Which character are you?
For those of you who have seen the movie "Donnie Darko" (and I suppose even if you haven't, you could do this for MY enjoyement, though it wouldn't mean much to you), check out
this site to find out which character you are! Let me know what you all find out. :)
I am Frank.
Yes, wonderful. I'm a big, grey, demonic looking bunny rabbit.
End of the week
For all of those who may be interested in reading a much more entertaining blog than mine, check out this blog at
http://captainhoof.tripod.com/blog/.
Well, it's the end of the week folks. Friday. It's 61 degrees out today in blustery Pittsburgh, and, because it's so dark, I feel like it's 5:00pm in the winter and I should be going home. However, it's early. I practically just got here. *sigh* It'll warm up by day's end, hopefully bringing some sun for the much anticipated Pirates/Cubs double-header tonight (which I will be attending, of course).
I'm currently FREEZING, attempting to type with quasi-numb fingers. Someone in this building has no concept of what a comfortable working temperature should be!!
SO, here is my amusing anecdote for the day: This actually occurred a couple of weeks ago while I was out with Michelle doing laundry (as I just did laundry again last night, it brings the story back to mind). To set the stage, I was wearing a long, patchwork-type, mostly brown skirt. ANYWAY...I was putting clothes into the washer when this guy says, "Excuse me ma'am, I don't mean to interrupt your cycle, but are you Polish?" Fortunately I only heard the "Excuse me" and the "are you Polish", so I was able to be polite and answer the question (apparently he thought I was Polish because of my skirt). However, Michelle just about fell on the floor. Being a nice person, I was talking to this guy (who had some obvious deficiencies in the social skills department, though I will not speculate on the specifics here) while finishing up "my cycle". :) Then it was time to leave to get Rita's (frozen custard) around the corner. It took me a good 5 minutes to get away (by this time, Michelle had already gone out into the parking lot to call Jon (as he was going to join us at Rita's) and to escape to a place where she could laugh her ass off at me).
SO...we go to Rita's. Michelle and I get our custards, we sit down, the guy shows up (oh, he was with his Mom, who was also a bit odd). And starts talking about the Cold Stone Barfery (or Schmooery, whichever you prefer) and how his favorite flavor is the sweet cream. He proceeds to describe it as "like the sweetest buttery milk that your mom used to churn". Bite tongue, straight face, keep talking. FINALLY, I get the conversation to a point where he is leaving, when Jon has to go and say something to the effect of, "oh yeah, my mom churns butter all the time." Asshole. The guy took him seriously though, and proceeded to go on talking about a farm he visited where they churned butter. once again, enter the smart ass, Jon says "I think that's the farm where my mom works." oh dear. Anyway, the guy FINALLY left, Michelle was able to wipe the tears from her eyes, and I was able to tell Jon he was an asshole....a lovable asshole, of course. :)
Two days later, I see the guy and his mom on the bus...I duck my head, keep walking to the front, get off quickly. I was wearing a different skirt and feared he might think I was Swedish this time.
Alas, that is probably far more amusing to the people involved than to anyone else who might be reading this, but my posts of late have been all news stories, and so I thought I'd add in a little taste of my everyday life for you. There you have it. Exciting, huh?
:)
Give me a head with Hair
So, apparently your hair can tell others much about you, including where you live, what you eat, your lifestyle, etc. Check out
this article from the Science section of the Yahoo news.
Crackdown on the pizza front; new
Pizza Purity??
Any clown name Spanky would get me wondering. Ringling Bros clown, Spanky a
kiddie porn king. Well, we know that we can get Patrick Swayze to play him in the made for TV movie. :)
More Big Cat News
Thanks to Brian for providing me
this link about Ligers and Tigons. Believe it or not, people are crossbreeding lions and tigers! Perhaps the mystery animal in Lake County, IL (for more news on this, see Scott's Blog) is a crossbreed between big cats and dogs! :)
Flatulent Bulldogs Rule as Cannes Top Dogs
CANNES, France (Reuters) - A pair of flatulent bulldogs were picked Friday for the top dog award at Cannes.
The "Palm Dog" prize for best canine performance in a film has become a regular feature at the festival, running alongside, albeit at a respectful distance from, the Palme d'Or award.
Judges of the annual spoof award -- five British and French journalists -- finally settled on the bulldogs owned by renowned American wine critic Robert Parker.
The dogs made an explosive appearance in the documentary "Mondovino" that traced the trials and tribulations of vineyards around the world.
