on timed openings which meant they only allowed a certain number in at a time and they only opened the doors at 15 minute intervals. *UGH*! As we worked through the line the opening time went from 2:15pm to 2:30, then it jumped to nearly 3pm, then to 315pm and then 335pm!! I looked at the clock...it was only about 1pm *sigh*. Well, our turn came for the window and we decided that maybe because of the crowds we'd just get the admission and skip the dolphin show and the IMAX this trip and come back at another time to do the whole kittnkaboodle....preferably during the fall when the kids are all in school (maybe I'll have a better camera then too!!??). Since we opted for just the admission and not a package deal, the ticket person was able to get us in earlier than we planned. HURRAY! We only had to wait until 2:15pm. This gave us time to go get some lunch first. We went to PotBelly's. The food's ok but not really worth the price to be honest but it got us out of the heat for a bit. In this picture to the right, PotBelly's is just off the picture to the right of the Hard Rock Cafe. Hubby said if we'd had to wait longer that we'd have gone to the Hard Rock Cafe instead (to the right of the Barnes and Noble in the center). I'll have to make sure that's in our plans for next time. I'd also like to make sure we have time to go to the railroad museum as well because hubby is really good about going to zoos and aquariums for me.

When we were done, we went back to the Aquarium to wait. We had about 20 minutes to spare so we just sat and watched the goings ons around us. There was this awesome map on the ground near the entrance. I really wish I could have gotten a picture of it from overhead. I've got several shots of it in my Photobucket showing the details a bit better but this shot to the left shows you how big it was. It was of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and was scaled at a half inch being equal to one mile. Photos simply dont do this piece of work the proper justice to be honest. While I was looking around I noticed the clouds reflected in one of the buildings nearby and thought it was very pretty. If it wasnt for the fact that it was very humid and the fact that the sun likes to do nasty stuff to my skin, I do believe I could have sat there nearly all day just watching the clouds move over the windows in that building. When we were allowed in, we spent about an hour and a half or two hours in. It was too crowded to really enjoy ourselves , plus my knee started acting up, so we didnt stay as long as we could have. Because we were only 90 minutes or so from home, hubby decided that it would just be best to go on home instead of getting a hotel room. He said that we'd stayed longer and got out closer to 6pm, then we woulda stayed. Well dang, if I knew that I woulda dawdled! *sigh*

After the trip to the Aquarium (that'll be the next entry), we headed back to the car. On our way to the garage, I heard a distinct clop clopping and whipped my camera out to get this shot of one of their horse and carriage rides. As much as I'd love to make sure that this is on the agenda next time, I dont think I could handle being that close to the back end of a horse unless we were headed DOWNWIND the entire trip. *laffz* Whenever I see something like this I think of that one Seinfeld episode where Kramer drives a cab for a night...unfortunately, before heading out he'd fed the horse a huge can of Beef-a-roni. EW...Major EW.


One of the last things we saw as we were making our way out of town was this musical group playing on one of the corners. It reminded me of the time a few of us went into the French Quarter in New Orleans. I couldnt believe they were out in the hot sun in long sleeved shirts, dress pants and TIES playing like there would be no tomorrow. Im wondering, since it was a Sunday if they'd come out after church and just decided to jam. In any case, everyone seemed to be enjoying the music. This picture was snapped while we were waiting on the light to turn green. If there'd been a place to park (short of going back to a garage), I think I would have had hubby pull over for a few so I could get some more pix.
The rest of the drive home was about 90 minutes or so. When we got back into Manassas he took me to Red Lobster for supper...yummy!

Questionnaire:the answers

And here's one of the blog entries ya'll been waiting on. The good thing about this questionnaire is that many of the questions didnt have any right answer. Those that did have a right answer, were easy enough to answer if you were industrious enough (yes, even the middle name one). Some answers have been slightly modified to protect the not so innocent....



01) Where did we meet?

The answers I received:

My front porch
The Cabin
The Loft
A chat room - gosh, I can't remember which one though
In a chat room somewhere long long ago
the loft
At Marrero Christian Academy in August
I think I spoke to you a bit in the chat room at "The Wolven" but have gotten to know you more since I wandered over to your blog a while back.
The Loft

Answer: Depending on what time of my life you came along, this answer will vary. If you were one of the many that got this that met me in chat, you may have met me in the Loft. I never chatted at the Cabin. I started in WildAngel's Loft and then went to Chatter2Chatter. After C2C, I was in Park Ave Chat for a couple months then to The Wolven and finally AckcessDenied. I know it seems like I've been around longer than that but I really havent. I started chatting in 2002 and streaming in 2004.

