Oh, so it ISN'T my TOES that are freakish...

I have a hard time keeping up with all of the new words that seem to pop up in daily use nowadays. Ordinarily I can figure out the meaning of new words by the way in which they’re used. I heard a new word recently and I thought that I knew what it meant. It was used in reference to me by someone who obviously doesn’t appreciate my humor so I just figured it was something bad. And since it was used by someone who only knows me online, I knew it had to be because of something that I said or did on this blog.

A while back I wrote a post about my odd feet. I didn’t know that they were odd until people started pointing that fact out to me. I have very long fingers, legs and toes and my second toe is so long it’s actually longer than my great toe. I posted this picture of my malformed foot to go along with the post regarding people who suffer the same ailment:

My freak toe doesn’t bother me, and as far as I know, I’ve never suffered any discrimination because of it. But, I know how people frozen with 8th grade emotions think and most of them would seize the opportunity to make fun of me and my toe. That’s OK, I’m not stuck in 8th grade so I couldn’t care less what some nit wit says about me or my abhorrently long second toes.

Having met more than my share of feeble bullies, I can sort of see the effete attacks before they come. So, after publishing that picture of my malformed toe, I wasn’t surprised to hear that there was a name for that deformity and some childish man-wannabes were using the derogatory term in reference to me. When I became aware of the sad little attempts to annoy me with the toe jokes, I brushed them off and never really thought about it again.

Then, this morning my daughter said that one of her toes was hurting her. That made me think of my toes and the freaks who made fun of them. My daughter seems to be rather hip about things so I decided to get her opinion and see if my toes qualified for the nasty little moniker given to them by some computer troll.

As my daughter walked into the kitchen where I was sitting at the table, I took the sock off of my right foot, stuck my foot up in the air so that it was pointing at my kid and asked her, “Do I have a camel-toe?”

Well, she knew what it meant. First she looked at my face and then she asked, “Are you kidding?” Of course, I was NOT kidding and she could see that. It caused her to laugh for a very long time. She laughed so hard that she couldn’t tell me why it was funny. Eventually she did calm down enough to say, “Look it up on the computer…search images so you can see one.”

I did. Apparently camel-toes have absolutely nothing to do with feet, or toes for that matter. Even after she stopped laughing, my daughter couldn’t quite explain what an actual camel-toe was, but she was able to say that I did have one in this picture of my backside:

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term, it seems as though the camel reference has something to do with two humps.

You know, if I had met someone with a really long second toe, I very well might have called them “Camel-toe”. Knowing me, I would have said it right to their face and with my luck, they would have known exactly what a camel-toe was.

I’m glad that the issue came up with my grown daughter, I could have asked ANYONE had the thought had popped into my head at a different time. Even so, it was slightly embarrassing. I’ve asked a few stupid questions in my life…here are some of the more asinine queries that I’ve made:

1. I took a letter to the Bensenville post office so I could send it to my cousin who lived about 10 miles away. I asked the man if they could send it air mail. He responded, “You could if there were any planes flying from Bensenville to Roselle.”

2. After a night of making love I asked the father of my kids what the fishy smell was. He laughed so hard he had an anxiety attack.

3. I asked my father the name of the song that goes, “Bingo, bango, bongo” over and over again. He didn’t even laugh, he just shook his head and walked away.

4. I walked into Auto Zone and asked for the “small funnel”. I needed one that would help me get the oil in the little hole. Instead, the guy showed me the BIG hole that said OIL.

5. I walked around the Dollar Store looking for someone to tell me how much the sponge in my hand was. Luckily I realized where I was before I actually asked for the price check.

6. My ex had a woman calling our house, I found someone else’s make-up in our car, he stopped calling me from work and he treated me like shit. Then I asked, “Is there somebody else?” That may be the single dumbest question that I, or any other woman, has ever asked a man.

I tried to come up with 10 stupid things that I’ve asked people but I only came up with 6. Do NOT let that lead you to believe that those are the ONLY dumb questions I’ve ever asked. They’re the only 6 that I can come up with right now. I may remember more and if I do, I’ll be back to let you know about them.

For now, I have to take my dog for a walk. He LOVES Los Angeles but they do have a law that ALL dogs (except breeding dogs) have to be de-sexed. That poor dog is a virgin and now he has to lose his testicles without ever having a chance to use them. How sad.

Chocolate!

I think I didn’t tell but I love chocolate too! And yesterday I made a chocolate cake to eat with ice cream, really tasty, and my brother made some hot chocolate to drink, so tasty!

And now I’ve been drinking coffe with chocolate taste, two things that I love in one.

I’m maybe going to buy candy today, as its soon halloween, and there will probably come some annoying kids to steal my /our (my familys) candy like each single year “trick or treat?”. Omg, I still remember when I was the same stupid going around begging for candy, being dressed to an ugly witch, lol.

But when I think about it, maybe it isn’t so stupid anyway, I mean, we buy the candy, and they get it, so that’s good for them atleast and bad for us “old” people. (I’m not old! not yet! I’m just not a kid.. even tho I wish I could still be..)

Random #74

The more I give in, the more attitude she is.

I’ve already tried to be thicked skin and be nice t her, but all I get is more black face and attitude tone.

I feel so… so… stupid.

I just wanna make peace.

I’m really tired of pleasing ppl. I dont owe ppl anything. Why can’t they accept who I am and not how they want me to be?

Sigh. Getting a lil too emotional at this period of the mth.

.

It’s Friday again. Facial later and movie w ex colleagues. Been quite some time since I last saw the girls. =)

A Big, Sickening Breakfast

Jason and I recently had a date morning with Katie Beth.  Her one request was to go to iHop.  She’s been asking to go forever, and as frugal as we’re trying to be lately, sometimes you have to have some extras.  We sat down to look at the menu, and I saw this menu entree which made my heart sink and my stomach sick.  This is a brunch item at iHop that comes with steak, two or three eggs, two bacon slices, two sausages (this person opted for skipping the bacon and doubling the sausage), two pancakes, and potatoes.  It was somewhere around 12ish dollars I think.  (This picture was just one I found online, not anything we ordered.)  I sat there just thinking and thinking and got a little teary-eyed.  It kind of brought together everything God has been speaking to my heart lately.

Why did it make me sick and my heart drop?  My first thougth was Biggest Loser.  We had just watched it the night before and they had gone out to eat and were analyzing the nutritional value of restaurant food.  I thought Jillian would have a hissy fit if she could see that.  It is suprising to me that someone actually orders and eats all of that food in one setting??  Good grief!

But then my immediate follow up thought was, What an African family wouldn’t do for that amount and variety of food!  They’d stretch it out over a week if they could - many of them will NEVER eat like that – even spread out over a week or a month!

Now don’t think if I’m out and see a spread like that before you that I’ll be judging you!  I’m all for good food and induldge myself too often – let’s not even mention the batch of no bake cookies that have disappeared so quickly at my house.  And nobody else at my house really likes them… hmm…

But, God is really working on me with generosity. Our pastor is doing a great series on this right now called Generous Living – my favorite sermon so far has been How to Be Rich.  Sit and watch it if you have a few minutes.  It really puts into perspective how much we really have.

I’m going to be really honest here.  I’ve never been a big giver.  We do give regularly to our church for an amount that is sacrificial for our family.  But, I wish we were giving more.  We do plan to give more as God gives us more, but it’s not going to be skyrocketing anytime soon with saving for an adoption and paying off debt.  But, it has been mine and Jason’s goal for our entire marriage to use whatever we have for God’s glory and for ministry purposes. 

However in the past when we have gotten things that ask us to donate money – anything that goes above and beyond what we already do (like people going on mission trips, someone adopting, a need that has come up, etc.,) I haven’t even really considered it.  We don’t have anything to give.  We just don’t.  I pray for them, I encourage them, and I support them in other ways if possible.  But, I’m usually not giving monetarily.  I’ve also been selfish with my time.  Three kids and working a couple or three contract jobs plus the areas I serve is not easy to manage.  But, could I give a little more of my time?  I could.

One thing that’s been huge for me in this adoption process is learning to accept things from others.  It’s hard for me.  I talked about it here, and I’m still in awe that God is teaching me a lesson through this about receiving.  But, God is also teaching me about giving.

Through the sermon series, small group lessons, discussions with friends, and lots of talks with God, my heart is changing.  Jason and I are already trying to save every penny we can with the adoption so we are rethinking all that we do and things we can do without that we thought were needs – the “extras” we don’t really need.  Which makes me think that I could have been giving at least something all along.  But even still, those small sacrifices don’t add up to much, or do they?

