It's Hip to be Square

I am part of a book club that meets on a monthly basis. We have usually one book to read and we get together at a local establishment to have some food and discuss the book....well, we get together to drink too.

I went to the library to get What Seems Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day. But, the library didn't actually have the book, they only had the book on cassette tape. So, I figured, well, I'd be able to listen to the book on my walk to the office and back. So, I dug out my Sony Walkman...yes, the bright pink one I bought back in the 80's. Plugged my ear buds into it and off I went. Fortunatley, I could keep the Walkman itself in my purse so as not to totally give away my age to every person that passed by and was able to actually recognize what the pink thing was that I had in my hand and attached to my ears.

It wasn't until I got a present from a "special someone" that I truly became part of the hip crowd and realized eventhough I kept the Walkman in my purse the ear buds were in fact not the tell-tale white color of an iPod.

Today I moved into the 21st century. The "special someone" that got me this most wonderful and very shiney gift, downloaded some music onto the iPod and I was able to have the "official" white earphones attached to my shiney new MP3 player on my walk into work this morning. I was so very hip!

The riverfront area is gearing up for the big Kipona festival this weekend. There will be lots of artists, bands and food along the river. However, it seems Ernesto seems to be making his way up here just in time for the weekend. Sunday and Monday are still salvageable according to the weatherman. But, you know how reliable they are.

My first day of classes went well. I have lots of reading to do and a couple of papers will be required along the way as well. Thankfully I think at least two of my classes don't have any quizzes or tests! Whoo hoo!!!

As I sat there in my first class of the day which was Renaissance Art, I knew that that's where I was meant to be. I was thankful for the turn of events that had gotten to this new adventure I have before me.

Here are more pics from Assateague since Blogger seems to be cooperating this morning.

Doe a deer....

A pony taking a rest...

Every year, it's a really big deal in this area as the ponies are hearded up, they swim across the channel and are brought into town and auctioned off. The money raised supports the local firefighters.

I'm not sure that I like that whole idea of taking the animals out of the wild, but I understand the need to maintain population control. I guess it's better than shooting them.

And on that cheery note....today is my first day of full time classes! I have three classes so I'll only be in school from 9:00-1:00 three times a week. I'm a little nervous, but probably only till I get there and then I'll feel better.

I Feel Like a French Fry

Remember those Solarcaine commercials years ago where the little kid is bright red and kind of holding his arms out so they don't touch his skin while he says "I feel like a French Fry"? Yea, the two of us have a bit of sunburn.

We only really got to the beach for one full day. I'm pretty militant about using sunscreen because I used to bake in the sun as a kid and had plenty of bad sunburns to last a lifetime. I only used like a 2 or a 4 SPF on my chest...have you ever had sunburn in your cleavage?? Not fun.

Now Brian on the other hand...just doesn't listen. He's been a hurtin pup for the last couple of days. But I think he's feeling a little better. Now the peeling should set in!

The weather at the beach was good for the most part. When we first got there it was overcast and raining. And, do I mean raining! We decided for a walk on the beach. Not a good idea at that point because a torrential rain came through. We were soaked.

The weather was clear the rest of the weekend. We even spent one day at Assateague Island National Seashore. We had the bikes packed and could get around the island pretty easily. Out of my many years of going to Maryland shores for vacation and my love for horses, I had never been to Assateague before. I think my father knew better than to take me to a place where horses are roaming free. The resulting pleading would have been; "I want one! We can keep him in the back yard? I swear I'll take care of him! The neighbors won't mind!"

There are many childrens stories about the ponies of Assateague and Chincoteague Islands. I'm sure I read them all as a little girls. This is the island where the horses are wild. I've never seen a wild horse before. It's kind of odd to see a horse standing in the middle of a field with no fencing. However, when we first got to the island there were three "moochers" in the parking lot. They've obviously realized that humans bring food. You are not supposed to pet or feed the animals, but you know how that goes.

This is a national park and therefore is a seashore devoid of t-shirt shops, hotels, amusement parks, gift shops and restaurants. You can pull your camper up to the park or pitch a tent and camp that way too. I would even consider camping, in a tent, here.


Apparently there is much wildlife to be found on the island including foxes, racoons and deer. We saw a doe on our way back to the car.

Since it was very hot, we packed up our wares and went back in to Ocean City, MD. We needed a drink!

Beach Baby

Me and this guy are leaving for the beach tomorrow. It will be our last hurrah before school starts, and we plan on having a super time before all the hard work begins!! The pets will be in capable hands (my sister) who will be pulling double duty between our pets and a neighbor's pets who are also going on vacation this week. Thanks sis!!



I've posted some new pics in the Flickr box on the right. These are the pics that I took with Mr. Dorman a couple of weeks ago. Enjoy them while I'm gone!!!

