Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Birthday Party Revisited

You may remember back in November a certain special person threw a particularly fantastic birthday party for me in honor of my 29th birthday. You all remember that, RIGHT???

I just got some pictures from a friend. We all had a good laugh again over these. There were quite a few other people at the party, but they must have been inside acting like normal people. So, these are the few, the proud, the abnormal.

This was the pre-party "book club" guise used to get me out of the house for the day. These are my wonderful friends a.k.a. "the usual suspects." Arriving in style... This was a little scary....had no idea where I was, or who was there. It could have been a firing squad!




My friend Stacy's little girl Sophia. The first and very best hug of the night!
Yes, that is a tiara, don't act shocked!



Dancing Queens....

Stacey, Vicki and Renee in their "prom gowns."

Nanook of the north....geesh.You can tell I saved the best for last. It's easy to tell this was late in the evening. Yes, those are my two favorite soldiers, one looking mysteriously like Don Johnson and the other with red, painted toenails.

Thursday, March 22, 2007

Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?

Has anyone been watching this show? It's hosted by Jeff Foxworthy and has made me really wonder how I'm about to get a college degree and don't know any of this stuff. Did I really learn all this stuff by fifth grade? Here are some of the questions:

1. How many months out of the year have 31 days?

2. If the diameter of a circle is 4 then the radius is what?

3. What is the only continent that is also a country?

4. Is the United States in the eastern hemisphere?

5. If y=3x and 3x=12, what does y equal?



Answers:
1. 7
2. 2
3. Australia
4. No!
5. y=12

So, how'd ya do???

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

On the First Day of Spring

I've just decided that if I'm ever in a band, I'm going to name the band The Shams. So people can say "boy, do those Shams rock?!?" You didn't see that one coming did you?

Happily today was the first day of spring but there is still snow on the ground from last Friday when we got socked with a pretty decent snow storm which ultimately cancled my Saturday class which was fine with me. I had a home full of guests so we got to start our St. Patrick's Day fun a little early. And, Briguy made it home to party with the girls as well.

I was hoping today would be a little warmer than it was but the dog and I went out for a long walk after lunch. The snow was melting so there were lots of puddles and mud. Jasmine tried to walk over a puddle that had a thin layer of ice on the top which she fell through. The sun was warm but the wind was cold. I hate wind, unless it's a breeze off the ocean and it's 80 degrees outside.

Happy Spring!

Friday, March 16, 2007

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

When I was in Ireland many years ago, I remember getting a beer and the bartender told me he put a shamrock on the top for me. I thought he was kidding. He wasn't! Kinda looked like this pint here. Have a great weekend everyone!

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

I Gotta Wear Shades

The past year has been quite a voyage.
I have discovered I am determined, strong, and will meet my goals no matter what hurdles lie before me.
I have discovered who my friends are and to what extent they will go for me.
I'm am so thankful for the lessons I've learned and for the friends and family I have that have supported me every step of the way on this voyage over the last year.
I have learned to never compromise my happiness for a false sense of security ever again.
I'm glad to finally see the person that other people see me as.
I'm glad I don't have anything to angry about anymore.

"Well I'm heavenly blessed and worldly wise I'm a peeping-tom techie with x-ray eyes. Things are going great, and they're only getting better I'm doing all right, getting good grades. The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades."

Monday, March 12, 2007

Sunshine Came Softly

Over this past weekend, we began daylight savings time. As the little ditty goes "spring ahead, fall back" referring to what we do with the clocks when someone decides it's time to change the clocks. There was a lot of discussion over the preceeding weeks that this years daylight savings was beginning early and would our computers, cell phones, etc. know that it was time to change the clocks? It was similar to what we all experienced prior to Y2K. Sunday morning came and my phone time had changed, and my computers all changed with no problem. Again, similar to Y2K. Some people are opposed to the time changes because it just means it will be dark in the morning and stay lighter in the evening. I'm all for it. I usually don't have to be anywhere too early so I'll be sleeping through the dark hours anyway.

It seems to daylight change has brought with it some spring like weather too. Today's high must have been in the 60's. Tomorrow is supposed to be even warmer! I'll take it!! There's only one more week of winter left anyway. Bring it on!!

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Practice Makes Perfect

As a runner prepares for a long race, we, the few and the proud have been practicing for our big day which happens to be fast approaching. Next Saturday as you all probably know is St. Patrick's Day. It's a big deal around here anyway. I've had my shamrock flag hanging outside for a couple of weeks and we've been practicing our consumption of alcohol in preparation of next week. There are several Irish bars that have sprung up around town over the last couple of years. I think our most favorite is Ceoltas. The food is great, lots of good beer on tap and they actually play Irish music! I know, unheard of! Last night when we were there practicing, there was a group of Irish dancers performing. The girls and boys that danced last night ranged from about 5 years old to about 12. They were a lot of fun to watch. The Harrisburg SPD parade is being held today and these kids will be dancing again in the parade.