I’ve always thought that sending someone a $25 or $50 or $100 check when they were trying to raise tons of money was almost like a slap in the face, a drop in the bucket, mainly useless.  But, anything we’ve been given – from $25 to $250 is all the same to us encouragement wise!  Obviously the larger amounts get us to our goal quicker, but the fact that someone is willing to remember what we’re doing, believe in it, want to support us, and take the time to sit down, write a check or pull out their check card, and put something behind the support is huge!  Equally huge have been people willing to give of their time to come help – like with the garage sale and cleanup.  Whether it was one hour or 20 hours, it meant so much to us!  I’ve learned that support and prayer is huge, but being willing to back it up with SOMETHING – time or money - is such a blessing to the giver and the receiver!

Because of seeing it on this side, I’m going to try to give more try to be less mindful of what I think I can do and more mindful of what God would have me do.  When someone needs even just an hour of my time to help with a project, I’m going to really work on thinking outside of my immediate little world and giving the hour.  When someone has a financial need, God prompts our hearts, and He gives us the desire to give, I’m going to work on loosening the vice grip on my wallet with the budget numbers flashing before my eyes and instead praying through what God would have us do – which shouldn’t be the cheapest way out either.  Can’t say how much I’ll be doing this while we’re still in the adoption raising money process.  But even in a tight budget, there’s always wiggle room. 

The fact of the matter is that giving is infectious!  Think about it this way.  A man is walking down the road and is carrying a huge load on his back.  He calls out and asks several people for help; people encourage him and tell him he’s doing a great job, but nobody actually lightens his load.  He makes it there, but he used a lot more time and energy than he thought he would.  He’s TIRED and discouraged.  On his trip back home, he sees someone else with a heavy load calling for help.  He wants to help, but you know, he had to carry his own load, he’s tired, and you know what?  The next time he has to carry a big load, nobody will probably be there to help him so he better just conserve his energy.  Do you see how it’s a cyclical problem?  If everyone would give a little, our world could be the place that God desired it to be!  1 John 3:16 – 19 says, “We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us.  So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?  Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions.  Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God.”

My prayer is that God continues to make Jason and I more aware of the wiggle areas in our finances and time.  That He will give us wisdom to recognize when He wants us to give and the ways to make that happen.  And I’m still in awe that while I think we’re just going through the adoption process that God is teaching us so many other things that I know will carry beyond this one time period.  God’s good like that!

SA PILING NIYA...

Wow. I feel like bursting out my blog here rather than in my multiply. I feel like my multiply is sooo dead. NAH. Just INACTIVE> hahaha. ) Anyway, no one bother’s to read this page. No one cares to understand nor to listen to all this crappy thoughts I’m writing. Hey that’s NOT EMO. And the title HAS NO CONSTANT CONNECTION to what I’m saying right now. BUT IT HAS A DIRECT CONNECTION TO MY FEELINGS.

Grabe. Iba na tong nafefeel ko. WHO CARES?

NO, THIS IS WRONG.

I’m constantly in a state of MISSING, WISHING, COUNTING. I don’t wanna put myself to trouble. JUST THAT.

You can’t be too careful anymore, with all that is waiting for you.

Bondings

There are so many meanings to this word ‘bonding’, but what comes first to your mind?

For me, my thoughts run to emotional bonds, bonds of love, bonds of friendship, bongs of adoring, bonds of caring.

Emotions always intrigue me to think more, observe more, see through what appears and what lies beneath, know why you feel a particular way and why not? There’s so much to it and I want to see it, know it. I think that’s why I’m so fond of emotional movies too, like Love Aaj Kal, When Harry met Sally, Jerry Maguire, Wake up Sid, Forest Gump(absolute Fave, I’ll watch it a million times, I think I already know most of the dialogues), Big Fish, Never been Kissed, Made of Honor (Love this, actually love Tom too;) ),P.S. I Love You(awww I cried twice in the first I watch).. and the list can go on. 

Keeping to the original thoughts ‘Emotions and Bonding’. I love to bond, I love the feeling, like you connect, literally like you can sense the existing of this thread that connects you and another person. It feels like you know this something exists and only you can feel this and share this thread/bond, its unique, its only for you too, irreplaceable, absolutely ir-reproduceable. It’s a great feeling!

It might seem that I’m making too much out of a small and very common part of human nature and existence, but,  if you actually stop and think about it, you’ll know that every bonding you share with every person on this earth is so unique. It’s like its your own exclusive antique collection, nowhere else to be found on the earth. Thrilling na! 

I share different kinds of bonding with so many people and this is when I’m not a very social person, so I’m so sure you’all would also have many such bondings…do share…

Friendship Bonding -  Here also there are many types..

I have friends I share a total masti type bonding, we connect on how to have fun and what you find fun. It’s cool! As soon as I say ‘I really enjoy sitting at Nescafe till late nights and sipping coffee’ and the other person says ‘me too’, click, there’s a bonding. Then I have a few friends who might not know much about my personal life and vice-versa, and also we don’t feel there is anything missing if we don’t share it, coz what we’re bonding over is FUN!

There are friends I can talk to for hours without even having to stop for a second to collect what to talk about next. I love this bonding too, the Talk-Talk type, hey! that’s a nice one, I’ll call this ‘Talk-Talk bonding’. It feels so good to be able to say everything in your mind, in fact I think I share this bonding with my blog as well. I love this blog space!! I’m a working software engineer adult! Believe me!/? lol!

Another very unique bonding in friendship is that comes from books & reading. I love this one too. Now I may not know much fancy authors and I usually stick to popular fiction stuff until this last time I went to Connaught Place and picked up random books whose summary seemed interesting from a second-hand books shop (if anyone want to know, it’s the Book corner next to Plaza) and it made me feel all like ‘great reading taste and stuff type’ and the books were all good too (see my novels I’ve read links on right hand). I love to talk about the writing skills and how you interpret these words and how the other person feels about it, and the great thing about this bonding is that it exists even if the ideas you have are totally different, like opposites. It actually excites me to know that a person could find a piece so contrasting to how I felt and interpreted it. I find this different mind and thoughts type stuff quite interesting. I should have so gone into psychology. ‘The bloody list of  Should’s ’ again. Hey next post on this, or maybe a book? You’ll read na..?

And another unique bonding I can think of is the ‘Altering bonding’, this happens that you may connect every time on a different thing, not like every time, but like frequently. And I think this one leads to one of the best friendships you have. I love friendships. I love to care, be cared for, to share, to confess, to console… awww… I’m all aww type now, *back to normal please, I’m in office remember!*

Also, yes I missed the ‘Confess All bonding’, there are some people you feel you can say anything to and they will not judge you for it. I confess to sis and I love her for not judging me, although her love for baby sis does surface and she advices me a little later, but never judges me. Another friend ‘S’ I used to confess to, but now things have gone sour, she was in Delhi and I called her to meet up, then she got busy and left without even talking and then I saw he status on Facebook reading that ‘if we just accept people the way they are no one would end up loosing friends’ and I knew that was for me. She doesn’t consider me her ‘confess all friend’ anymore, or even just a friend. It makes me sad. Really! I lost one very unique bond from my collection and with a  lot of pain in my heart!  But I don’t think about it much as it has been like this for a while now.

Other Bonding -  Now I didn’t want ot put there something like ‘Love Bonding’ or something, coz I feel the source of all the above and next to come bonding is Love is some way or the other.

There’s also this ‘Adoring Bonding’ that might not totally be two-sided by I’d still call it a bonding and add it to my collection please. Sometimes, you find some people so adoring, like you can just sit and watch them/listen to them/observe them. You might adore them for their beauty, intelligence, art, talent, easiness, style, arrogance. It’s so great. I observe strangers sometimes, behaving, reacting, being themselves as in their routine ways. I like to admire the everyday routine-ness of it all, the casual natural and everyday general reactions and behavior. I also adore a few more people, for the way they are or secretly for the way I wish I could be. I love to adore…love.. This bonding make you feel so warm and human (god know why I need to feel this all the time.. wat re-assurance do I want? that I’m not a dog? .. lol! On a serious note, I think I just love to feel that I have a heart. Whatever sense that makes!)

 

Then there is this ‘Protective Bonding’, like you just can’t help but feel so protective of the other person.. oh, this reminds me of Edward Cullen “I feel very protective of you”, do you guys notice the way his lips move up from the corners showing his fang teeth. Ooohhh… I love this decent vampire.. lol! Anyways, so yes, about feeling concern for a person, like you  know they deserve all the good and you want to make sure they get it. It may be your sibling, friend, someone else. It’s all about the concern. I have this bond for my baby bro.