For the full story, go
here.
It's Friday...
...
For all of you Peter Sellers fans out there, a new movie is coming out called "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" in which Geoffery Rush is playing Peter Sellers (apparently very well). Check out the story
here.
Talking Toilet Orders Men to Sit Down.
German women fed up with a man with a poor aim can turn to the ghost-shaped gadget, which lurks under the toilet rim and, if the seat is lifted, declares in a stern female tone:
"Hello, what are you up to then? Put the seat back down right away, you are definitely not to pee standing up ... you will make a right mess..."
NEW YORK - A lawyer who barked like a dog at a witness during a deposition has been fined $8,500 for misconduct and harassment of opponents.
For the full story, go
here.
In the news
In case anyone is wondering, I get almost all of my news links from the Yahoo News section. So, here are some interesting tidbits of the day:
For all you Radiohead fans out there,
here is a story about guitarist Johnny Greenwood becoming the new BBC composer.
Another movie for the Bacon (and another opportunity to hone your skills in Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon)! I'm a bit confused by
this story, about how difficult it was for him to play a pedophile, after his role in "Sleepers".
To clarify about the Big Unit (see post below), his was the 16th perfect game of the "modern era", but the 17th overall. Read
here for full story.
Go Big Unit!
As some may already know, tonight Randy Johnson (of the AZ Diamondbacks)threw the second no-hitter of his career and his first perfect game (prior to tonight, this had only occurred 15 times in baseball history). I had the pleasure of watching this game, which was quite exciting. Needless to say, the D-backs won. :) By the ninth inning, despite being in Atlanta, all the fans were on their feet cheering for the Big Unit as he struck out the last batter to get his perfect game.
For the whole story, go
here.
News of the day
Does anyone actually believe that Jessica Simpson is NOT an idiot? If so, do you too believe that chicken of the sea is really chicken? Or are you too confused about where buffalo wings come from, since buffalos have no wings? Anyway, here is news on her latest endeavor to
promote fresh breath.
Petroleum Jelly Man
Turkish Bakery turned Brothel is Bombed
And for continuing news on mountain lions found in residential neighborhoods, read
this story about a mountain lion chased up a tree and shot in Palo Alto.
And one final thing before I get back to working, the Bowie concert last night was AWESOME!! :)
Monday monday monday...
Returning to work after a weekend away is always difficult. True, I got home early enough last night to watch the recorded last episode of Frasier and the most recent (from about two weeks ago) episode of Alias (again, on tape). I was able to sit on our WONDERFUL new rocker/recliner and relax for a good two and a half hours. However, Monday still comes too early (especially after going to bed well after 3am!).
On the plus side, this is no ordinary Monday. Tonight is the long awaited night of the Bowie concert. Of all the music groups/individual performers past or present, I would have to put Bowie into the top ten of those I respect most. For one thing, I love his music. More than that though is the respect I have for him of being a performer for over 35 years without becoming stale. He has continuously reinvented his style, collaborating with a variety of other artists (from Queen ("Under Pressure") to Trent Reznor ("I'm Afraid of Americans")), adapting to the trends and styles of the decade, braving the mullet... :) Needless to say (but I'll say it anyway), I'm very excited about the concert tonight.
Does anyone know what "Coregistration" is???
I have only two short hours remaining to sit in my office and attempt to finish everything I need to do (granted, I have more than two hours of work left, but the latter part of my day will be spent at the PMS clinic (that would be Pitt Men's Study)). Sadly, everything is running VERY slowly.
So I sit and wait, checking every minute or so to see if my Coregistration (that's what I happen to be doing at the moment, which means almost as little to me as it does to you) is complete so that I can get on with the rest of the things I need to do. I used to think I was a patient person, but this kind of waiting would drive anyone crazy.
Okay, here are some fun news links for the day:
(this one isn't so much fun as just interesting):
Disney not playing nice with Michael Moore
City Declares "No Communist Zone"
Coming Soon to a Store Near You - Chinese Cola
Gentle Giant - World's Tallest Man
There really wasn't much. I refrained from including the Priest shoots Mayor in drunken brawl article, as Scott beat me to it (if you're interested, go to
Scott's Blog and check out one of today's postings.
Alas, this will probably be it for me for the weekend, so happy weekend to everyone!!
