Folderol

I hear that Tuesday is the day that I am supposed to be random.  But since I am usually a day late and a dollar short.  Thursday makes perfect sense to give you the bits and pieces.  Flotsam and jetsam.  List of sundries. 

I had almost thought that I was back in the swing of blogging.  And now it's been almost two weeks since I posted.  I have 9 posts in draft on my dashboard.  But I don't suppose that counts.  However.  My photoblog is current.  Shocking, no?

A post that is currently residing in my head.  And not in the draft section.  Is one on Judy Blume.  But every time I think about it.  I get irate.  And flummoxed.  For what you ask?  Barnes and Noble has a new rating system on their website.  And a group rated "Are you there God, It's me Margaret" as a book that is IFFY for anyone under 14.  IFFY?  Are you kidding me?  I could go on and on.  But what comes out is incoherent babble.  And incoherent babble rarely makes a good blog post.  Unless it's titled Foderol.  So.  Instead.  I decided to get my 8 year old a copy of the illustrious book.  All in the spirit of solidarity.

Speaking of books.  I just finished Edith Wharton's "Ethan Frome."  It was my bookclub reading for the month.  And I had thought I read it in high school.  But after finishing it.  I am not so sure.  I don't recall any of it.  Of course it is always possible that I was supposed to read it.  But didn't.  Anyway...I really liked it.  The writing is amazing.  And picturesque.  But the subject matter.  There is not another way to describe it other than bleak.  Or tragic.  Ethan - the title character - is just trapped in a horrible life.  Where he is just trying to figure out how to survive.  Rather than to live. 

Katie is studying weathering in science.  Specifically  Devil's Tower in Wyoming.  And how it's the neck of the volcano.  But the outside of the volcano eroded away.  Naturally, we watched "Close Encounters" to go along with the lesson.  About weathering.  *Ahem*. 

We end up going to Panera bread every Thursday for lunch. It's an expensive addiction. But yummy.

Madalyn keeps talking about this delicious drink she is getting at school. She wants to know when we can get some ya-hoo milk. And she refuses to believe me when I told her it's called yoo-hoo. Not ya-hoo.

I am just loving LOST this season.  I don't think that there has ever been a show that is that enveloping.  And I love that Katie is watching it with us.  Look at the cool shirt I found for her:

On the other hand.  I don't think that American Idol could be any worse than it is this season. 

So...what about you?  Opinions on Judy Blume?  Did you pretend to read required books in school? 

Minutiae

Laws-a-mercy. Where has the time gone? And I left you at such a cliffhanger in my trip. I mean. I am sure that you have just been hanging. And wondering what on earth we are going to do after our trip to the Hoover Dam. Well. You'll just have to hang on to your hats a bit longer. And I'll fill you in on the flotsam and jetsam and minutiae that fill my day.

Right before Thanksgiving, my aunt and a bunch of cousins came to visit. We visited. Chatted. Ate lots of PW's brisket. But. I did not take one picture. Not one. I am not sure where I put my brain. Or my camera.

Ugh. And then there is the car. The car that just this summer turned that 100K mark. The car that is otherwise known as the money pit. It died when we went on our cruise last year. It has had flat tires. Battery issues. Electrical issues. Mental issues. So when the check engine light came on, we once again headed to the dealer. While they rubbed their hands together and praised my American lemon. But this time. I just got the minimum amount of work done to make that light go away. And I promptly drove to the Toyota dealership and traded that sucka in. And now. We have a lovely new Sienna gracing my garage.

Lizzy spent Thanksgiving with us. We had a great day. With turkey. More recipes from PW. Family. Friends. And "V." Yes. "V." The original. Oh my goodness. We laughed so hard. And that scene of Diana eating the guinea pig was played over and over again. What? Isn't that how ya'll spent your day?

What about black Friday. Did you shop? Lizzy and I shopped. And I realized how easy Katie is to buy presents for. And how difficult Madalyn is. Especially when her list includes impossibles. Like her own house. A laptop. And a baby sister. But what is the most difficult is my husband. Who is impossible to buy for. Because he doesn't want anything. I had a stroke of genius last year in getting him reusable shopping bags. But this year I got nothin'. Any ideas? What are ya'll getting your significant others??

Did you know that if you create a wishlist on Amazon, you could win a $25,000 gift card? Wait. Forget I told you that.