 

One more interesting one I remember, I’ll call it the ‘You as Me Bonding’. You know sometimes when we feel every joy and grief of another person as it is our own. Like anything good happens to them and you start jumping like it was happening to you. Like I told you’all about this friend of mine ‘Nilu’. See me and him, we are so close, like we don’t know each other’s family troubles or other deep feelings, we do share stuff on life, aspirations, feelings, thoughts but all in general, sometimes each other’s relationship stuff also, but when he told me he’s going to New York, I was so happy. I could feel the happiness and I knew when its my turn then also I would feel something very similar. I also adore him  lot. These bonding are the type that make you feel that even if you meet the person after 10 years or talk after ages (like me and him, we have gaps of months) even then everything will be the same, nothing changes between you two. You both might change to become different people in your own lives, but when you’re together, sharing that bonding space, then everything remains as it was 10 years ago. I fee in this bonding there is also a  very strong sense of understanding and being on the same level of thinking. Yay! I have someone like that! You should too…its lovely!

 

I think I’ve exhausted this page..

 

Just one more bonding space I can think of right now, ‘Interests bonding’, when you bond over interests. I know I mentioned books above, so maybe that can go over to other interest too… any hobbies you have. Mine are sketching, reading, music, dancing, travelling, writing,.. and so many.

 

What the hell am I doing stuck in this cubicle and popping my eyes out for hours in front of this computer??? I Should be an artistic person, I am an artistic person…

Fuck type stuff happens… I guess just being practical and getting the bills paid.. lol!

 

Funny search

I know I haven’t posted in forever but work has been crazy and I barely even have time to watch TV! I just wanted to say that someone found my blog by searching for “messy pudding fight”. Very interesting…

Since nobody seems to really be following me too much anymore and I’m incredibly busy, I’m thinking about getting rid of the blog. What do you folks out there think? Is there even anyone who reads my stuff?

I’ll post a few thoughts on some shows and we’ll see how it goes. Read on!

Hektisk uke..

Er litt av en uke som står for tur nå. Det er vell ikke det at den er så veldig mye mer hektisk enn alle andres ukeplaner, men det blir en utrolig forandring for meg. Mandag (i dag) har jeg min første kjøretime klokken 16.00. Det blir spennende å se hvordan jeg ligger ann.. å rett og slett om jeg er litt flink, eller bånn i bøtta. Så er det tirsdagen, da er det første dagen på min første ordentlige jobb, Rimi (Ulefoss). Da er det tid for opplæring, Det samme skjer på onsdag. Det blir sikkert to lange dager, men det skal bli godt å komme i gang, og få tjent litt penger.
På torsdag er det den “store” OD-dagen. Den dagen går nok til futsal i Ulefosshallen med guuuttaa.. Så må jeg betale 300 kr til prosjektet. Men det har jeg vell råd til. Så blir det mer fotball på fredag. Da får jeg kjøpt de nye fotballskoene jeg kjøpte (skal legge ut bilder av de senere). Morro! Så i helgen blir det fest. Enten en skikkelig bygdefest med Vassendgutane på Ulefoss. Eller den første russekroen for RUSS2010. Det er et halloween party på Tordenskiold, Langesund. Tror nok begge festene blir bra, så er et vanskelig valg !

Peace out..

Creative Writing paper....

The Dead Zone

“You’re my best friend”, “I can talk to you about anything”, if you ever heard phrases like that, then chances are you’re in a friend zone. The friend zone is like the black plague, sure there’s warning signs, but you’ll never know till it’s too late, the best way to avoid it is to never be put in it.  Don’t be fooled on what you see in the movies, the chances of you escaping the friend zone are almost impossible. Few people know the reason why they’re in the friend zone, but the majority are left clueless. Here are the steps to get yourself thrown into the friend zone.

Let’s start off by indentifying what the friend zone is; the friend zone is a god-forsaken hell pit of doom! Where only the lonely hearted go to die. It is the oldest and most common traps women set up to trick gullible losers into an eternity of mental enslavement. The unfortunate soul who gets trapped in the friend zone will soon realize they have no chance whatsoever to enter some sort of romantic relationship with the woman, nor come close to anything remotely sexual. In this zone the woman will take advantage of the guy for what he’s worth without giving anything in return. It’s the sad truth, but now you know and knowing is half the battle.

Then lose all your ability to say “no” pretty much solidifying your status as a doormat also known as the “nice guy”. She knows she has you on a short lease, just a snap of her finger she has you following her around like a puppy dog. You try to impress her by buying her flowers, gifts and expensive meals, but in reality you’re a sissy, who needs their man card to be ripped up and thrown in a pit of fire! She can’t wait to chop your penis off and turn you into her best girlfriend who can look after her pets while she goes running off for the weekend with a tattooed biker on his Harley.

Next turn yourself into the most hideous looking creature with a great personality, somewhere along the lines of Falkor, the dragon from “The Never Ending Story”. Sure he’s a friendly dragon, friendliest as they come, but c’mon he’s not the cutest looking thing. To her you’ll be known as the “ugly friend” that’s great to hang out with; she’ll find you funny, charming, and fun to be with, but overall she can’t imagine having sex with you, and the thought of your body rubbing against her body is so repulsing that she rather take a .357 magnum to the head.

The last thing you should do is lose all your money! Women love guy’s who are finically stable, and are able to support themselves. You do not want this, your goal is to be “that guy” who lives in the basement of their mother’s home, who always borrows money from people and never pay them back, who can’t seem to hold a stable job – even if your life depended on it. This will usually get you friend zone status, but for those persistent girls who are willing to look pass your “great” finances, having a horrible credit score will usually make them think twice.

**It’s not finish, I need a conclusion….

Stream: Phoenix - Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix (Remix Collection)

Thomas Mars of Phoenix during their set in Central Park on September 26, 2009. Photo: Amanda Hatfielf

I put up a few of these tracks for download, but if you want to here the whole album click here for a stream. It’s well worth the listen, even the first track (Lisztomania (Alex Metric remix) ) should get you moving, it’s almost (…almost) as if Justice did a (sort of lazy) remix of the album’s lead-off track. It has the feel and the prominent midrange, but it’s a little lengthy for a Justice track.

But forgetting that tangent… it’s a stellar collection, and if you’re sitting glued to your computer for at least 45 minutes I recommend throwing this stream on in the back, I was happy I did.

Tracklist:

1. Lisztomania (Alex Metric remix)
2. Fences (The Soft Pack remix)
3. 1901 Bo Flex’d (Passion Pit remix)
4. Lasso (2 Door Cinema Club remix)
5. Fences (25 Hrs A Day remix)
6. 1901 (L’aiglon remix)
7. Love Like A Sunset (Turzi remix)
8. Fences (Boombass remix)
9. Lisztomania (A Fight For Love – 25 Hrs A Day remix)
10. Fences (Friendly Fires remix)
11. Armistice (Yacht remix)
12. Girlfriend (Young Fathers remix)
13. Fences (Chairlift remix)
14. Rome (Neighbours with Devendra Banhart)
15. Love Like A Sunset (Animal Collective remix)

Enjoy.

While Obama Fiddles, NATO May Send More Troops To Afghanistan

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday that NATO allies are moving toward sending more troops and civilian aid to Afghanistan.

Gates said he was “heartened” by allies’ commitment to the 8-year-old war even as the Obama administration mulls whether to order tens of thousands more U.S. troops to the fight.

The Pentagon chief cited a long-term commitment by NATO partners to remain in Afghanistan until the conflict is successfully resolved.

At a meeting of 28 NATO defense ministers in Bratislava, Gates said he did not seek specific promises of military assistance, and none was given. He described, however, “a renewed determination to see this through.”

“There were a number of allies who indicated they were thinking about, or were moving toward, increasing either their military or their civilian contributions, or both,” Gates said at a news conference. “And I found that very heartening.”

He praised NATO nations for already doubling the number of troops they have sent to Afghanistan over the last 15 months. “People really have been stepping up to this,” Gates said.

Gates also sought to assure allies that the United States also will remain in the fight, despite the Obama administration’s ongoing indecision over a war strategy.

via NATO moves toward more troops for Afghan war.

