Songs of the week

I was feeling generous, so here are two!

iPod Help

Somebody help!!! I got my new laptop and installed iTunes on it. When I plug in the iPod, it shows all the songs under "Inside iPod" but I can't tranfer the actual song files to the new computer.

A couple of times I tried to update the iPod, but it wiped out all my music.

Aaaa!!!!!

Anniversary Post

This is my 150th post! Whoo-hoo!! Let's see...I supposed to write something profound...
However, I wasn't even aware of this blogging milestone until I logged on this morning. So, instead I have random tidbits from my life that I've been meaning to share for some time:

When I was pregnant with Jimmy, the umbilical cord had one artery carrying the blood from him instead of two (happens in only 1% of all pregnancies). As a result of that, there was a 25%chance of a birth defect. The doctor warned me that he could be born underdeveloped (like missing a kidney) or autistic/retarded. I had an ultrasound every week to monitor his growth, in case he stopped developing and labor had to be induced.

I was paralyzed with worry, reading tons of material on childhood autism and other defects. He was born perfectly healthy physically a day after my 24th birthday; but there was no way to tell whether he was okay mentally. I would look at the scrunched up jaundiced face and wonder, but it still didn't matter -- he was perfect in every way!

He turned out just fine. A little short for his age and scrawny, but full of life and smart beyond his years. Oh, yeah, and I am still his "favorite girl."

Deleted post

The beauty of blogging is that any post can later be edited or deleted. Like the one I wrote while UTPMS -- 'under the influence of PMS.' I debated deleting it -- after all, the occasional weepy sadness is a part of who I am, so the writing should also reflect that. The weather was to blame, too...

Movie recommendation

Last week I rented "Elizabethtown" and "The Weather Man." Both were excellent films.

There's quote from "The Weather Man" -- "All of the people I could be, they got fewer and fewer until finally they got reduced to only one -- and that's who I am. The weather man." That's what Nicholas Cage's character is -- a man whose entire life is a clumsy disappointment. One of the trade papers calls it "one of the biggest downers to emerge from a major studio in recent memory -- an overbearingly glum look at a Chicago celebrity combing through the emotional wreckage of his life."

When I was watching this movie, it was almost like looking at a really dark gloomy painting -- depressing but fascinating, an emotional wreck that keeps haunting you long after.



"Elizabethtown" is a different spin of a boy-meets-girl scenario. It starts with Drew's mistake which cost his company $972 million dollars, "a failure of mythic proportions, a folk tale that makes other people feel better because it didn't happen to them." He contemplates suicide when he finds out that his father suddenly died.

What follows is a journey of self-discovery -- literal and figurative, placing his life in perspective with the help of undyingly optimistic Claire with whom he can't help but fall in love.

Car update

So, I finally got my bloody Mustang convertible back (it was in storage). Last fall it was vandalized - some f*$&wit cut the vinyl top and it's beyond repair. I am trying to sell it; the dilemma I was facing was whether or not I want to sell it "as is" for less, OR get it fixed and then sell it.

I finally decided on the latter. Bought the complete "do-it-yourself" kit off the internet for $430. The dealership's quote was $1400 with labor. Now if I can get some friends to help me...

So, here's the deal -- all you can eat pizza and unlimited Guinness (or the beer of your choice) for helping me :) I can't exactly "do it myself."

Song of the week

Nickelback "Photograph"

6 wEiRd hABits

Trouble tagged me. So, here we go:

1. Saying 'you know' and 'um' too much and giggling all the time.

2. The whole OCD at the table (see an earlier post) but nowhere else.

3. Travelling with my own pillow.

4. Talking in my sleep in Russian.

5. Dying my hair. I haven't see my natural haircolor since...well...early 90s?

6. Reading magazines from the back.


I tag Sank and Datbury.

Dude, I am gettin' a Dell!

It's probably another one of those impulse online purchases, but what the heck, I did it anyway. It's a really basic Dell Inspiron B130 model, although I upgraded the hard drive to 80GB and memory - to 1GB. Grand total - $668 (or 445 bottles of Guinness!)

I'll keep the old equipment around...as an accessory, you know ;)

Jimmy

-- Mom, guess who my favorite girl is.

-- Is it Paige?

-- No!! Someone who's old!

-- Me?!

-- Yep!!

Meet Jimmy - the boy who would turn red and stammer at the sight of the girl who worked at the neighborhood music store; who asked me if he could live with me till he turns 37 (of course, honey); the supreme Pokemon expert, chess master, girl-magnet and prankster.