Weekend Update

Were did the weekend go?? I cannot believe it's Monday morning already.

Friday was a mixed bag. Jasmine had to have some surgery and while I knew she'd be fine, it's scary anyway. Of course the surgery also requires that she now wear an Elizabethan collar. They've gotten rid of the hard plastic collars and now they're some kind of soft material that makes her look like one of these. Which I'm thinking would be a good Halloween costume for her! I also went to a friends house for a surprise birthday party for another friend. The hilarious part was that the friend we had the party for had no idea the party was for her. Actually, even after the gifts and the cake and all, I still don't think she really got the idea the party was for her. Oh well!

Saturday was yet another party. This time a Luau. I got to be the guest bartender which was pretty fun. I was only responsible for making the margaritas and the whiskey (it's a wonder there was any left), tequila, rum and vodka. Didn't have to make anything fancy. Everyone at the party was dressed tropically, the food was tropical, and the evening's weather was kind of tropical too....hot and then rainy. The karaoke didn't come out till late in the evening which resulted in "someone" who shall remain nameless telling me that I must obey him because he had the microphone and the remote control for the karaoke. I got to hear some quite unique renditions of songs including Bad Mama Jama and Jive Talking.

Sunday, well, that was just a lazy day. Till the late afternoon when we got the idea to go for a bike ride along the river. There was a wonderful breeze which worked against us on the way up the river, but helped us on the way back. The sunset was just gorgeous and there was a group of boaters that were docked along an island. There must have been some kind of party going on on that island. I think there was even a band!

And one last thing that's been bugging me. Could this situation get any weirder???

Have a good Monday everyone!

Forever Young

Tomorrow is the day. The day my nephew leaves for University. Last night we had dinner together and I knew when he left, it would be the last time I would see him as the young, naive, impressionable 18 year old that he is. Next time we're together, he'll be 19, and will have just about finished his first semester in college. He'll officially be a cadet in the United States Navy as of this Friday.

I promised myself I wouldn't cry and I didn't, until this morning on the way to work, and now, and probably tomorrow. We hugged each other and said our "I love you's."

I'm so excited for him for this great opportunity he has before him. And, it's exactly what he's wanted to do for a long time now. He'll be majoring in physics which makes both my sister and my skin crawl. He wants to serve his country and I admire him for making this decision and sticking with it. I will miss him. He won't ever been the same boy I had dinner with last night.

I know that both sets of his grandparents that are no longer with us, would be absolutely beaming. And so they should.

"And when you finally fly away

I'll be hoping that I served you well

For all the wisdom of a lifetime

No one can ever tell
But whatever road you choose

I'm right behind you, win or lose

Forever Young."

Things That Go Bump in the Night

Recently, the weather here has been down right pleasant in the north east and the evenings have been somewhat cool. I don't remember the last time I had the air conditioning on, and the windows are open at night to let the cool breeze through. I actually broke down and put the comforter back on the bed because my sleep was being interrupted by the chilly air.

So last night was a cool evening, windows open, sleep taking over my body and mind. Nothing but the crickets chirping, the soothing sound of a car passing by on their way home from an evening out. The sound of the fan in the window upstairs humming its lullaby. CRASH!!! Thump, thump, thump!

"What the hell was that?" (Or a varying form of that question.) So, I get out of bed while trying to catch my breath from whatever the heck that was. I automatically assume that it was one of the animals getting into something. This often happens when a neighborhood cat comes to visit and is within sight of my two. But, not this time. All of the animals including the dog were looking at me wondering why I'm out of bed at 2:00 a.m.

So, I get to the stairs and look up to find that in fact it was the fan in the window that had fallen out. My nephew was sleeping upstairs, but apparently the crash and burn of the fan did not rouse him from his sleep.

The window fan I had previous to this one was notorious for falling out at inappropriate times of the day or night. It finally had to go in the garbage because it's last fall actually knocked something quite important lose from the mechanism and it wobbled and clanked instead of whirring and cooling.

The unwelcomed telephone call in the middle of the night, which, thankfully I haven't had in quite some time is another one that really gets the old ticker moving out of a dead sleep. My mom's side of the family was notorious for this. Mainly because someone had died. But, wouldn't they still be dead in the morning? Would it make any difference if we found out about it 8:00 a.m. rather than 3:30 a.m.?

I've also had one other traumatizing event in the middle of the night. It's the over the door shoe rack collapse of 2004. Again, I automatically assumed it was one of the cats dive bombing into the closet, because the closet has some pretty interesting stuff in it, particularly if you are a cat!