Haruhi skirt done~

These pictures are pretty self-explanatory xD
Apparently the skirt is also pretty short… shorted than I anticipated. But its cause of the pleats. So it has more fabric on top. I need to fix that somehow. In the front it looks the nicest. In the back.. meh. Who’s gonna take a pic of the back anyhow?

Finally finished it. Can be better. There is a small white spot in the back that you can see the velcro though!! Rawr. is it noticable?

Let’s see… this skkirt took me a total of two days! That makes me happy. But then again… Skirts are usually the easiest for me.
Now I’ll try to start the shirt … tomorrow.
I should be coming home early just because im not sure what I have to do tomorrow. I know my bro won’t let me drive anyone in his car so my options are limited >.<

But..hum. I’m getting back into my cosplay mode because midterms are over and the I have a short time span before my finals come along and I hope to finish Haruhi and Mikuru before then. Thennnn… no project during Thanksgiving holiday. But take on another group cosplay for Winter break before ALA. Yep. That’s my plan for sures. Nothing dduring thanksgiving cause I’m FINALLY planning my RE test for that week. So I get a good full week to cram everything about it into my head. No joke. If I fail it my life is totally doomed.

But hey! Gotta do it eventually. I wanna get a business card xD

I have also started two new series today. Letter Bee — which I really like. I may cosplay from there cause it looks really cute… maybe not xD Its an option! And also…Yumeiro Patissiere. Has CAKES in it! I like it alot, one cause its cute. two cause its cake. three cause its cake! xD Makes me wanna bake…

–Kimiko–

The Epic Drop That Went the Other Way!

Yeah, so this site was suppose to be my “real life” other stuff other than the Horde blog. Well, I sort of posted my real life news over there this time. It wasn’t my fault really. Lets blame Pie and Fikkle, yeah. Those guys are bad news! They are all over the place influencing me to go ahead and post about everything over there…

Okay, now I’m just spreading slander and lies. Slander and Lies I tell you. I did it for selfish reasons. See, this is the deal. I get like what 40ish hits here on a good day. 4theHorde gets 150+ on slow days. I love my new little girl, she’s a cutie. I wanted to tell the world about her! Now, let’s be honest. Which is quicker, telling 40 people a day, or telling 150 people per day? Hmmmm, I may be no Nimrock when it comes to the mathifications, but I do know that 150>40. Basics my good man, basics.

So yeah, I wanted to take a quick minute to divert you all over to the article at 4theHorde. I wrote up a big post about the delivery of the little one as seen from a gamer’s point of view. Not just any gamer, a wow gamer. I hope you all enjoy it, I know I had fun writing it. So yeah, teh Epic drop went that way and landed on 4theHorde, not here. Sorry for the 2 people who may read this one, and not that one, you guys are awesome…wait…I’m guessing there are no people who read this one, and not that one…just a guess.

Now, just a quick heads up. I’m about to open up another venue for me to unload my creative juices upon the internet. Yes, that’s right, MORE SYLUS! Have you ever wondered what your avatar would look like drawn up AMAZINGLY? Well, lets just say you might not have to wait much longer. I’ve already said too much, and my sponsors are going to kill me if I say any more…wait…we have sponsors? Well, if the wife counts as a sponsor for donating my time…then I have a sponsor!

~Uncle Sy

Random clutter

I’ve wanted to blog, but when there’s sooooo much going on in my brain I can’t do a single thing.

I have lunch with a co-ed multi-cultural group.  We laugh sooo much sometimes I nearly pee on myself.  On Friday we were talking about vitamins when Ram mentioned that he likes to take B12 shots…gives energy etc.  I inquired more because if its that good I need that in my life stat! He went on to say that he gets them from his boyfriend.  As a result of his boyfriends’ HIV status he needs them.  My reaction was “wow”…then he said that he was HIV positive as well…..”wow”.  We talked about this for awhile and his numbers are low enough that he does not need medication.  I felt really grateful that medicine has progressed enough that being HIV does not have to mean it’s a death sentence. 

It also made me wonder…are folx really STILL having unprotected secks???? SERIOUSLY???  I don’t think I updated ya’ll on this yet, but remember the girl that left her son with my friend and then went missing?  Well she was found….her body that is.  It seems that her boyfriend killed her because he discovered that she gave him HIV…speechless.  Do you know of friends that are this careless with their bodies??  You might want to share this story.

I did the breast cancer walk on Sunday.  On Sunday, the weather was cold, rainy and windy.  WICKED.  R picked up me and the girls.  Before we left the house he kept wondering out loud if I would be warm enough.  I had on leggings, two long sleeved tees, and my vest.  He dropped us off at the registration booth so that he could go and park the car.  We were outside a good 2 minutes when I cried aloud.  It was FREEZING!  I called his cell and we headed back to the house.  We changed clothes and made it back without missing anything.

The walk was a little emotional.  It felt great to be united with so many people for the same cause.  We were doing a great thing.  I plan to do the walk next year as well.

School is going well, but I’m feeling a little overwhelmed.  I’m not even sure why.

Another guy in my lunch crew has been coping with his boyfriend’s cancer.  This guy is only 24 years old.  Yesterday he was rushed into emergency surgery, and it wasn’t looking good.  I got word before I left work that he pulled through the surgery, but that his condition was still very critical.  I’ve been praying hard for him.

Oy vie…what’s some good news???  The girls are doing great.  They’ve had some moments of civility over the past few days.  I’ve been putting some funk in my work wear dress…no pics…ya’ll ain’t ready…lol

I purchased a pair of grey shoes yesterday…I’ve had them in my thoughts for like 3 weeks.  I’m glad that I waited…the price was sweeeet.  They make me happy. 

I’m starting to plan my holiday party.

I’ve had so many opportunities to witness in the past week or two.  It’s been great…and I’m thankful to be used.

I’ll be making a trip to NC in January.  I want to scope out my (potentially)new state in the winter season, and then I’ll visit again in April or May. 

This is for us Nerdgirl “”Procrastination is the grave in which opportunity is buried”.

*exhale*

Random?

Baked Proposal ♥

I have been obsessed about baking cupcakes this past week, and as a result, I have been browsing the web for recipes. The pretty pictures some blogger posted are just a plus.

Here’s some of my favorite sites:
http://www.bakerella.com
http://cupcakeblog.com
http://cookingismypassion.blogspot.com
http://chockylit.blogspot.com

This is why I ♥ http://cookingismypassion.blogspot.com:

.

I mean, you gotta admit that they’re so damn cute. I practically licked my screen the moment I saw them.

Okay, I’m exaggerating. Those are too cute to eat.

But my favorite site is still bakerella:

Those are not hamburgers. Those are cupcakes pretending to be burger buns, and brownies pretending to be hams, and green icing playing lettuce, yellow icing playing mustard, and of course, red one is the sauce.
http://www.bakerella.com/fast-food-fun/

But the post I saw today, totally topped all those cuteness above. It’s this one:

It’s cake on a lollipop stick, shaped as a wedding cake. The writer claimed that it can be given for:

• An engagement party
• A wedding shower
• Wedding favors
• You could even propose with them

Pay attention to the last option.

Because…

.

.

.

.

And then there’s a little writings under:

While the sarcastic part in me thinks that Rich is such a cheapskate, proposing through a website (a cooking website, no less), the hopeless romantic part in me thinks, “Awwwww…”

And she said yes!

=]

To Melissa and Rich, whoever and wherever you are, congratulations!

http://www.bakerella.com/wedding-cake-pops/

Quick Appearance For Pisa

Pisa Tinoisamoa had a quick return to the Bears starting lineup. He went down with a knee injury early the the game and did not return. He had just come back from an injury he suffered on the 1st drive of the 1st game of the season.

His lone highlight so far was his tackle on Michael Turner in which he took on the oversized runningback and blasted him backwards, forcing him to fumble.

How long he will be out is not yet determined. Until then, Jamar Williams will be the starter.

Stella's First Snow....Sort Of........

"What the heckity heck is that Mama????"

So it snowed here in Maine yesterday.  Yay.  Yipee.  It’s just not right for it to snow in October….it’s not.   It didn’t start until late….after dark…and it was just kind of a slushy mess for a little while….didn’t really amount to anything.

Miss Stella is a southern Belle from Louisiana…..she’s never experienced cold weather or snow.  She didn’t really seem to notice the difference when she went out in it last night.  That will change in a month or so when she goes out to do her business in three feet of snow.

Like this......

Won’t that be fun Stella?  Won’t it????  Don’t worry…..Papa will go out into the yard everytime it snows and shovel you a little pathway so you can go do your business.