Stuff
For those who have been following the comments, I seem to have opened a can of worms by posting that Bush quote. While it is good to know that some good has come from our war in Iraq, I am not going to suddenly change my mind and agree that pre-emptive war is okay. I am not going to change my mind and suddenly believe that it is okay for the US to be above international law. I am not going to say it is okay to put ANYONE on an "Axis of Evil". While our media may not often portray those in Iraq who we have helped, and while our media does focus on those groups and individuals who seem to have even more hatred now for the US, it is done in such a way as to make those individuals appear "evil". NEVER is any responsibility taken on our part. Everything we do is justified, because we are "good". THAT is what I disagree with the most. My point was never about the outcome.
So, that said, I should also mention that there is a reason I try to avoid discussion centering around the government, the war...other related topics. There is a reason that I try to usually keep things more light, fun...harmless? Anyway, tomorrow I will return to my more jovial ways. Serious doesn't work well for me. :)
Oh, and on a side note, tomorrow evening I will be leaving for NYC to see my wonderful friend Jeni graduate from NYU law. Congrats to Jeni! Figured I'd let you know that there will be, after tomorrow, a brief three day hiatus in my daily musings.
Low-rise jeans - the controversy
For any who are regular readers of Dan Savage's column "Savage Love" (this can be found at www.theonion.com (look left) in the A.V. Club section), you may be aware of the controversy that has arisen over Dan agreeing "100 percent" that most women look bad in low-rise jeans (and by low-rise we're talking making the cover of my coffee table book, thongs hanging out, creating rolls over the sides of your jeans kind of low-rise). The backlash has been from people accusing Dan Savage of being a "fat-hater" and inducing eating disorders in America's youth. However, I would say that those readers are reading way too much into what he said. I think his point was that MOST women (and this doesn't have anything to do with weight or build) don't look all that great in those super low-rise jeans. In this, I agree with him. Even those few and far between who meet the standards of today's "media beauty" rarely pull it off. At least in my (and apparently Dan Savage's) opinion. However, I am no fashion mogul. Far from. And I am also no supporter of over the belly-button-halfway-to-the-armpits jeans. I also sympathesize with those having difficulty finding any these days that fall somewhere inbetween (somehow clothes always seem to go from being juniors to being middle-aged...at least in cities like Pittsburgh where fashion and clothing stores are not a high priority). Anyway, as it seemed to create such a huge controversy in "Savage Love", I would be curious to hear that thoughts of others on the matter.
****NOTE: If you are interested in reading the columns referred to above, the first is April 28th and the second is May 12 (the current one): END NOTE****
More links that promise hours of fun and excitement!
Doesn't the title sound like some of the spam that fills the junkboxes of free web-based email accounts?
I have added another new link (Tiffanie's Pictures - on the left), and I wanted to call your attention to it. Tiffanie, for those who don't know, would be my sister who lives in Phoenix, AZ. There are some really awesome pic's on this website, so check it out!!
Also, here are today's whacky news links:
Soccer Fan Named Chant Laureate of England
Unlimited Free Beer at Hockey Games in FL
Man Seeks Revenge on SUV Damaging Turkey
Pet Racoon Dies Weighting 75 Pounds
And now, apparently, couples may get PAID to have children in Australia, to boost the diminishing birth rate. Go Australia.
Rachel Carson Trail Challenge
I must be crazy. Our wonderful friend Jessica somehow (without much arm twisting, surprisingly!) convinced Jon and I that it would be a good idea to attempt the
Rachel Carson Trail Challenge on Saturday, June 19th.
After reading some of the accounts from previous hikers and hearing from my co-worker that his uncle (a marathon runner) said that this hike was far more challenging than running a marathon, I'm beginning to be a bit afraid. All the people who stopped sweating, passed out, or starting throwing up on the trail also add to that fear a bit. Then there's the guy who said having to come back and try again next year would be a "fate worse than death." HOWEVER, I have hiked before, and I'm in better physical shape now than when I hiked before (this would be in AZ mostly, though the longest trail we ever did was 11.2 miles in Chiricahua). I know to bring salty foods, lots of water, extra socks, good shoes, etc etc. However, I need all the help I can get if I'm even going to make it halfway! SOOO, anyone out there with hiking experience or words of wisdom for ua, PLEASE let me know!!
In the meantime, I am thinking that with only a month left, it's time to seriously start training (this will include a few training hikes on the weekends on the very trail that we will be challenging). Anyone in the Pittsburgh area up for long walks in Frick or around the city or outside the city (if you have a car and know any good places to go), GET IN TOUCH!