02) Take a stab at my middle name?
The answers I received:

Marie
Lynn
Marie
I've no idea. "Shine" or maybe Ann
Freida :0
I don't think you ever told me!
I'm not sure Marie.
I have no clue... Marie is safe though

Answer: I mentioned this answer just once in my blog and most probably wouldnt have known it if they werent one of my readers at that time. If you knew my first name, it was probably easy enough to guess. My first name is common as is my middle name. Congratulations to those that said my middle name was probably Marie, for you're right. LOL@ at the guesses of Shine and Freida. I can understand the Shine guess and if my parents had been hippies then that would have been a possibility. ....but Freida? I'd love to know where that guess came from!


03) Do I smoke?

Answer: Well this one was easy. Everyone knew the answer to that one because all know how I fuss about hubby smoking!


04) Color of my eyes?

Answers received:

Hazel
Brown
Brown
Blue
You got those Mood Ring eyes...
emmm I think they are blue or is it ranger thats blue and your brown?
Green
Depends on your mood... I think normally a hazel/green colour though.
Hazel


Answer: If you'd seen a close pic of me you'd know this. LOL@ at the Mood Ring answer because that is actually closer to what they are. I have what I call kaleidescope eyes. They're technically a blue-green hazel (more green than blue). Depending on my mood, health, the clothes Im wearing, lighting , etc etc etc....they look to change colors. It can be very cool when it happens and it happens quickly. When Im in a good mood...they're more blue...kind of like turquoise. When I get mad...they go pure green.


05) Do I have any siblings?

Answer: Again, everyone got it right! I have one genious brother that Im absolute proud of and jealous of all at the same time.

06) What's one of my favorite things to do?

Answers received:
According to your husband...hehe
crafts/paint plaster thingys
crafts
Read edumacashunals
Get allergy shots! No, you enjoy reading edumacationals.
spend time with Ranger
crafts such as the little christmas villages
Listen to music.
Play music and crafts


Answers: Im as ecclectic in my hobbies as I am in my music. Every one of these was right its own way. LOL! I love to spend time with hubby, painting, counted cross-stitch, listen to my tunes, blog, read the edjumakashunalz (comics), work on my web pages, make banners, do wallpapers and generally hang out with my friends.


07) What's my favorite type of music?

Answers received:
Rock
Rock
top 40
Anything but rap... but, I'm going with older rock and rollrock
Good time rock and roll
Long-hair and strange to me
Rock 'n' roll
Rock and Roll


Answers: Like I said in #06, Im ecclectic. I was taught to appreciate most types of music. My music files range from 12 Stones all the way to ZZTop and a good deal of everything in between. I mostly stick to rock and top 40 but I really love me some 80's tunes anyday. Ohhh yes some old time rock and roll ...gotta love it!!! Contrary to popular belief, I appreciate *some* rap, but not alot. I go mostly for what some would call rap-lite. I can sit and listen to Will Smith anyday but once in a while I've been known to listen to Eminem as well. The hard-core stuff though, hell no. LOL@ the long hair comment. I know where she got that from though as I was listening to Yanni alot back then. These days it's rock, pop and jazz.....gotta love listenin to Lao Tizer.


08) Am I shy or outgoing?

Answers received:
DUH!
Shy
outgoing
outgoing
You've never been shy
shy to a point, outspoken is more you LOL
You would say shy but I think you are outgoing
Generally outgoing, though you can sometimes be a bit reserved in some situations.
Outgoing


Answer: LOL@ the DUH answer. That one showed up because Im a Leo and that respondant grew up with me. Technically, in a face to face situation...Im extremely reserved until I know the person Im talking to....then watch out. I used to be more like I am in chat...very outgoing and gregarious but life has taught me some hard lessons so I tend to stand back and measure a person up before I even approach them nowadays. Sad really, but most of the time these days I like to keep to myself. Too many people look down their noses as I talk to them or ask questions that they really wish they hadnt by the time Im done answering them. *shrugz*


09) am I a rebel or do I follow the rules?

