Oreo Was Framed!

You know I will never pass up the opportunity to help out an animal friend and to reiterate the fact that people can be such a$&holes. I admire these pet owners because they are not
the irresponsible kind that surrender their pet to a shelter with the lame-assed excuse of "I moved and couldn't take the dog with me." There are some pics of Oreo on this blog....he's quite handsome!!

Hey Man Nice Shot

I was flipping around the channels last night and caught an episode of one of my favorite shows that's no longer on. At least I don't think it is anymore....Tales from the Crypt.

I, of course, fell asleep before it was finished so I didn't get to see the ending. But the opening scene was a car chase with the song Hey Man Nice Shot by Filter to set the mood for the scene.

This particular song has a story.

January 22, 1987....I was working at a department store and it was snowing to beat the band. I really wanted to go home because I was afraid I'd get stuck at work forever. I worked in a department that was close to the young men's clothing area that played a stereo all the time. I could hear that there wasn't much music being played and thought maybe they were talking about the snowfall, dismissing schools, etc.

Apparently, they were not. State treasurer Budd Dwyer was being accused of taking bribes. His lawyer was in trouble as well. Another weird connection there, is that Budd's lawyers daughter went to high school with me. But anyway, Budd calls this press conference to supposedly give the press an update on the situation. Many believed he was going to submit his resignation as state treasurer.

So Budd starts the press conference off with his thanks to the Lord for his years, and he thanked the people that supported and believed in him. At this point, he hands three of his staff members envelopes and holds on to one himself. He reaches in to the envelope and pulls out a .357 magnum and announces to the crowd that should anyone find this (blowing his head off ) offensive, then they should leave the room. Now, keep in mind, all of this is being televised live. The crowd pleads with him, as he puts the gun in his mouth and pulls the trigger. Yep, all of it caught on film. All of it seen by thousands of people home from work because of the snow, retirees, children, people home sick from work, etc.

The Wikipedia link I've provided above is pretty interesting. This event changed how the AP handles photojournalism, it provided teaching materials for television editors, and also became fodder for The Faces of Death videos. It also made probably one of the only hits for the band Filter as well. The song Hey Man Nice Shot was about this event.

And for those with the morbid sense of curiosity...you can see the video here.

Gather Round the Campfire

Coyote Mike made a comment on a recent blog of mine about a way to cook Camembert on the campfire. It sounded delish! Maybe Coyote Mike will be kind enough to post that recipe again!

I got to thinking about the stuff we used to make in Girl Scouts around the campfire, besides the usual hotdogs and s'mores.

I remember being on a camping trip and taking an orange and cutting off the top of it and hollowing out the insides.

Then you take cake batter with all the eggs and oil in it and pour it inside the orange. Wrap it in foil and put it on the hot stones around the campfire to let it bake.

You can put icing on after it cools. It's very yummy.

All I've been doing is talking about food tonight. I think I have a tape worm.

Happy Friday quotes of the day:

Never be afraid to laugh at yourself, after all, you could be missing out on the joke of the century.
Dame Edna Everage, In a television interview with Joan Rivers

Suppose you were an idiot and suppose you were a member of Congress. But I repeat myself.
Mark Twain

Spring is Springing

Even though the air is still pretty chilly around here, particularly at night, it's the morning when it's obvious the first signs of spring are starting to well, spring.

It's actually light outside before I even leave for work.

Yesterday morning, as I was walking into work, there was a beautiful sunrise.

The birds are singing in the morning.

I've heard people say they've seen Robins.

I actually saw a bright yellow dandelion in the grass yesterday. (great, weeds!)

The tips of my hyacinths are breaking through the ground.

So are my daffodils. The one's in my back flowerbed are really coming up.

Though I'm not too fond of the cold weather, I do love it when I can see the earth waking up from it's winter's rest.

Brie en Croute vs. Creme Caramel

I got to try a new recipe last night for a presentation I had to do in my French class. Our project was to recite a recipe en francais. It didn't have to be complicated, you didn't even have to actually "make" it. But I decided to try something I have never made before that I knew would be yummy and relatively easy to make. Brie en Croute. YUM! Basically a round of Brie cheese wrapped in puff pastry then baked. What could be wrong with melted cheese in pastry dough??

I did what prep work I could the night before and then baked the brie just before I left for class last night. I served it with sliced Granny Smith apples.

There were 5 bonus points to be awarded to the the best presentation of the class as voted by the students. I knew the only competition I had was the other "elder" in the class. Simply because we know how to cook and wouldn't have to prepare our recipes in the E-Z Bake ovens in the dorms.

My competition was Monique. Her mother is from France. Monique made Creme Caramel from a family recipe. It was a somewhat complicated recipe and it was deeslish!! I voted for Monique.

I got my 5 bonus points so did Monique. We want to have a cook-off next week!