Come closer...

Listen, the Sunday Nation had a story about two Kenyan Gay men and their civil union in London. As soon as that story hit the news stands Kenyans went into overdrive calling the union un- African (What’s really African then?)

Here’s a sample of what people had to the say on the Nation site

‘The word ‘unafrican’ in this context is a joke. If we have to be honest about getting rid of all things unafrican I would suggest that we begin with the Bible and Koran which are quite unafrican and have formed the basis for a lot of this hate and needless wars. The same people who are crying out to God here are the very same people who whispered evil and stood ready to carry pangas against their own neighbours on the basis of tribe. Kenyans ought to be ashamed of their hypocrisy and applaud these two for their sincerity’

‘thats against the African tradition and neither christanity,islam or any other religion supports what they are doing.shame on them’

‘Those who feel that they are too pure at heart and in their deeds should open their mouths to criticize these two people of God.So what if they are gay? Or is this the issue of what is the lesser evil?? From what i gather, they are only gay. They havent stolen your money, they havent rooted your countries resources, they dont rob your families or even kill. People get real and try to grow up..the world has moved on’

From the Nation

Now, here’s my take on it. What is sooo wrong with being gay? Seriously we as a society are ready to wine and dine with those who violate PEOPLE’s rights everyday hurting soo many people each day. We have looters amongst us, robbers, corrupt officials, murderers and soo many. I know the Holy book says that no sin is greater than the other but why are people going all coco over a man who has chosen to have bananas instead of the staple mangos?

Above is a picture that featured in one of the local dailies YES it was from a drag party! Someone told me ‘I want to vomit’ when she saw this pictures…REALLY??? Is a guy wearing make-up and heels worse than the activities you and your boyfriend try to engage in and you end up breaking beds and lamp stands? Are they worse than the callers on Maina’s show??

People live with it, gay people were here kutoka kitambo most make more money that YOU hehe, they’re better citizens than YOU! They are TRUE to themselves something y’all need to be before you curse gay people.

Beautiful Light Edit

I haven’t been taking picture but just to put something up, I took some time to edit the picture I took with my cellphone the other day. The original picture is here. You’ll notice that I went from a more reddish-warm to a more yellow-warm in this new edit. The primary reason for that is that the light that day was really golden. The red/magenta tint on the original picture was due to poor WB on my cellphone so I edited it ot be truer to the light that day.

There’s a bit of “halo”ing because of oversharpening and some clarity adjustments.

And gravity wants to bring me down

All that the animals at the zoo do is eat and sleep. All they have is in that small enclosure they lie in 24/7. Its no wonder life is mudane there- for the animals that is. Guanacos, looking sad, cats of prey walking around in circles, lions yawning and orang utans lying on trees. This is their life. A life of captive. A life just like ours. Minus the various luxuries, our lives are just as ‘enclosed’ as theirs are. Feeling sad when things are down, following routines in circles, getting tired and even bored of our lives. Though its through that we make our own future, we determine our own lives and how it is viewed; sometimes it just feels like we’re in this enclosed area, just like an invisible cage, holding us captive and trapping us, locking us down at rock bottom. It maybe the short-lived “holiday” period, but it doesn’t seem like much have changed. Just. That. ____. Life.

Healthy Lifestyle ;)

Went over to Ian’s condo yesterday since it’s his off day. We have been planning on what to do on that day. We thought about going for a movie? shopping? ktv? condo? or just to stay at home? Before we went to bed the day before, we decided to go condo  

We played table tennis. Since its a weekday, so everyone has gone to work. All the sports rooms were empty shit. Hahaha.

Ian FORCED me to wear this shirt instead of the polo shirt i’m wearing. wtf. He said the attire must be cool. Shit lah XD hahaha. Though my attire looks cool but my skill isn’t COOL!! Whats the point then?? He used to be a Malaysian player, he kept saying I’m a NOOB. wtf. I only started to play t.t. this year okay?!!

I was playing until syok and he said lets stop. wth!! Fine and we stopped and headed to the gym.

SURPRISINGLY, I’m better than him! He did this running machine for a while then stop already. Babi. Ian is getting fatter anf fatter and fatter. Lazy bum. Dummy >=l We also did yoga. Hahahaha. Funny like hell.

Then, we actually planned to swim. But this stupid Ian keep complaining that he’s tired and bla blas.

The pool looks nice right?? Hee hee. Unfortunately, we DID NOT swim…due to the laziness of the dummy >=l We went back to house and bathe. I bought a snack. I don’t really remember the name of it. Chipster or something @.@ I was eating and I felt weird. Isn’t it suppose to be super crunchy?? But this is in return and it tasted weird!!! I turned to look at the expiry date.

FUCK!!!

The day was on the 15th. Can you imagine how long this snack had been displayed on the shelf of the shop? Urgh! Everytime I bought a snack, the expiry date suppose to be after one or two years time right? SHIT LAH!! But i finished everything also. Hahaha.

We went to Station One Bandar Puteri for lunch. Had spaghetti Marinara(i dunno spelling) and a tomyam soup(yummy) while Ian ahd his nasi lemak SPECIAL~ nothing special though. We returned home and take a nap. So tiring since we both woke up at 7.30am >.<

Around 3pm, we left and headed to Subang village. Ian wanna bliss~~

 This baby is so cutee~~! I bought this from SnJ for Ian.Sometimes looking at it, I felt pity for this little baby. He couldn’t stop nodding!!! XD He must be really tired huh. Hahaha. Ian always said this little boy resembles him XD so HARDWORKING, even reading in the toilet while doing business.

On the way home…

If I have the $$$, I would like to buy myself a car

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Random Thoughts

Things that crossed my mind today:

- When I am not in the mood to deal with people, it happens quite suddenly, and you can tell because I am deathly quiet and you just know I am thinking humanity is on my shit list at that precise moment.

- I can’t even pretend to enjoy or want to be a part of a conversation about weddings and children. Such a conversation would require me having had a few drinks. This is null and void if you are one of those few people who is getting married or having a child and doesn’t feel the need to overshare, and I actually ask you about your wedding or child.

- People will go a long way to try to pretend they are enjoying your company while they are really thinking they can’t wait to escape your presence. If you pay attention, you’ll actually learn to recognize the look.

- Some people need to listen before they answer. Example: Question: Have the cats been inside at all today? Answer: We can’t let them in right now because there are people coming. My thought: Did you ear the question? How does that answer the actual question?

- I felt comfort and smiled widely when a friend said over the phone, “I hope the place is not filled with kids. I hate children.” He knows he can say it to me without me thinking he is a monster. I am sorry more people can’t understand that not liking children is not equal to being a heartless person. Really.

I’ve had plenty more thoughts today, but those are the ones that lingered. That an idea for a new book. Alas, I have little time to really consider writing anything right now.

Love,

Natalia

Today, I am grateful for: A flexible work schedule.

Frivolous Anticipation

Most of us know that feeling of anticipation that’s comparable to waiting for Santa to hurry his fat-ass up and deliver your presents.  Of course this specific form of anticipation is the one felt when something is ordered online.  More specifically pre-ordered.

Waiting for the release day is the first stage of anticipation, but then the awareness that the product is released and available to consumers hits the consciousness.  Now the online pre-order seems foolish, because the product could be purchased now. Then the anticipation of the shipping confirmation sneaks into the forefront of the mind.  Followed closely by the delivery confirmation e-mail that gets received right away thanks to modern day cell-phone technology.  After that, the only desire is to return home and get the damn product.

Seriously.  Oct. 27th is Atelier Annie’s release date for the Nintendo DS.  I pre-ordered it months ago, and now the anticipation of the release date is weighing heavy on me.

God, I’m such a nerd.

Inspiration Where Art Thou?

I really need to snap out of this! I woke up this morning feeling really depressed. I guess it is a snowball of feelings accumulated overtime. I am not too sure what is triggering it. While I was back at my parents’ house for the past 2 days, I cannot help but to feel really sad because the house was so empty. There isn’t anyone except for my little baby daughter and me.

This was home for me for the past 26 years and for it to be so empty, I felt a major void in it. Apart of me really misses it. The essence of it wasn’t there and there isn’t any soul in it. I went through a lot of emotions when I was growing up in it back then. The sad and happy emotions from the past seemed to have came together in a huge mass and was hitting me at full speed. I am definitely devastated. I really needed a day just to recuperate from this hurtful state. I am not even sure if I am feeling the void for having lost my grandpa recently. That is the hardest part – to figure out what is wrong.