Answers received:
A rebel who follows the rules
Rebel
rebel
You follow 'em after making them
You rebel at senseless rules - especially at work!
rebel rebel rebel
you can be a rebel but generally follow the rules
It depends if you agree with the rules or not
You follow the rules if they make sense, otherwise, watch out!


Answer: Well I much dont know how to answer this one. It's funny that everyone seems to think Im a rebel though. Maybe I am. There are several that are very close. I try my best to follow the rules as best as I can but if the rules go against common sense then I find I have trouble following them. LOL and YES....if they really dont make sense then watch out!


10) Any special talents?

Answers received:
again...see your hubby
Making banners
Is this PG or Adult rated? LMAO
Ceramics
Your crafts and story-telling
yep you make some beautiful ceramics
artsy and craftsy
You do a really good job with those figures you paint and give as gifts.
Many - writing and painting are two of them


Answers: LOL evidentally there were a couple of you on the same wave-length here! *laffz* Since a person generally will enjoy hobbies that they do very well in (as in have some bit of talent in), I dont have much to add to this one.


11) How many children do I have?

Answers received:
None yet!
None yet
none yet
2 furbabies
Two furbabies - the "cha-wawa" being adopted?
none yet
None
No human children. Just 2 furkids... Katie Lou and Dharma.
Two gorgeous cha-hua-huas


Answer: I dont have any two legged ones at this point (but it's fun trying!!!). I do have 2 furbabies (furkids) named Katie Lou and Dharma....one is a chihuahua and the other is of the feline purrrrrsuasion. Here's a picture of them in our kitchen in Dallas. It doesnt look like it, but they get along quite well for being of different species. The canine just tends to get pushy and demanding of affection and the feline.....well she aint fond of that. She never raises a paw against her "sister" though.

12) If you and I were stranded on a desert island, what is one thing that I would bring?
Answers received:
a boat!
allergy medicine
laptop
A wireless laptop so you can read your comics and blog :)
A complete DJ porta-roadmaster cart with generator and enough music CDs to never repeat a song in a decade.
hubby
I hope for food but probably a book or TV
Your allergy meds. :)
Hubby and number 11
Answer: Can I take them all?


Speaking the same language

Calvin: I'm hungry. Can I have a snack?
Mom: Sure. Help yourself.
Third frame you see Calvin with a cookie jar in hands and a cookie in his mouth.
From the other room Calvin hears mom say: You can have an apple or an orange from the fridge.
Calvin: (speaking to the readers) Even though we're both talking English, we're not speaking the same language.

*************

I've had this particular comic in my files for a while now and had no clue what I wanted to use it for. All I knew is that I found it funny. Today, as I was cleaning files and such, I came across it and my mind wandered. I know, it's a rather dangerous thing as it likes to go off onto some weird tangents and tends to get very very very lost.

Anyhow, it reminded me of several stories....many that have happened in our blogs simply because of the fact we're on different continents. Some that also come to mind have occured right here in my own home country. One that's standing out in my mind right now took place in the late '90s.... infact I think it was in 1996 because that was my first year at the school I was working for at that time. I was substituting for a teacher this particular day. The rule was, no food or drink in the classroom, simple right? The second floor where this classroom was had a water fountain as well as 2 soda machines. Well this one girl, thought she'd pull one over on me. She asked me if she could get a cold drink. I told her it was fine. She smiled and took herself straight to the soda machine and I thought to myself...clever girl....but not clever enough. When she walked in, the kids were snickering thinking she pulled on over on me because she did ask for a cold drink, I told her to drop the soda off at the desk and she could pick it up after class. The look of surprise on her face when I told her to do that was priceless. At this point she reminds me that I DID say she could have a cold drink. My reply? "There's the water fountain. The water is cold and is a drink....therefore THAT is a cold drink. You said nothing about wanting a soda to which the answer is no". The laughing got louder when the kids realized that I knew how to play their game and I knew how to play it one better. The fact that the girl in question was a class bully who was known for walking all over the subs by finding loopholes; the fact I found the loophole as quickly as I did and closed it off....made it funnier still to the kids in the room.