The Weather's Here, Wish You Were Beautiful

A Minneapolis couple decided to go to Florida to thaw out during a particularly icy winter. They planned to stay at the same hotel where they spent their honeymoon 20 years earlier. Because of hectic schedules, it was difficult to coordinate their travel schedules. So,the husband left Minnesota and flew to Florida on Thursday, with his wife flying down the following day.The husband checked into the hotel. There was a computer in his room, so he decided to send an email to his wife. However, he accidentally left out one letter in her email address, and without realizing his error, sent the email.

Meanwhile, somewhere in Houston, a widow had just returned home from her husband's funeral. He was a minister who was called home to glory following a heart attack. The widow decided to check her email expecting messages from relatives and friends. After reading the first message, she screamed and fainted. The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read:
To: My Loving Wife
Subject: I've Arrived
Date: October 16, 2004
I know you're surprised to hear from me. They have computers here now and you are allowed to send emails to your loved ones. I've just arrived and have been checked in. I see that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you then! Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was.

P.S. Sure is freaking hot down here

A Face in the Crowd

As I'm sure most people do, I generally take the same route to and from work on a daily basis. Going to work, I don't ever notice passing the same people on the road. On the way home from work however, without fail, I pass the same people. How do I know they're the same people? Well, the one woman I pass on the way home drives a white Volvo with an Arizona state flag license plate on the front of her car. The other person I notice is a young guy that drives a Honda with some phrase across the top of the windshield. You'd think I'd know what the phrase is, but can't remember it right now.

So, I got to thinking, I wonder if these people notice that I pass them on a daily basis. Or am I (or my car) that non-descript that I go unnoticed every day?

It's funny how you notice others, while going unnoticed or how another may go unnoticed but they're noticing you. I met a significant person in my life that way. Found out after we had started dating that he had been noticing me for quite some time. But I didn't even know he existed. Well, until that weekend he left a note on my car. I finally was able to put a face to the mystery man, because he knew my schedule well enough to be very non-chalantly waiting in the parking lot for me when I got home one day.

He may well be reading this post and thinking "oh, now everyone thinks I'm a stalker."

In time, we also found out that we used to hang out at some of the same places and very well may have been there at the same time. One of my friends and her husband figured out through their childhood Santa pictures that they were probably in line waiting to sit on Santa's knee at the same time. Wouldn't it be interesting to be able to go back to a specific time to see if in fact, prior to knowing one another that your paths had crossed? I've often thought of taking that idea and writing a story about it. Nobody steal my idea...that's the one good idea I have for a story. Maybe one day I'll write about it.

P.S. Mystery Man--He's not a stalker.

Happy VD!

Here's a wish to all my very special Valentine's reading this blog. Hope your day (and night) is filled with lots of love.

Winter Returns

Things That Make You Go Huh?

Do you ever hear a story, watch the news or even award shows and you think to yourself...."what on earth were those people thinking?"

Seems I've been doing that a lot lately. I've been told I'm weird, and weird is not an issue, but I think sometimes people go beyond weird. For example:

Sly Stone at the Grammy's - All I can say is that the drugs in the 60's and 70's must have been really, really good.

Aaron Neville at the Super Bowl - First, why would they have paired him, who has a sort of soft singing voice, with Aretha who probably didn't even need a microphone to sing the National Anthem? And what's with that weird cross tattoo on his face? Who thought that was a good idea?
Britney Spears - I'm sure you've all seen the pictures of her driving with her baby in her lap. Where's Child Protective Services when you need them?

Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana's Super Bowl snub because they each wanted an astronomical amount of money to show up to be acknowledged for being an MVP. Nice work guys!

There's so much more to add to this list, but it's early in the day. Happy Friday everyone!!

Roses Are Red...

In case you've been searching for those special words to whisper in your sweetheart's ear this Valentines Day, I have found some phrases that will help to make your day quite special.


1. Thought that I could love no other, that is until I met your brother.
2. Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet, and so are you. But the roses are wilting, the violets are dead, the sugar bowl's empty and so is your head.
3. Of loving beauty you float with grace, if only you could hide your face.
4. Love may be beautiful, love may be bliss, but I only slept with you,
because I was pissed.
5. Kind, intelligent, loving and hot, this describes everything you are not.
6. I want to feel your sweet embrace, but don't take that paper bag off of your face.
7. I love your smile, your face, and your eyes - Damn, I'm good at telling
lies!
8. My darling, my lover, my beautiful wife -- marrying you screwed up my life.
9. I see your face when I am dreaming. That's why I always wake up
screaming.
10. My love, you take my breath away. What have you stepped in to smell this way?
11. My feelings for you no words can tell, except for maybe "go to hell"!
12. What inspired this amorous rhyme? Two parts vodka, one part lime.

Domestic Eavesdropping

I'm doing this post to first, open a can of worms and second to get some perspective on this whole domestic eavesdropping thing.

At first glance, it seems like maybe it's a good idea. If people that intend to do harm to Americans are plotting within our borders, maybe it is a good idea to monitor what's going on in the U.S. But do the powers that be know what they're looking for? Or are they just taking a stab in the dark?

On the other hand is Sen. Arlen Spector correct in saying that Bush is simply trying to make up his own rules? Are people too quick to say that their rights are being taken away. I mean, if you don't have anything to hide, what's the big deal?