Now, it seems that this SPD is going to be bittersweet for, well at least one person in our group of friends. It seems duty calls and NittanyBri will be working for the U.S. Army that weekend. Aw...I promise we'll send pictures!

So, the gang is going to a local place to celebrate SPD where our favorite band The Luv Gods will be performing. I think the bar opens at 7:00 a.m. (yikes, that could get ugly.) There will be food and of course lots to drink. Today we will be making our SPD t-shirts. Maybe we'll make it a yearly thing with new logos every year. I'm sure pictures will follow.

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

When I Was A Kid

Thanks to Coyote Mike for giving me something to write about. Play along if you'd like.

When I was a kid, I wanted a pony or a horse. I wanted one BAD. I swore I would take care of it, and that it could live in my suburban backyard. I still think it wouldn't be a bad idea. The consolation prize was that my dad mostly would take me to see horses, you know the kind that are just out standing around. He'd usually remember to pack carrots and apples so they'd at least come to the fence.

When I was a kid, I wanted my ears pierced. I wanted it BAD! All my friends had their ears pierced but not me. I had to wait till I was 18. Guess what I did on my 18th birthday? Now I have a total of 4 holes in my ears. I think I'm done.

When I was a kid, my best friend and I had the same first name and same date of birth. She was one year older than me. I even remember that we had the same winter coat. It was an ugly red, yellow, orange plaid with a really ugly yellowish woolly collar. It was the 70's what do you expect?

When I was a kid, I went to a babysitter because both my parents worked. My mom told me not to take my bike to the babysitters (which was just down the street.) But, the kids wanted to go bike riding. So, I ran down to my house, got my bike and we went riding. We were careening down a hill and around the curve and I slid in a pile of stones. 10 stitches in my knee kind of explains why I shouldn't have taken my bike to the babysitter.

When I was a kid, I wanted to be a school teacher. I had my own black board and would have class all the time. I would sometimes get extra papers from my teachers so I could use them in my class. My favorite part of being a teacher was sending kids out to the hall and reprimanding them for their behavior. Hmm, wonder where I would have ever gotten that idea?

When I was a kid, I also wanted to be a Go-Go dancer. You know, dancing in a cage, knee high, white patent leather boots, funky dress. Still sounds like a cool idea!

When I was a kid, I was in love with Donny Osmond and Richard Thomas (John Boy Walton). Go ahead, laugh.

When I was a kid, I wanted a pet. Not just the horse or pony but a dog or cat. I used to bring home all kinds of animals but wasn't allowed to keep them. I did have fish every once and a while. I had a salamander once too, but he got out of the container I had him in and dried up near the furnace in the basement.

When I was kid, I made prank phone calls with my friend. You know, "Is your refrigerator running?" "Do you have Prince Albert in a can?" Or we'd call and hang up on the one neighbor we didn't like. I ratted us out thinking I was being really slick about it but she was on to me. Thank goodness she didn't tell my parents.

When I was a kid, my family always thought I was doing bad things. Smoking, drinking, messing around with guys, when I really wasn't. Instead, it was all my supposedly innocent friends that were doing all these things. And yes, now I'm making up for lost time!

Friday, March 02, 2007

Hey This is Fun!

I stole this from Michael over at Smoke and Mirrors. Play along if you'd like!

“If your life were a film, what would your soundtrack be?”

So, here’s how it works: 1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc) 2. Put it on shuffle 3. Press play 4. For every question, type the song that’s playing 5. When you go to a new question, press the next button.

Here's mine:

Opening Credits: Amerika--Rammstein
Waking Up: Shut It--The Damned (well if that ain't the truth!)
Life: Drank My Wife Away--David Allan Coe (hilarious!)
Falling in Love: Private Idaho--B52's
Make-out Scene: Head Over Feet--Alanis Morissette (wow! )
Breaking Up: Talk Talk--Talk Talk
Mental Breakdown: Jane Says--Jane's Addiction
Driving: Blues From a Gun--The Jesus and Mary Chain
Getting Back Together: It's Five O'Clock Somewhere--Alan Jackson (can't make up with out a couple of drinks now can you?)
Wedding: Breaking the Law--Judas Priest (am I marrying my cousin?)
Birth of Child: Personality Crisis--New York Dolls
Final Battle: Out All Night--The Pietasters
Death Scene: Genius of Love--Tom Tom Club
Funeral: Only Want to be With You--Hootie and the Blowfish (aw!!)
End Credits:Ferry Cross the Mersey--Pat Metheny (now that's a fine ending!)

A Lovely Day


I couldn't ask for a better day than today to have virtually nothing to do. No school for another week, no work, at least for today and the sun is shining and the temps have got to be close to 50 if not over. I have the heat off, the windows open and the snow and ice we had over Valentines day is quickly melting. This is a good thing since I never got around to completely shoveling my sidewalks. That is like a cardinal sin for homeowners, at least around these parts.

Spring seems to be imminent. The breeze outside is a soft one, like in the spring. You can smell the earth and you can see the water running down the sides of the streets from the melting snow. Even the spring flowers are poking their heads up. That Punxsutawney Phil was right!!