Just some fun

Found this link in an old entry from my Yahoo360. Thought ya'll might enjoy it too.

http://www.bostonuk.com/name_meanings.php

Not only will first or last names come up but nicks you use in chat as well. It makes me suspect they have a bunch just on rotation through but it's fun to see how close they are. Then again, I just ran my nicks back through again more than a year later and the same thing comes up for each as I got before.

Questionnaire

Many of you may remember a few weeks back, a questionnaire that got sent around to many. Several of you played along (and a couple didnt....you know who you are!), but I'm realizing that a few in here didnt get to (that would be because I dont have your email addies...). So, Im going to put it up in here. If you played in the email, no need to answer here too as I still have your responses.

Normally I dont bother with this type of game simply because they are 25-30 questions in length (sometimes longer..*ugh*) and many times I get the same damn ones over and over. This one caught my eye though because the instructions said for me to fill it out in regards to the person that sent it. It was fun to see how well I knew the sender. Then I was to send the game along and see how many really knew me (and some know me too damn well!). With the exception of maybe 3-4 questions, there were no real "right" answers as some of my friends saw me at different points of my life. The one that got all the answers "right" has known me for over 30 yrs. Those that I met in chat had different "right " answers to some of the questions and the one other that played, well she was a co-worker many years ago so had a different "right" answer for a couple of them.

Here's the game (remember you're answering about me...):

01) Where did we meet?

02) Take a stab at my middle name?

03) Do I smoke?

04) Color of my eyes?

05) Do I have any siblings?

06) What's one of my favorite things to do?

07) What's my favorite type of music?

08) Am I shy or out going?

09) Am I a rebel or do I follow the rules?

10) Any special talents?

11) How many children do I have?

12) If you and I were stranded on a desert island, what is one thing that I would bring?

Like I said, many dont have any one right answer. Depending on when you met me, will determine the answers. Any one who caught my streaming days should be able to answer #7 at least. Numbers 2,3, and 5 have definite right answers though not all will know them so no worries. I'll be putting the answers up later this week.

*HUGZ*

It bears retelling

This one is a repost from my Yahoo360. With iggy hunting the elusively photogenic Charley, I thought I'd copy the story over here for those who havent read it yet. There are a couple other stories I allude to in this entry. If you havent heard those either, and want me to post them (or have heard them and want them down so you can read them again), lemme know.

October 3, 2006

So I was in chat the other day and we were all cutting up as per usual when my AlaSis had to run to the potty. ~grinz~ So I pulled my usual "slide a litterbox under the chair with InCaseOfEmergency written on it" routine. At this point those that had heard the story bust out laughing and of course I was asked to tell that story in room again. This got my AlaSis to laughing so hard I thought she was gonna run for the potty again. Then my sweet OklaSis decided to point out I never told the squirrel story in this particular site. Now my AlaSis wants to hear it but it's too damn long to type in the room (I usually tell it on the air because it's faster...but then I get laughing and cant talk...maybe that's why they like for me to tell it). I had to promise to put it in here sometime so here it is. Best put a towel down in your chair, squeeze your kidneys and dont be drinkin as you read farther. I aint responsible if you wet yourselves.

About 12 yrs ago or so I used to work for WalMart. I was originally hired to be on the day-time receiving team with 2 other gals. After a few months there, the manager came back and asked us what we all liked best about the area and was fishing for our strong points. I loved the job but I was stronger in doing the paperwork and more patient at finding errors and correcting them than my partners. Janice was the one that was fastest at processing the incoming freight and the third girl...well she was slow on everything. It was decided since I liked paperwork so well that I should cross-train in the claims dept (damages). This was cool, lots of paperwork and I got to work with someone new (Judy). Shortly after I got trained they decided to cut the staff in receiving by a third and since I could do both jobs I got to stay and float between Janice's area in receiving and Judy's in claims and the third gal was relocated.


Well Janice, bless that sweet lady, was prone to pulling pranks when things were slow. She was forever trying to startle me but it never really worked because my mind was in 5 different places at once and I never really noticed any one particular thing. Once she tried sticking one of those big rubber rats in the compactor and had me empty the trash...so I open the door and never noticed the rat. LOL. She tried again by putting it outside the receiving doors in the open around the corner a bit then called me out to check out this car...again I didnt see it because I had my head up looking for the car. But...I remembered this...and told her that payback would come eventually at a time she didnt expect. She just laughed it off because I was one of the more laid back people in the store.