Perhaps this is just another wild goose chase the President has everyone on...you know, similar to the weapons of mass destruction he was SURE Iraq was hiding from the world.

The XL Game

The reality shows where people eat bugs, lose weight, swap wives, and make utter fools of themselves to get a little richer and I'm sure to get their faces on TV, probably makes us think we've seen it all.

Then without warning, rehearsing or any kind of commercial giving us advanced warning comes...

Jagger vs. Franklin

I saw an interview with Aretha Franklin last night on Entertainment Tonight. And during the interview she was expressing her displeasure with the NFL and their choice for half-time entertainment during the Superbowl this Sunday, which by the way is The Rolling Stones. Aretha is scheduled to sing the National Anthem on Sunday. However, her gripe is that the Superbowl is being held in Detroit why not have (some, more, mostly) all musicians from Detroit represented as musical guests at the Superbowl. Um, Aretha, you're singing the National Anthem with Aaron Neville...he's from Louisiana. However, it is an understandable concern I think. I have seen that at this time Stevie Wonder and the Four Tops are also scheduled for pre-game entertainment. I'm not sure if that decision was made before or after this next item.

I'm watching the local news tonight and I see Mick and the Boys having a press conference regarding the rumblings that have been going on since it was announced that they are the half-time entertainment. Let's all just hope for no wardrobe malfunctions this year! I'm kind of not paying attention to what Mick's even saying but was thinking to myself..."wow, look how Mick and Ron Wood have the same lines and sunken features. How does that happen that two completely different people look so much alike??" And then I return to conscious thought to hear Mick saying something like Aretha's threatened to take off her clothes while she's singing the National Anthem. GASP! Good Lord man, do you know what you are saying?? After I read this article (evil grin) I think I understand why Mick would make such a comment. He's going to need that kind of security for when Aretha gets a hold of him. Mick, I'm pretty sure she can take you!

So, let's look at this from Aretha's point of view. Detroit should be represented. Lot's of great music has come out of Detroit over the years. But let's face it, The Rolling Stones are still on tour and still putting out records. With the exception of Eminem, Kid Rock, and Stevie Wonder what artist from Detroit has done anything in the last 5 years?? We've been listening to your music for the last 40 years. Enough already!

I'd be willing to take bets that the Stones will do Dancing In The Streets during the half-time show. Any takers??

Happy February!

I'm quite glad that January is over. Just another month in the bucket and another month closer to spring and ultimately summer!

As I flipped over the calendar today at work, I noticed that there are several noted holidays in the month of February. Well, I guess they are considered holidays anyway.

And, since it wasn't on my calendar, I forgot to mention that it is indeed Black History month as well. Thanks Msrey for the reminder!

February 2-Groundhog Day Is this something that's "celebrated" everywhere or is it one of those stupid Pennsylvania things because we are home to Punxsutawney Phil....I'm sure you've all seen the movie. The little town of Punxsutawney goes bonkers for this holiday. People will be up and partying before the crack of dawn tomorrow. There really isn't much to do in that town so, I guess this is as good an excuse as any to have a party.

By the way, Phil saw his shadow (who didn't see that coming?) which means there are six more weeks of winter. Thanks Phil! (turning on Radio Margaritaville for some beach music)

February 5-Superbowl Sunday Since when did this become noteworthy on a calendar? Again, this will be another big day for the state of PA because the Steelers are going to the Superbowl and will undoubtably win! This is where you all wave your Terrible Towels!

February 8-Nirvana Day This one took a little research on my part. I mean, I'm familiar with Nirvana but what the heck are some people actually celebrating on this day? According to the information I found, it's not a sad day but a day that commemorates the death of Shakyamuni Buddha who purportedly died in 483 BCE. (And that whole BCE thing gripes my butt. What was wrong with BC? Oh yea, can't be too religious.)

February 9-Chinese New Year 2006 is the year of the dog. The new year starts with the first new moon of the new year. This celebration honors heaven and earth and those family members living and dead.

February 12-Lincoln's Birthday Lincoln would have celebrated his (let me get the calculator out) 197th birthday on this day. This day is doubley special as I'm sure the entire blog world will be celebrating a special birthday!

February 14-Valentine's Day The day that makes single people want to rush out and buy a pack of razor blades and simultaneously makes every man on the earth cringe in fear.

February 15-Coyote Mike's Birthday

February 20-Presidents Day Thanks to tricky Dick Nixon, this holiday was created in 1971 to commemorate both Lincoln's and Washington's birthdays and give the Federal Government a day off. Thanks Dick! Too bad I don't work for the Federal Government.

February 22-Washington's Birthday This year old George would have been 274 years young. Let's party George!

February 28-Mardi Gras I'm sure everyone is quite familiar with this one. It seems that this holiday is a combination of Greek mythology and Christianity (odd combination) and down right debauchery. Certainly I'm not complaining, at least about the debauchery part! Also on this date some people celebrate Shrove Tuesday consisting of donuts and/or pancakes. Hey, my kind of holiday!!!

To test your knowledge of the month of February click here.