That said, I now must go spend 5 hours Neuropysch testing people in a room smaller than most people's closets! so exciting. :)
Our brilliant President (Part I)
I put the Part 1 as I'm assuming that there will be many additions to this over the next (hopefully only) 8 months. Anyway, thanks Brian for sending this my way:
This is a quote from Maureen Dowd's column:
Mr. Bush observed with no irony to Al Arabiya TV:
"Iraqis are sick of foreign people coming in their
country and trying to destabilize their country, and
we will help them rid Iraq of these killers."
These things really happen?
Here is your odd news of the day:
Man Fatally Bitten by Sexually Aroused Horse
The Bat-Whacked Sausage is Retiring
Not many tidbits of odd news today.
Race for the Cure
As many of you know, yesterday I ran in the Race for the Cure here in Pittsburgh. Good times were had; today I am hurting. It's a 5K (3.1 miles) run through the (ridiculously) hilly streets of oakland and squirrel hill. While the winner of the race finished in something like 16 minutes (wow!), I came it at 33:19. True, not an improvement over my Turkey Trot time, but Elmhurst, IL is FLAT!! And this time I ran the whole thing. So, now that my moment of self-praise is over, anyone who gets a chance to do something like this in your own living area, DO IT! It's a great experience.
New Link
I just wanted to call your attention to the new link I added (Thanks to Michelle for bringing it to my attention),
The Gospel According to Lego . This can provide hours of amusement for those both knowledgeable and not knowledgeable about the Bible. These people deserve a Too Much Free Time Seal of Approval!!!
Another cougar
In continuing the trend of cougar sightings across the country,
this Utah man found a cougar in his garage.
Good boy Simba, roll over!
Are the big cat sightings in Illinois and Ohio real? Who knows, but it got me to thinking about, if real, where would the cats come from? The midwest is hardly rife with large predators.
Then I remembered....pets. People have lions, bears, cougars, wolves, snakes, alligators...you name it, they have it. After the whole Sigfried and Roy incident, People Magazine did an article on large cats as pets. It's frightening to think that, unbeknownst to me, you, the state, your nextdoor neighbor may be harboring some large beast (that woman who lived on McKinley Ave in Libertyville had 35 cats in her house for years and no one ever knew).
Don't believe it's possible to get these animals as pets, or curious to see how you could have one for your very own? Check out these links:
exoticpetco.com
exotic pets wholesale
Big Cats Kept as Pets across US
Poem for the day
"Last Fragment" - Raymond Carver
And did you get what
you wanted from this life, even so?
I did.
And what did you want?
To call myself beloved, to feel myself
beloved on the earth.
------------------------------------------------------
Thanks to Brian for sharing this with me so that I could share it with all of you!
Utica Storm Photos
For those who may not know, several weeks ago there were extremely destructive storms that passed through the Utica, IL area. Here is a link (thanks Dennis!) to some photos of the storm and aftermath taken by a resident of the area:
Utica Storm Photos
Odd news of the day
I'll Have 10,000 Chocolate Bars to Go, Please
Reuters - Wed May 5, 8:02 AM ET
A woman with an apparently insatiable sweet tooth stunned staff at a British shop when she bought more than 10,000 chocolate bars and had them loaded into her chauffeur-driven limousine.
go
here for full story.
Lion in Columbus? Check this out:
Lion Hunt
200 Animals found in WI apartment, including alligators and carnivorous beatles. Hmm? Go
here for full story.
Hope you enjoyed your odd news of the day. :)
Long weekend
After a long hiatus from writing, I AM BACK! I spent the weekend in the Chicago area (split between downtown and the burbs). While having time off work is wonderful, there were two downsides to the past two days (which I had off): i was travelling, which isn't particularly relaxing, and so I come back to work tired. Still, it's only a 4 day week for me, which is better than 6! Second, the work seems to pile up while I'm away. I come back to find a huge folder full of data that I've never seen before with a letter on top calling for abstracts for a Neuropsych Conference next February (in St. Louis...not a very exciting place for a conference). It seems that it is my job to take this data and write the abstract (due the first of September). Hmm...this could be interesting.
So, the highlights of my weekend included my trip downtown (a cold but clear day) and getting my niece to call Jackie "the Jorkie." oh, and when she (my 3 year old niece, that is) came in from outside and told everyone in the kitched that "the doglogs are getting a suntan." yes, yes..that was quite amusing.
Alas, work calls. :)