My chance finally came that autumn. Every Monday was magazines day. This meant we had a HUGE shipment of magazines to check in and a bunch that had to be scanned back out later. A rep would come in and help us check them in, take them to the sales floor and stock the new stuff as she pulled the old stock off the shelves for return. Once a month the shipment was huge because the monthly mags came in (Cosmo, RedBook). These were a pain because we had to make sure they were family store appropiate (Cosmo most times was NOT). Anyhow, this one autumn day Debbie (the rep) was in and we got the magazines checked in. Once they were done she was in the habit of going out with Janice for a smoke break. So they go out this one very nice autumn day and Im still working and enjoying the tunes on the radio we were allowed back there and really enjoying the weather. It was warm enough to keep the one empty bay door open and the side bay (where the reps would enter the store) door open too. A very nice breeze that day. Next thing I know I hear some SCREAMING comin from outside. I peeked out and Janice and Debbie were standing on the picnic table in total fits and Janice yelled "CLOSE THE DOORS!". Well she was boss back there so I did. I was really pissy because I was really likin the sunshine and breeze for sure. When she got back in she started telling me about this squirrel that came after her and Debbie...that she thought it had rabies or something. It had chased them up the table and has started running for the receiving doors and that's why she wanted them closed. Well you can imagine I was laughing really hard at this point. She called up Tommy in the Sporting Goods Department and next thing I know this "great hunter" shows up with a pellet gun and some rounds...slips out the door and commenses to shooting into the stacks of pallets out there. We never saw anything and no corpses showed up ...but this wasnt the end of it. You do remember what I told Janice earlier right? ~grinz evilly~

So anyhow, Tommy and his friend Gerritt (he's the one with the ummm cowboy costume story I was telling too...LOL) get this idea a couple days later to pull a prank on her. So...while we were out to lunch they get this squirrel statue from the lawn and garden area and set it outside the receiving doors with a sign that says "Where's my mommy!!??". After planting this, they swing into the break room and tell me to check in early and tell me what's up. So we go into receiving and weed ourselves into the piles of pallets and watch. Janice comes back from lunch and promptly pops the door open for the afternoon shift....I thought she was going to come clear outta her skin...arms flapping....jaws gaping and a screeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeech! Of course the 5 or 6 of us hiding and watching bust out laughing because we got her really good. She vowed to get each and every one of us back....so in my mind it wasnt over yet...not by a long shot! Judy wasnt at the store when it happened...she was helpin in one of the stores in the southern part of the state.

Judy called a couple days after the whole "Where's my mommy" incident to see how I was holding up dealing with the claims area myself and of course I told her about the squirrel incident. She began laughing and said patch me to receiving...dont tell Janice who it is. So I call down for Janice to pick up the phone and she asks who and I tell her I dunno they asked for you and no I have no idea why the idiot in the fitting room sent it to claims. It got quiet for a while in receiving...a long while. Next thing I know she's hollaring. Judy called back and told me she had said she was from the EPA and had harrassed Janice with the old "didnt you know it was illegal to hunt squirrels? They are an endangered species!" bit. LOLOLOL OMG Janice was so pissed. Again she promises revenge and again I smile knowing it aint over yet.

A while later, several weeks later infact, a letter turned up from a "lawyer" regarding a suit for the wrongful death of Mrs S Squirrel on behalf of Squirrel Jr. Yet again, promises of revenge ( and I do recall her *trying* to get us all back...without much success) and again the small smile knowing my job wasnt done yet. So I let it go a bit longer. Things quiet down and Im working in claims after the Christmas holidays with Judy. While we were talking we decided that things had gotten a bit boring in receiving and maybe we needed to stir something up again. Judy told me that Mike had been squirrel hunting a few years back and had one mounted on a small branch. I just gave Judy this really evil smile and she goes "I should shouldnt I" I said "yep".