I was walking around the neighborhood in the morning and I cannot help but to feel really out of place because of all the changes. I remembered very clearly how each and every house were before we moved out of the neighborhood. I miss my morning walks with my dogs (they too aren’t with us anymore).

My parents are both busy looking after my newborn niece at the moment and without their presence in the house I guess that is the main reason for the void. For every home, there has got to be a soul in it.

I just couldn’t stand being in that empty house again so I decided to come back to my own little quiet crib to do things I really like doing for example doing the chores and have breakfast at a restaurant nearby.

I grew up in an environment where both my parents are always around. They work on their own business from home and it has always been 100% quality family time. Mom and dad sacrificed a lot just to be with us but I just can’t say the same for my daughter right now. I do wish to stay home and spend all the time with her but that just can’t happen with this crazy rat race.

My life is some how repetitive at the moment. Sometimes I rather wish I was dead but that is just too selfish. I just need to reinvent myself, an evolution of some sort. I need to break this habit of going round and round. I need to think out of the box.

Well, my time alone is coming to an end soon. As I look forward to search for my purpose, I am still trying to figure that part of my life out.

Why must we fight so hard for our rightful self worth I wonder. And I wonder what my life is really worth too!

This is a much needed rest for me, but while I have the time, I just can’t quiet down this wild heart of mine. It has been conditioned to be restless to a point that it is hard to tame it.

When will I ever find the peace in my heart?

Lord, please take these anxieties away.

Thank you.

Idiot Freshmen

Let me tell you a little story.

First off, a bit of background.  For those that don’t know, I just changed my major to Management Information Systems this semester, which means that I’m in a lot of intro classes again.  This means a plethora of freshmen everywhere.  Usually leads to good stories.

Anyway, for our Macro Economics class, we have a strange but effective testing procedure.  Since it’s a big classroom of 220 people, the professor will hand out a test to you as you walk in, and that test includes your seating assignment.  You are guaranteed to sit next to someone with a different copy of the test than you.  I should clarify that a bit more… we all have the same 20 questions, they are all in the same order, and all the questions have the same answer options.  However, the answers are in different orders, so copying off of someone’s bubble sheet won’t get you very far.

Anyway, I sat down in my seat (Center D8) on Friday to take my 4th Macro test.  I was well prepared, had studied more at work that morning, and was ready to go.  A cute, blonde freshmen girl sat down next to me.  I said hi, got her name (Jenna), and then started looking over the test to see which questions I could get out of the way.  As I went through the test, there were a small handful of questions that I was struggling with, and so I would go back and make/change an answer throughout the entire test time.

It was about 10 minutes into the test that I realized that right after I changed an answer, this Jenna girl would suddenly flip her booklet pages and circle and answer or change her existing answer.  I slipped a peak at one of these instances, and realized that she was changing the exact same question I had just done.

*GASP*  Cheater!

Not getting upset (I figured it could be random coincidence), I changed another answer.  And another.  Both to the same result.

Oh bitch, it’s on.

Now, I’ll admit… I’ve been in school for… what, 17 years?  I’ve cheated before.  I’d be willing to bet that most people have at one point or another.  But I have not cheated on a single test since I got into college… college is “THE BIG DEAL”, and I don’t want to do anything to mess up my chance at getting an education by getting caught cheating.

And believe me… these Macro tests?  They’re tough.  If someone didn’t study (or decided not to study), I could understand the desire to cheat.  But that’s something that you just don’t do.  No no no.  And ESPECIALLY off of me.  Because if I catch you, I will turn you in.  And if possible, I’ll mess with you before I turn it in.

For example…

So I realized Jenna was cheating off of me… and decided to have a little fun.  I took whatever answers I had, shifted either down or up 1 (depending on what letter it was), and circled that answer.  I did this with about 4 or 5 different answers, and watched with glee as she circled the same ones on her booklet and marked them down on her bubble sheet.  Meanwhile, I was marking the proper answers on my bubble sheet, which I kept well hidden.

After about 25 minutes, our professor collected the bubble sheets, and then we kept our booklets in front of us in order to grade and get instant feedback on how we did.  My result?  18/20.  Her result?  Something like a 14 or 15.  I could just see her look over at my booklet in disbelief (as I went through and changed my answers back to what they should be) as I marked mine correct and she got them wrong.  She seemed happy about her result afterward, though, which leads me to believe her getting a low score was a common occurrence for her.

Of course, this was the point that I told the professor what had happened.

I waited till everyone was gone (Doug was still hanging around, since he didn’t have class afterward), then went up and talked to the prof.  This is how the conversation started.

Me: “I caught someone cheating off of my test…”
Prof: “*sigh*”
Me: “…but I messed with her so she did bad on her test.”
Prof: “Nice job!” /high five

Quite possibly one of the funniest/most rewarding moments in my college career.  Extremely satisfying too.

In hiding

So I have to admit, now that my holidays are over, I will miss them dearly! My only goal for last week was to hammer out as many words that I could and be able to read without interruption. Now you’re probably sitting there thinking to yourself “Out with it woman! What was the result?” Well this is what I managed to walk away with:

• Novella titled Hellbound is in its final chapters of the 1st draft being completed
• Short story titled Karma (hoping @TheWritersDen will like it!) – just checking it over for the 10th time before submission to The Campfire Page
• Read Stakes & Stiletto’s by Michelle Rowen in 1 day (a must read!)
• Read Tall, Dark & Fangsome by Michelle Rowen the next day(a must read!)
• Started reading Frostbitten by Kelley Armstrong (a must read!)
• Spent an obscene amount of time on Twitter
• Cooked dinner everyday this week w/the exception of my birthday on Friday
• Some housework and spend $0 money (hubby was impressed w/the money part)

So as you can tell, my week in retrospect was spent in solitude, but I LOVED every moment of it! Yes I was busy too, but it was a relaxing busy. I’m only hoping when I go back to work tomorrow that it will be a relaxing busy too, but it’s not likely to be.

As soon as the 1st draft to Hellbound is complete, I plan on going back to my Novel and start rewriting it. I’ve been carrying some guilt for sometime now, as I’ve ignored it for so long. Plus the desire to get back to my beloved characters, and their stories are dying to be told. This book will be the 1st of three that I have planned. Hopefully the rewrite won’t be as painful as I’m expecting it to be. I will probably post a brief blurb on my Works In Progress page about Hellbound and my untitled novel. I’m thinking, I’m going to have to finally give it a name, but it’s so damned hard. I’ll figure something out eventually. *sigh*

 Well I should probably get some writing done before I go pick up the hubby from work. Oh wait, I forgot, HAPPY THANKSGIVING CANADA & HAPPY COLUMBUS DAY to my American friends.  Oh, another thing, if anyone has any suggestions on chapter books that a  6yo old girl would like please leave a comment as to what your recommendation is. I’ve been trying to find something that would spark her interest but I’m falling short of ideas and the closest Chapters bookstore is 4 1/2 hrs away…I know, that royally sucks!

Ok ok I’m going now! So as usual, please feel free to leave a comment or if you’re in the mood to trying twitter just look me up. I’m always happy to tweet with some new people and I follow some really great writers and interesting people alike.

Cheers,

Layna

Recommendation: Bath & Body Works Pumpkin Patch Wallflowers

I hate pretty much everything about fall. I’m inheritantly spiteful of anything that resembles winter, fall included.

However, I really do love fall scents: spices, vanillas, pines and pumpkins!

This weekend, I refilled all of the Wallflowers in my house with the new “Pumpkin Patch” scent. Now, when I walk into the house it smells so warm, welcoming and wonderful!

If I could add a scent to this post, I would. But I can’t, so you’ll have to take my word for it.

Get some Pumpkin Patch Wallflowers. For some added delight for your nose, grab some Pumpkin Patch concentrated room spray, too.

A Free Verse Poem for Friday

I’m on lunch break at Alaska Stock Images
munching on fresh garden shrimp egg rolls
and sipping really good Kaladi coffee
outside the pavement glows from the rain

when I was shooting photos, the lights…
… on the right hand side of the set toppled on top of me
not only once, but 3 times
truly, having a 2 foot cord connecting the camera and lights
is not fortunate. at least I don’t have a concusion

I have plenty of piles of Russian homework
it’s really ho-hum and sometimes slightly horrible
but I have to get it done by tomorrow
because I’m anticipating salsa on Sunday with someone

The Dance of Fall Foliage - Watercolor

Set adrift in a stream, a new journey has begun. Falling from what used to be, the knowing, the security and its life line. What began as a bud and becoming its own fingerprint on a limb. Growing and giving movement to a tree as though dancing in the forest with others. Swaying to the rhythm created by the music of the wind, or resting peacefully with no movement at all, bringing a cool spot for God’s creature to lay in the calm.