Speaking of Amazon. Did I tell you that I finally earned money from my blog? Do you see all those book covers there on the left? Well, if you click on those. You will bring up Amazon. You can read more about the book. You can look at other books. Order books. And if you do make a purchase. I get a percentage. A very small percentage. Teeny-tiny. So. After almost 2 years of blogging. I finally earned a $10 gift card.

Oh. Did you want to know what I bought? I did not buy a Christmas gift. I bought a book. For me. It's rather shocking. I am a library girl. But for this book. I didn't want to wait. I got "The Maze Runner" by James Dashner. And wow. What an amazing book. I don't think I have been this riveted to a story since "The Hunger Games." (August 24, 2010 - due date for book three. Not that I am counting.)Have you read either one?

And speaking of books. I just finished a really good one. "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate." It's the story of a girl on the cusp. It's 1899. She is about to enter into a new century. She is about to enter her teen years. Her family is changing. She has an aversion to the female role she is supposed to play. She is trying to figure out who she is. I don't know how to describe except that it was an absolute delight. I wonder if my bookclub would be willing to read it...

Tuesday Ten

I got my Entertainment Weekly today. It is supposed to come on Fridays. But I think that my mailman enjoys it first. Do ya'll get your subscriptions when you are supposed to - or is there a delay?

Anyway...EW has inspired today's blog post. And if I remember. It might become a weekly feature. For me. It's already weekly for them. Unless they are having a double issue. And then you have a week on hold. But I digress. The feature is the MustList. Or the Top 10 things that they love for the week.

So...I thought I'd tell you my top ten things for the week. Although top is a loose word. Maybe it should be just the ten things that happened over the week. Without the top part. Maybe I should just call it a random post. Now my memory is getting foggy. I am not sure how EW inspired me. Except for the 10 part.

1. Friends! Not the tv show. But my friends. And. Most likely. Your friends, too. I had a fabulous weekend with friends. Shannon, Angie, Lizzy (and even Mr. B) got together for a road trip to Alabama. To help Kori celebrate and remember her husband Richard. We laughed. Compared outfits. Admired our pedicures. And had many conversations way too inappropriate for a family blog. Or for a discussion in the house of the Lord. We are lucky that lightning bolts were not involved.

2. Hangover! Nope. Not an alcohol induced one. But the movie version. At least this time all the laughing did not contribute to a kidney stone. Do you think it's possible that Angie, Shannon, and I are the only ones who have seen this movie after coming from a funeral? AND still in our black duds? We laughed. Hard. Stomped our feet in addition to our laughter. Exclaimed disbelief. And laughed so hard we cried. Again.

3. Eight year old girl children. I am not sure where the one that lives in my house came from. And the fact that she keeps Justin Timberlake in her panty drawer should have given me a clue. But tonight she wanted to discuss with me the intricate details about kissing boys. And she flat out refused to listen to my sage advice of no dating or kissing for a very long time. Like college. When I won't have to know about it. Or even high school. When I might be able to accept it. Nope. She is aiming for 8. And next Friday. At the elementary school dance. (And the child even has the nerve to lament the lack of slow dances. Like she even knows how to slow dance!)

4. Do you know where I will be next Friday during said elementary school dance? I will be on the beach. In Panama City. Camping. Did your world come to a halt as well? I am not so sure about this. And my foggy memory is not cooperating. But I believe I heard beach. And am blocking out the camping part.

And my friend Michelle is going to have to take the shotgun to the dance. Or maybe we should be warning the parents of third grade boys to come prepared.

5. Do you know what is going on in my town while I am camping? The Decatur Book festival. Where I will miss the chance to mix and mingle with Sara Gruen (who wrote "Water for Elephants"); Kate DiCamillo (Because of Winn Dixie); my hero Diana Gabaldon (who writes the Outlander series); and Charlaine Harris (of Sookie Stackhouse fame). I need to clone myself.