Next day she came in at 7am (receivers started at 8am so this was ideal) with this stuffed and mounted squirrel. We hid it in the claims area for later. Janice came in and went right down to work and Judy and I just giggled all day long. Judy was supposed to leave around 4pm but worked later. Janice (who's quitting time is normally 5pm) finished up earlier and headed for the office to do the paperwork for the day. Once she went to the office, Judy and I packaged up the squirrel so it looked like it was going to pounce outta the box. We sealed it up real well so it looked like a transfer from another store. Then Judy wrote a note on a slip of computer paper saying it was a transfer and very important to be checked in right away for a customer the following morning. She then signed it with Scott the store manager's signature (oh boy she had that man's signature down pat too!). When Judy went to sign out she was able to tell me that Janice left. At that point I took the package down to receiving and carefully set it on her desk.

The next morning I came in at 7am to help Judy get some returns done. By 8am when Janice came in, Judy and I were hard at work and barely noticed her come in. When we heard the receiving bay doors open, we looked at each other and smiled but continued working. We heard the radio turn on and knew she was headed for her desk back there. A few moments later we hear something get dropped and her screaming her head off...to which we commensed to laughing. We were still laughing when a couple of the gals from the back office came running down the hallway (receiving is at one end of the hall and the offices at the other...and it's a long hall aint it Bill?). They slowed down and just looked at Judy and I and we just laughed harder. Now they knew we had something to do with that yell....and asked. So I told them at which point they felt it'd be safer to just go back to the office and stay there. The phone rang....was an instore call from receiving....I was called a bitch and more promises of revenge. I simply smiled, knowing I wasnt done yet. I let it go a few years and wrote Judy (she's the only one who's bothered to stay in contact, although they all send their well wishes when she writes back) and in her letter I sent a card...with a squirrel on it. To which I get a message in Judy's letters that Janice called me a bitch again and promises revenge. Then I smile, knowing I aint done even yet. This reminds me....I owe Judy a letter. I think I'll get a stuffed flamingo for her this year...and a squirrel for Janice. I anticipate I'll get a note calling me a bitch and promises of revenge to which I'll smile and know this will still go on for another couple years.


I warned ya. Now dont you wish you put that towel down and Scotchgarded the chair? Or are you saying to yourself...what a silly stupid story? I guess you had to be there. But it's a good story for a laugh among friends and a reminder that paybacks are a bitch and so am I...

dontcha just love the timing of things?

Oh how I love the timing of things. Iggy knows exactly what Im talking about as we've talked about it before via email. How a topic will come up in the Blogs or chat and next thing I know....they show up in a picture or the comics somewhere else on the web within a day or so. The latest one was brought up in Chicagolady's July 22nd entry regarding the bird variety as well as Kaylee’s fish variety . Well today while reading the edjumikashunalz I came across the following :
Girl: So you see Mr Bee, this is Ikebana. The art of Japanese flower arranging.
Bee: Hmmm
Girl: The flowers are arranged in an aesthetic tone, according to which way each flower will seem the most happy. They do seem happy, neh?
Bee: Woof!
Girl: ?
Bee: they may seem happy to you, but to a bee, that's porn.

Now, I've heard of the birds and bees...but the fish? *shakes head*


The Seattle paper I look at daily (for the edjumikashunalz), has links off to the right with pictures attached. Many times it'll be the weeks amazing animals or modeling in Europe or even star sightings. Well the other day, while perusing the day's pictures, I saw one that brought a couple entries to mind. The first being Chicagolady's entry of July 19th and the other being from out of iggy’s blog . What was the picture? Why this of course:


According to Seattlepi.com , they are "Sculptures of people performing Tai Chi are displayed at Peking University in Beijing, China. A total of 600 sculptures have been placed on the campus to usher in the Olympic Games. Peking University Gymnasium is the table tennis venue for the 2008 Beijing Olympics." So long as Angelina Jolie isnt in town doing a Tomb Raider convention, they should be safe.


These are only two of the more recent occurances of this happening to me. There's another story of this happening with my SIL (I swear if that one lady in the comics gets preggers again I'll cry because it means another niece or nephew is coming along). Now I know I cant POSSIBLY be the ONLY one that this has happened to. Feel free to use my comment section to share your experiences with this odd phenomenon. While you're at it answer this, do these events happen due to some really wonky cosmic timing OR is it simply that they were there all along and we've noticed them simply because we've been discussing them (aka: the iggy OCHA effect)?