Its cycle continues even though its last dance in a tree has taken place. Swaying for the last time , a new journey begins. Falling gracefully with others, a new dance commences. No two are the same, all shapes, all colors but with the winds help, they form a flowing graceful dance as though one. It’s a dance of fairy tales, a whirlwind rainbow of movement fighting to reach the earth. Getting close at one point, only to be lifted higher and higher for another dance.

Once again a calm becomes the moment, and drifting downward to rest. Landing gently, barely causing a ripple in a crystal clear stream, they gather once more to dance. A graceful waltz, flowing in movement afloat in a stream. Sometimes dancing with others, sometimes alone, spinning and turning on a liquid dance floor only God could create. As its last dance ends, covering the earth’s floor like a warming carpet of bursting colors, it will soon fade into the ground and nourish the new, allowing the new to partake in the next dance of life.

Like leaves dancing in the wind, we all are given time to dance in life. Some will choose to watch as others dance, some will dance when it’s best to rest, and some will dance only to be dancing with no meaning. God has given us the music of life, it’s all around us, you just have to listen. Not with your ears but with your heart. So do you dance?

I choose to dance! That’s why I painted the watercolor above, to share with my dance partners in life.

When I grow up I wanna be a

I miss romance. I watch a lot of romantic comedies and dramas that have romantic themes and TV shows full of… well you get the idea. I think the reason I do that is I’ve been married for seven years, together for thirteen as of the 20th of this month. The romance in my life is pretty much gone. That feeling of first love and the horribly wonderful butterflies that come with that is something that I’ll never experience again. I love my wife and my life but that is one of the single greatest feelings in the world. First love. I liken it to creation. Whether that creation is art, music, science or even new life isn’t important. It all amounts to continuing humanity as a species. Making a mark on the world that is real and tangible. Whoever designed the human race was as brilliant as he was cruel and he had one warped sense of humor.

So that stuff above? I wrote it a few hours ago. Since then I have watched two episodes of the Office, read the new Bryan Talbot graphic novel, attempted to watch a movie on Hulu and ate a bag of microwave popcorn. There may have been a trip or two to the bathroom, I’m not really sure. I’m starting to think that signing up for NaNoWriMo was a mistake. I’m lazy, easily distracted and I hate everything I write.

I started writing on the internet before people started calling it blogging. Back then they were “opinion boards” where people would get together and write about whatever struck their fancy. I got my start writing about professional wrestling in 1999. I’ve been a fan of the “sport” for most of my life but in ‘99 it had become something of a pop culture phenomenon. You could go into Wal Mart and buy t-shirts and lunch boxes with your favorite wrestler on them. It was a great time to be a fan but like most things, the upswing was followed by a horrible downturn not only in attendance but in quality. Yes, I just used the word “quality” when talking about pro wrestling. Like any other form of entertainment wrestling follows some kind of a script. The more talented and intelligent the writing (or “booking” as is the case in wrestling) the better the product will be. Add in some healthy competition and you have a success. Unfortunately the monster that was the WWF consumed all other wrestling in its path and the entire thing got very boring to me. Mix that with my favorites retiring or murdering their entire families and I was done with it.

In the middle of all this I saw Stanly Kubrik’s final film “Eyes Wide Shut”. Normally going to a movie that makes me violent and a little nauseous at the same time isn’t really cause for celebration but in this case it lead to one of the best friendships and collaborations of my life. On the forums for one of these wrestling op boards I got into an altercation with a fellow calling himself “Stevo” over the merits of Eyes Wide Shut. I said it was two hours and forty five minutes of Tom Cruise trying in vain to get laid and failing miserably while the most annoying sound in the world (BING!) echoed in the background. He said something along the lines of “nuh-uh!” and an instant rivalry was made. Our diametrically opposed view on this and many MANY other films eventually caused us to start a movie review website together. We called ourselves “Two Film Guys” for a while until two OTHER film guys who had dibs on the name shot us an e-mail that said something to the effect of “C’mon dude, seriously?” so we changed our name to “Filmspies”. We had a cool 50’s G-man spy theme to our site and we had news, reviews and commentary. We even added a couple of other writers for a while and almost got sued. Sadly, Steve and myself suffer from terminal laziness so the site kind of died. And then came back. Over and over we’ve tried to keep the thing alive even going so far as to change the name of the site to the kind of porno sounding WTFEntertainment.com. We were back in business for a while with both of us adding content to the site. I was mostly doing comic book reviews while Steve covered music of the metalish variety. That was when we almost got sued again. Or, we had some guy threaten us with a lawsuit and then I mocked him publicly and we never heard about it again.

And that really only covers three of the bajillion sites I’ve written for over the years. Sites with names like Lethal Injection, HATE and Impaler. I hope I still have it in me to do this, I’ve wanted to be a writer since I was a little kid and realized I couldn’t draw worth a crap.

Soundtrack for this post:
Good Times Bad Times – Led Zepplin
The Winter of 1985 – Mint
When You’re Young – The Jam
If I Were a Carpenter – June Carter Cash
Jackson, Monk and Rowe – Elvis Costello
Los Angeles is Burning – Bad Religion

Starving!!!

Tror du ikke de jævlene som eier “kollektivet”  hang opp noen nærmest usynlige lapper om at all umarkert mat kastes den 6 november? Dette har selvsagt resultert i at mange av oss har fått kastet mat til flere hundre kroner, noe som passer veldig dårlig 5 dager før lønning. Alle er jo blakke!

Heldigvis har jeg en pakke pasta og en halvfull pose tortillachips! Det er det vi kaller slankekur!!!

Scattered Energies lead to unfulfilled desires….

This could be my horoscope, couldn’t it?  With a few weeks between myself a culinary school, I’ve started thinking about how to “launch” into the next phase.  I have my foot in the door at the school for a few Friday night happy-hour caterings.  They pick the protein; I come up with a soup, salad, main, starch and veggie for 50 people.  I helped a former student a few weeks ago – and my first attempt is October 23.  I have a bit of stress about it.

 I also contacted my old boss who now runs a steakhouse.  He called my menu “sexy” and mentioned listing one of my menu items as a “special” at the restaurant.  We also talked about my working at the steakhouse one night a week to gain some experience.  I know I need it, but I’m not looking forward to it.  I work hard during the week and my time off is precious.  The steakhouse is a drive from my house – and $6 worth of tolls.  I think I need to get in the mindset that this is just a continuation of school – three or six months of real-life experience.   I’m nervous – I hate being in a learning situation, outside my element, which is exactly where this will place me.

 Speaking of being outside my element, I also have a potential opportunity to participate in an externship in Paris for two weeks in November.  I can’t imagine going without some moral support – that support being my sister – but she’s not sure if she can afford it.  I’m scared of actually doing it and her not being able to travel with me is my perfect excuse for staying in my comfort zone.  I need to decide.  I don’t want to be safe.  I need to focus.

PMR: Day 1

MayMay is blogging. Surprised? I can hear the voices telling me to get off XD

Anyways. My new pencil box is this gigantic clear plastic bag I tied up with bright blue ribbon Picture will be up in time.

Um. at 7 am a sleepy MayMay bounced off her bed. Reached school at 7.15 and the first thing that happened was Izzatt saying “Perbandingan plot is coming out”. Daniel gave me the list of spot questions. And so I decided to study.

Guess. What.

None of it came out. Walked into the hall and Nicolas was around saying “They changed the paper from white to blue!” My mind was on red alert. Anyway. Nothing I studied came out and luckily I AM the queen of bullshit so I wrote a 3 page essay on bencana alam. Wrote crap for the novel part. I think my Section B essay was too long but I didn’t count. Praying for a lenient examiner.

Advise to others sitting for big exams: DO NOT trust spot questions

Oh yea. Me will be thanking Yana. This very sleepy MayMay woke right up because of her 7.30 am and I was high over a magazine full of pictures XD

Benjamin: Just do your best, God’ll do the rest. WOAH!

Hmm.. I suppose. Idk why I’m still not scared. I’ll probably be scared when results come out but right now I’m just flipping through the entertainment magazine Yana got me while eating BR. Pistachio. Yum~

MayMay will be a good student and not spazzz today (:

Somali prez: Jihad recruiters likely still in U.S.; FBI says AQ-linked Somali's could strike in U.S.