But, again I was wrong, it was in fact, the unrelenting weight of the 30 or more pair of shoes that strain the little plastic clips that hold the rack to the door. My new one just broke the other day. But, fortunately, I have a MacGyver in my life and he was able to make some adjustments so it won't come crashing down in the middle of the night.

Fun Stuff

The weekend is starting early in my neighborhood. I was able to leave work about 2 hours early today.

Of course, when I got home I discovered that one of the cats, the one with the stripes, has decided to initiate the couch with pee. Yea, thanks. He hasn't done that in a really long time and I really have no idea what may have provoked it. But, that is how he has gotten the nickname Peebody. Soon, he's going to be called Homeless. Not really, but it's aggravating.

Anyway, the weekend plans thus far seem pretty interesting. Mr. Dorman will make his way to Harrisburg again this weekend. Hopefully we can find some good things to photograph like we did last weekend. Of course, I haven't had the time to put pics out on my Flickr account yet.

This is my nephew's last weekend at home. He leaves for Norwich University next week. He will also be at my house over the weekend. We've got some special plans in the works for that boy this weekend. Some he's sure not to soon forget.

Everyone have a super weekend!!

Mr. Roboto

I see more and more animated movies being made. Recently Ant Bully came out. I'm sure these movies are cute and funny. But, the sad thing to me is, lately all the characters look the same. The kids in Ant Bully look like the kids in The Incredibles.

Computer generated images have really done some amazing things in the world of animation. But, it has also taken the individuality and creativity out of the drawings.

I guess the same could be said for the world of music. As many countless combinations of note can be put together, the music sounds the same because the artists are using machines to make the music.

Is it possible that we rely on machinery so much that were are becoming a world of clones and actually turing off the creative portions of our brains? Will we propogate children of the future that are unable to create through music, art and the written word because of our reliance on computers to do the work for us?

A Walk in the Park

Since I've been working during the daylight hours at my job in the "big city", as opposed to working in the evenings as I had in the past, parking has become somewhat of an issue. Not really and issue but something I've never really had to consider before. Because I work right in downtown Harrisburg, on 3rd Street to be exact (that alone becomes a joke to anyone from Harrisburg. 3rd Street is synonymous with prostitution. However, I've never seen a prostitute on 3rd Street and I've lived here all my life.) Anyway, so as not to have to pay a parking meter or pay an exhorbitant amount of money to park in a parking garage, I park on an island in the middle of the river. It's the same island that has batting cages, the baseball park, miniature golf, etc.

Because I park inexpensively on this island, I then must walk across an iron walking bridge that crosses the river and up about three blocks and left about 10 or so blocks. It's kind of funny, but I usually find myself on these same streets between 9:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. on a Friday or Saturday night since many of the downtown bars I go to on occasion are en route to my office. Once I do get up to 3rd Street, the view is of the capital building which I never seem to get tired of seeing. I'm still inspired by it every day I walk by. Another fortunate thing is that I go to work later in the morning after most of the a.m. rush as gone. So, the walk is usually pretty quiet.

This morning it was especially nice taking this walk. It is always pretty nice getting a good walk in first thing in the a.m. but this morning it was breezy and sunny. The temperature was mild. There were a couple of guys fishing on the river and their boat was parked just beneath the bridge I was walking on. And, I didn't even have a skirt on!!! The water was sparkling and you could see the water currents moving swifter than the rest of the river. I could hear the radio on the boat and I thought, today would be a great day to be on the water enjoying life.

Luckily, I don't anticipate having to take this walk in the ugly winter weather months. I will be at school by then and probably only working in the evenings and will be able to park close to the office. At least, that's what I'm hoping!!

I just got back from a walk/run through the neighborhood. The air is slightly cool and it was just getting dark. And La Bella Luna is enormous tonight!!! HOooooooooooooooooowlllll!!!

Wasted Away Again in Margaritaville

Parrot Heads (which are ironically very similar to Dead Heads) are some pretty creative people. Last night was my first experience at a real Jimmy Buffett concert. Now, a few years ago, I and a couple of friends went up to see Jimmy as he performed live on the Today Show in NYC. That was a completely different animal than what I experienced last night.

The venue, The Nissan Pavilion in Bristow, VA was bombarded with all sorts of craziness. When my Buffett buddy Stacy and I got to the Pavilion, we saw a sea of cars, some with fins on the roof, some with pointy teeth painted on the windshield. There were hula skirts, coconut bras and tiki bars galore. Some folks even brought their own hibachis, sandboxs and swimming pools. Most everyone brought alcohol. Lots and lots of alcohol. And yesterdays temperatures were in the upper 90's and very humid. So many of these fans baked in the sun for a good part of the day before the concert and apparently cooled themselves with some kind of frozen concoction.