A wonderful song



Been travelling down memory lane today, salvaging old posts from another site and working a section here for them to make sure they're not lost. I'll put the link up in a day or so. I wont be doing much with it other than moving the entries over so the decor isnt likely to change from what I have it at now. Anyhow, I was in Alice's blog and thought of this song so I thought I'd stick the vid up in here in case anyone else needs the same boost that I've needed today.

Here are the lyrics:
Some Dreams Live On In Time Forever
Those Dreams You Want With All Your Heart
And I'll Do Whatever It Takes
Follow Through With The Promise I Made
Put It All On The Line
What I Hoped For At Last Would Be Mine

If I Could Reach Higher
Just For One Moment Touch The Sky
From That One Moment In My Life
I'm Gonna Be Stronger
Know That I've Tried My Very Best
I'd Put My Spirit To The Test
If I Could Reach

Some Days Are Meant To Be Remembered
Those Days We Rise Above The Stars
So I'll Go The Distance This Time
Seeing More The Higher I Climb
That The More I Believe
All The More That This Dream Will Be Mine

If I Could Reach Higher
Just For One Moment Touch The Sky
From That One Moment In My Life
I'm Gonna Be Stronger
Know That I've Tried My Very Best
I'd Put My Spirit To The Test
If I Could Reach

If I Could Reach Higher
Just For One Moment Touch The Sky
I'm Goona Be Stronger
From That One Moment In My Life
I'm Gonna Be So Much Stronger Yes I Am
Know That I've Tried My Very Best
I'd Put My Spirit To The Test
If I Could Reach Higher
If I Could If I Could
If I Could Reach
Reach I'd Reach I'd Reach
I'd Reach' I'd Reach So Much Higher
Be Stronger

ItshouldabeenaKodakmoment

Have you ever had those ItshouldabeenaKodakmoments and you could just kick yaself (or someone else)? Shouldabeen as in either you (or the loved one that you handed the camera to) hit the button that split second too soon (or too late) and then the camera takes forever to set itself for the next shot OR the battery dies OR worst yet, you forgot to grab the damn camera in the first place and if you go back home for it and return to the spot of the moment the moment is gone? I had several of those in the 5 days starting July 30th thru August 3rd.

01) Normally, I have my camera with me at all times. Wednesday, while I was headed to the salon to get my hair done, I was in the alleyway that splits the stripmall in two. It's a short cut that those in my subdivision use to get to the stores over there without having to go the long way around (it cuts travel time by 75% or more easily). Anyhow, while in the alleyway....I saw this HUGE butterfly sunning itself on the wall of one of the stores. It was a butterfly I'd never seen before too, a horace’s duskywing , and it was less than a foot away from me sunning itself on the wall.

02) On the trip through Maryland headed to New Jersey, just before the Fort McHenry tunnel, I looked to my right and there was this huge ship sitting out in the bay. It was big, grey and had a military look to it. I couldnt identify the ship with the angle I was seeing it at. If I was up higher (a bridge or something) I may have been able to tell at least what type it was (what with all the damn models I had to paint when I was married to that first friggin idjit). I was really hoping it was still there when we came back through and of course it wasnt.

03) To file in the too soon category, how about missing the bride and groom's first kiss because the husband (to whom I relinquished the camera to because he was in the perfect seat for the perfect shot) clicked the shutter too soon and the camera just couldnt get itself reset fast enough? Yeah. That's definitely a "Itshouldabeenakodakmoment".

04) Better yet, how about missing the garter toss because the camera's batteries crapped out on ya? Yeah...I clicked at just the right moment and then.... "low battery" flashes at me and here I am, at a wedding with kids around and cant swear or throw a fit.

05) I think that my very favorite is the one where I went in complete shock on the ride home upon seeing the sign on the back of this truck. It took me a full 3 minutes or longer of staring at it in a traffic jam and my husband's surprised comment of "You're not gonna get a picture of that?" to rouse me enough to turn on the camera and lift it up to get the shot. Needless to say the truck got well outta range before the camera was ready and I was REALLY pissed at myself for missing it. What the truck say? Oh who knows. I can tell you that it musta belonged to a handiman company (carpenter or otherwise) because the back said something about "If you need a screw fast" or something to call them. Yeah, now ya see why I went into friggin shock!

Ok. Now it's your turn. Name at least 3 "ItshouldabeenaKodakmoment"s that you've had.

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