Food

Had Mediteranean for dinner today - made my own couscous (with sauteed garlic, parsley and spearmint) with toasted pita and calamata olives. Mmm...good!!

I love Spring!!!!!

Politically Correct publishing guidelines

Un-freakin'-believable!! The worst thing is that PC is migrating to other countries. Even in Russia, where people are notoriously blunt, it's spreading like disease. In the very near future, I can just see a secret society reminiscent of Fahrenheit 451, where outcasts like myself will gather just to be able to freely draw anatomically correct cows and tell ethnic jokes without the fear of offending anyone. Talk about life imitating art... If you haven't read it already, read 1984, Animal Farm, Fahrenheit 451, and my favorite - Brave New World.


Sunday, April 09, 2006
By Scott Norvell (excerpt)

The globalization of the market for children's books has brought Australian authors face-to-face with American standards of political correctness, according to a report in The Age, and the authors are none to happy about it.

One highly successful book was not accepted in the US because it showed a bare baby's bottom. Another illustrator was asked not to draw any udders in a book about cows.
Illustrators have been asked to avoid showing uncut loaves of bread and freestanding wardrobes because they might be unfamiliar to American readers.

Among the other guidelines handed down by U.S. publishers:

--Avoid stereotypes such as females as peripheral/helpers to active/leading males, or senior citizens as infirm, with canes, doddering.

--Elderly people should be shown as active members of society; unless relevant to text they should not be shown in wheelchairs.

--Show mothers involved in outside employment (not in aprons in kitchens).

--Show African-Americans in positions of power, not just in service industries.

--Show African-Americans and other people of colour with a range of skin tones. Hair texture should vary from straight to curly.

--Do not stereotype Asian people with glasses, bowl-shaped haircuts, or as intellectuals.

--No large groups of people without an appropriate ethnic mix and male/female ratio.

--No "help the disabled" pictures ― show disabled people doing for themselves and others.

--Show many types of family grouping. Take care not to imply that one-parent homes are broken.

Little known facts about me

I already did a "facts" post back in December, but here's more anyway. Borrowed from Misha

1. I didn't get my driver's license until I was 22.

2. I wasn't addicted to chocolate until I was about 26.

3. I used to babysit for David Soul.

4. A boy in my school and I once took apart the teacher's desk and put it back together (minus all the screws). As soon as she sat down, the whole thing came crashing down! Yes, it was evil.

5. I buy myself flowers on a regular basis -- a dozen dark red roses usually.

Maybe I'll think of some more later and add to this...It's too early yet to think :)

Spring is in the air

The one and only time I had a picture taken with the infamous t-shirt (and on the ex's bike). The story behind is that daughter #1 and I drove to Fargo, ND for her soccer tournament last summer. It was raining heavily and both of are were completely soaked. Fortunately, Nicole had a change of clothing, but I didn't.

We drove to the local mall where I ran into the very first store I saw and grabbed a t-shirt and jeans. The front of the t-shirt read "I 'heart' good boys. Since I was a teacher at the time, it seemed appropriate. I paid and changed in the nearby restroom.

Two minutes later, I hear Nicole snickering behind me. "Um...Mom" she giggled, "Look in the mirror." To my utter horror, the back of it said "I 'heart' bad boys." (Which I do, but that's a different story...)

She has the shirt now. I am gettin' a new one.

News

I am a news junkie -- TV news, news websites, talk radio, magazines. There are several things, however, that annoy me about the news coverage:

1) too much focus on the negative and gory ("if it bleeds it leads" mentality)
2) not enough coverage of world events
3) stupid banter between news anchors; seriously -- it's annoying as hell
4) celebrity gossip (isn't that what E! and tabloids are for?)

Regarding #1, I am not in denial by any means that there's a lot of bad shyte happenning in the world. But, let's have some balance, and hear the good news, like --

Since 2000, US forests have expanded by an area larger than Delaware. - Jan. 2006 Smithsonian

The World Health Organization has launched a five-day polio immunization campaign in Somalia to vaccinate nearly one and a half million children under age five against the crippling disease, which is on the decline there.

For the first time in 40 years, less than 20% of women smoke (one third of women smoked in 1965). Wanna quit? Free help line (800) 784-8669

Lazy thoughts

a) I didn't get to prank anyone on April Fool's (I tried one person, but my stupid grin gave it away)

b) I remembered to change my clocks, so I am not going to be late for work this morning!

c) I wrote a poem a few days ago (it's been a long time since I've written any creative fiction/poetry). Maybe I'll get permission to post it....

d) I only need 14 more hits on my blog for the map to be updated (it only updates with each 10% increase in visits). There are two special dots I am especially looking forward to.