After we walked about 1/2 mile from the parking area we finally got the gates where we showed our tickets and got into the pavilion. This is where the once moving line came to an abrupt halt. And it was a sea of sweaty, smelly, pushy and highly intoxicated bodies collided.

We finally got to the pavilion which is made up of a covered seating area and then a lawn. The lawn is where people brought blankets and lawn chairs and lots and lots of beach balls.

By the time we made it to our seats, the concert had already started. Which was a little disappointing to me but I got over it quick. There was still absolutely no breeze under the pavilion so the profuse sweating began and didn't stop for about an hour. Jimmy mentioned that at that exact moment it was 15 degrees cooler in Key West than it was in Bristow, VA.

Jimmy did all the favorites, Cheeseburger In Paradise, Margaritaville, Son of a Son of Sailor, etc. He also did many non-Buffett songs. He actually has a guy in the band that was an original member of Little Feat, so some Dixie Chicken was in order. Jimmy also did Southern Cross, Werewolves of London and a tribute to his creole home with City of New Orleans.

Jimmy also had with him a young man named Jake Shimabukuro who played the ukulele. I mean wailed on the ukulele. Have you ever heard a rendition of the Star Spangled Banner on the ukulele with steel drums as back up? It was amazing. This kid was so good!!!

During some of the breaks, they would show videos on the giant screens from concerts earlier in the summer and mainly of the tailgating that goes on in the parking lot prior to the show. All I can say is that some girls have been staying up late and catching the "Girls Gone Wild" advertisements on TV. Whew! Girls...put those things away!

The show was over around 11:00 p.m. We waited a bit to let some of the people get out of the seating area. This was our first glimpse at the lawn which was previously covered with dancing bodies and now looked more like a war zone. There was abandoned blankets, crushed plastic cups, plastic water bottles, and a lone flip-flop (not blown out either!) Then, we made our way back the 1/2 mile to the parking lot. Fortunately, Stacey had her thinking cap on. We had a cooler of water in the trunk and had two folding chairs there as well. We sat in the parking lot for over an hour just waiting our turn to actually leave. And that was normal from what I heard from some of the employees there. This place has only one way in and one way out. Yea, that was my least favorite part of the night. Basically, we sat around drinking water and watching this guy across the way puke his guts out. Good times!

Buffett was awesome, I think this may have been a once in a lifetime thing for me. If you go to a Buffett show, get yourself physically prepared like 6 months in advance. Buffett shows are not for the frail, weak or incompacitated. Nor are they for those that do not like to have fun. Now...where is the shaker of salt??

Down on the Knees of My Heart

Is it just me or do a lot of bad things happen all at once? Of late, I've been informed of a "friend" who took their long time pet to the animal shelter because she was attacking other dogs. I've never been in this situation, but I hope that I would have found another option besides condemning my pet to euthanization.

I've also heard of other folks breaking up with their significant others and family members passing away. I've also discovered of late, that I've been pretty selfish and self-absorbed potentially resulting in the loss of a very dear friend that has been hurt by my actions.

Today, on the way to work I see a very frail, elderly man being taken away in the ambulance, no doubt because of heat related health issues.

Then, at work today I found out about a coworker that was killed in a car accident. She was 22 years old. I don't think I ever spoke to her, but she was a recent graduate (Suma Cum Laude) from a local college, was engaged to be married next year, and was active with local women's shelters. Here is her obituary.

Sometimes the world just seems so overwhelmingly cruel and tragic. I hope everyone that reads this goes home and gives their loved ones a hug and tells them how much they are loved.

Everywhere are Signs

First, let me just say it's hot as blazes here. We were supposed to break the record set a couple of years ago and reach 100 degrees today. And I have to say, I think we just may have. Whew!!

I have been noticing lately that there have been lots of protesters around. I don't know if they've been imported from somewhere or they're just popping out of the closet to voice their opinions.

I mean, in the past I've seen the protesters at Planned Parenthood, the gay bashers, etc. They are still around. Just last weekend was Pride Fest in Harrisburg and from what I heard, the bashers were at it again. There is also the person that has been most boisterous about Planned Parenthood and abortion. This person has a sign they change almost daily depicting dead babies and all other sorts of sometimes absurd viewpoints.

Last weekend when I went to Harrisburg to the Dave Matthews cover band, there were the Bible bangers proclaiming I should "Repent Sinner" and "Mend my wicked ways."

Today I noticed a few more. They were outside the Dauphin County Courthouse. There were about 5 of them urging those driving by to "Honk if they wanted Peace" and "Peace is Patriotic too" and the one that caught my eye: "Fund healthcare not warfare." Which seems like a darned decent request.

So, I don't know if we're just getting really progressive around here or if people have really just had it with the war and all the other stuff going on in the world. But it seems some folks have something to say.