Somali president: Recruiters likely still in U.S. | Minnesota Public Radio NewsQ.

St. Paul, Minn. — The president of Somalia said today he believes that recruiters who lured Minnesota men to fight with a terrorist group remain in the United States.

President Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed has been meeting non-stop this weekend with Somali-American community leaders in Minnesota as well as elected officials, including Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

Ahmed arrived in the Twin Cities Friday night as part of a stateside tour of communities with sizable Somali-American populations, of which Minnesota is the largest.

In an interview with Minnesota Public Radio News, Ahmed, who is an Islamic scholar, distanced himself from radical Islamists who are trying to oust his government.

Through a translator, Ahmed expressed sympathy for the young Minnesota men who returned to Somalia to fight. Six are believed dead.

“I’m very sorry about these people and how they’re misled,” he said. “The problem, I believe, is these people have little education about their religion. They have been misinformed. They do not know what is happening on the ground in Somalia. And the people who are providing this information to them are misleading them, and intended to do so.”

Ahmed says he has not been approached by the FBI, which is leading the investigation into the fighters.

Spoken like a true Islamist – believing jihadists are simply misinformed about their religion. Ahmed was educated in Libya. Could those be among the reasons the FBI has not contacted him?

The FBI does believe, however, that al Qaeda linked Somali’s could return to the U.S. to wage jihad:

FBI Director: Al Qaeda-Linked Somali Group Could Attack U.S. | Fox News

During a hearing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, FBI Director Robert Mueller was asked if members of al-Shabaab, which translates as “mujahideen youth,” would send American recruits back to the U.S. to launch attacks.

“I would think that we have seen some information that the leaders would like to undertake operations outside of Somalia,” Mueller told the Senate Homeland Security Committee.

Mueller said he is “absolutely” concerned that Americans who traveled to Somalia to train as terrorists  would have U.S. legal status and would therefore be able to return to the United States and carry out attacks.

And this bit of unrelated information regarding al Shabaab’s American mouthpiece:

In early September, FOX News exclusively identified the American mouthpiece for al-Shabaab as a native of Daphne, Ala. Born Omar Hammami, the big-eared and bright-eyed teenager now goes by the name Abu Mansour al-Amriki, or simply “The American.”

After FOX News uncovered al-Amriki’s identify, his family told a local TV station in Mobile, Ala., that their son traveled to Somalia with his wife but lost his passport there, where he became indoctrinated by al-Shabaab. One source within Mobile’s Muslim community said that, after dropping out of college, Hamammi travelled to Toronto, where he eventually married a Somali woman and became indoctrinated there by “angry” individuals.

Killin' in the morning

Jeg står opp, en halv time før jeg egentlig trenger, av forskjellige årsaker. Smyger meg ut på badet, kald og jævlig, og da hører jeg det. En sånn kravlelyd. ÆÆ!
Et fuckings BEIST av en eggerkopp nærmest hopper ut fra under vasken og prøver å spise meg!
Vel, kanskje ikke spise meg, da. Men den smøg seg forbi meg i en jævla fart i hvert fall.
Åneidu! På mitt bad skal det faen ikke bo noe jævla monster.

Jeg skaffer meg et våpen, gir ham et slags humant “sorry, kompis”, før jeg dreper uhyret. Men dette er en tøffing, han gir seg ikke etter et sprut, nei!
Hele rommet stinket av baderomsrengjøringsmiddel da kampen var over. Men heller det enn farlige dyr som lusker i hjørnene.

My work here’s done. (Og når jeg sier det, mener jeg det virkelig. Pappa får plukke opp monsteret og pælme det i do når han kommer. Et sted går grensen for hva man kan gjøre så tidlig på morgenkvisten!)

En fredagskveld

Nå sitter Miriam å leser gjennom de nyeste topp bladene mine samtidig som vi diskuterer ting & tang. Transformers 2 var ikke så bra som forventet, men filmen var jo likevel bra! Miriam og jeg ble ganske rastløse etter rundt en time og endte opp med å sitte og snakke om alt annet til Kristians store ergelse! Filmen var ikke dårlig, men ikke helt topp heller.. den varte jo tross alt to og en halv time og den var rett og slett ikke så bra at den klarte å fange oppmerksomheten min! Milkshake maskinen på pizza bowl fungerte forresten heller ikke, så det ble ikke noe milkshake. Men men, ja ja, osv osv…

I morgen blir det SHOPPING for harde livet. Jeg og Miriam tar nemlig toget til Halle for å shoppe kjole og sko til homecoming. Det blir sikkert gøy, bortsett fra at vi har et visst tidspress på oss om å være ferdige til før klokka 2. Så det er bare å stille inn vekkerklokka til 8 om morgenen på en lørdag! OMG! hjelp meg…

Det kommer oppdateringer i morgen så stay tuned!

Pose!!

Yep, Dave had sex

… if you read the article from Yahoo, you’ll get where the post title came from.

Now, there seems to be a whole new wave of extortionists showing up. The latest training camps must have let out.

Along with glorifying crimes and adultery, etc …. the more and more these things happen, the more they become accepted and “normal”. Everyone will say the economy is the main basis for it, but SWB disagrees.

I think we as humans, are just losing complete respect for each other, and our relationships. We no longer seem to see value in them, unless there is the convenience of financial growth.

Have we forgot how to act towards each other as humans?

-SWB

PS – the attitude of “it’s all good” doesn’t work here.

I Found My Mojo!

Written Friday, September 4, 2009

As you already know from yesterday’s post, we have a new addition to the family named Gizmo. If you didn’t read yesterday’s post, just scroll down to read. You may also already know, we have a loveable little puggle named Brody as well.

I have been suggesting mentioning to Paula for about a month now how nice it would be for Brody to have another puggle playmate. While searching the internet for the perfect Morkie for her birthday present, Paula stumbled upon an ad for a free puggle. She knew that I would be interested in him and sent an email off to the owner. The ad had been posted a few weeks ago so we didn’t think he would still be available. Well, we were wrong. While driving in the car on our way to pickup Gizmo, the owner of the puggle called and asked if we were still interested. The owner and I chatted on the phone for a bit about the dog and came to the conclusion that Mojo would make a perfect addition to our family. I let the owner know I wouldn’t be able to pick him up tonight because we are out of town but made arrangements to pick him up tomorrow.

Today I drove 45 minutes to Muscatine, Iowa and picked up my Mojo. He is a 2 year old puggle and cool as can be. That’s right dear reader; we have gone from a one dog family to a 3 dog family in a 24 hour time period. Gizmo is Paula’s dog and Brody and Mojo are my dogs.

Without further ado, I would like to introduce you to the latest member of our family, Mojo.

 

 

Paula's Bithday Present

Written Friday, September 4, 2009

Just over a month ago, Paula and I were taking a leisurely Saturday afternoon drive around the resort on our friend’s golf cart when a teeny tiny little dog suddenly ran out in front of us. *GASP* don’t worry, we didn’t squash the little guy, in fact we didn’t even come close. The owner of the little dog came out into the road to get him and Paula and I started talking to her about him. Neither one of us had ever seen a dog that small nor that breed. This little guy was small enough to fit into a normal sized woman’s purse and still have room for makeup and spare change. I thought the little guy was cute as a button and Paula fell in love.

Since Paula’s birthday was coming up on the 25th of August, I had been bugging her about what she would like for her birthday. She again this year gave me the same answer she always does, “oh, I don’t know” or “I can’t think of anything” or “Just get me whatever”. All of which are GREAT answers for someone that has no idea what to shop for and a tremendous help. Monday afternoon, Paula called me she finally knows what she would like for her birthday. “AWESOME” I said, “what would you like”? “You remember that little dog we saw on Saturday while riding around on the golf care” Paula asked. “Yeah, I remember” I replied. “I want one of those for my birthday” she announced and the search for the perfect Teacup Morkie began.

We searched and searched the internet for one that Paula just couldn’t resist and after a couple weeks, he was found. Paula called the breeder and sealed the deal and we were on our way to the Wisconsin/Illinois border to pick him up. It was a three and a half hour drive and we both fell in love with him. We ended up back home close to midnight exhausted but with a birthday present that Paula really wanted this year.

He weighs in at 2.5 pounds and will be a whopping 3 to 4 pounds when fully grown. A Morkie is a “designer” dog and is half Maltese and half Yorkie Terrier.

Without further ado, I would like to introduce you to the latest member of the family, Gizmo.