6. Speaking of Sookie. Do you watch True Blood? I absolutely love the book series. But the HBO show. Wowzers. There are the men.Which is often reason enough. But this show. It's sexy. Campy. And so much fun. There are MANY deviations from the book series. But it works. The changes they have made are great. And the additions. Perfect. Sigh. Eric.7. Let's take a 180 from True Blood. I have been reading a GREAT children's series. It's kinda fun to have the word "JUVENILE" stamped on my books from the library. It's Suzanne Collins' (yep. That Suzanne Collins who wrote "The Hunger Games") series "Gregor the Overlander." I am only on book three of the five part series. But I cannot wait until the library opens tomorrow so that I can my hands on the last two.

8. Many, many thanks to Tressa who kindly agreed to take Madalyn's Flat Stanley on a tour of her Norwegian town. Should I mention that Madalyn wants to be penpals with Tressa's son Dane? Yeah. I thought I should leave that out.

9. When I was in school, I was not a fan of history. It was dry. Boring. And simply a regurgitation of facts. But. When I was in college. I managed to minor in history. Mostly because I had some great professors. Who made history interesting. The homeschool curriculum that we use is history centered. So I have to make sure that Katie has a positive experience with history. And hopefully my enthusiasm will be contagious.

This year we are studying the Middle Ages. I thought it would be fun to throw some movies into the mix. Like: "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." Or "A Knight's Tale." Or "The Lord of the Rings trilogy." But I thought we ought to bring in some nonfiction as well. And I began to scour netflix for shows from the History channel. That hopefully would be interesting.

And I found a gem. Terry Jones of Monty Python fame has done a series called "Medieval Lives." Where he discusses: the monk, the damsel, the peasant, the outlaw, and other characters. The episodes are fun. Hilarious. Cheeky. And most of all - educational. If you have netflix you can watch them online. And I encourage you to check it out!

10. I have been caught up in the train wreck that is the Duggars. I even tivo their show. But mysteriously, it stopped being taped. Genius that I am, I figured it out. I had set "17 kids and counting" to record. But after they had a baby, the name of the show changed to "18 kids and counting." I am going to have to be on my game now, though. Cause they are pregnant again. Again. Child number 19 is on the way. How DOES her bladder still function? Inquiring minds...

Flotsam and Jetsam

I had to take the devil kitties to the vet this week for their first check up. Our reputation preceeded us. The receptionist at the vet knew exactly who I was making an appointment for. Along with their medical history. We might have been responsible for her last raise.

I got to meet another blogger for the first time last week. Kelly from Song for Whoever was in town on her momcation. And we had a fabulous afternoon together. Filled with yummies from Red Robin. Sonic Happy Hour. And a visit to Barnes and Noble. I love when I can suggest books to people. And Kelly bought four books that I suggested. Including "The Time Traveler's Wife." I love that book. And I can't wait to see the movie version next month.

My birthday was Saturday. And even though her life is a little on edge right now, Lizzy came for the weekend. I did leave her at home to bake my cake while Katie and I went to see Harry Potter. I keep hearing people say that they left things out. Or put things in that weren't in the book. But...it's been so long since I read the book...none of that stood out for me. But I will say that there were a lot of funny parts to it.

One of my favorite parts about going to the movies. Besides a bucket of popcorn bigger than me. Is the previews. When we saw "The Hangover" I was rather disappointed in the previews. They were mostly horror type movies. Like "Orphan." (And can you believe that people are protesting this movie? Do you think that people would base their decision to adopt or not on this movie?) But Harry yielded some very cool previews. Like for "Percy Jackson and the Olympians." Oh...February seems a long way away. And then. We saw the preview for "Sherlock Holmes." Oh my. I know how I am going to spend my Christmas day.

Speaking of movies. We got "Transformers" from netflix and watched it last night. It was much better than I thought it would be. And that entire scene with the robots trying to hide on the lawn was hysterical. So. Who has seen the sequel? Is it worth paying theatre prices to see?

So...what about you? Met any bloggers recently? Seen any good previews? Anticipating any movies?

Saying "It's French" is explanation enough

Business first:

Today is the last day to sign up for the Favorite Things Swap. Just click on the picture there in my left side bar to read all the details.

Did you read my post yesterday? About getting to meet Angie? At the end of the post, I asked if you have any questions for me. You know. Fodder for a future post. Right now, I only have three questions. I beg your indulgence. I need a little more to work with.

Moving on...

I want you to watch a commercial. A commercial that my husband emailed to me several months ago. I have had many reactions to this ad for the French drink Orangina. Including:

1. WHY did my husband send this to me?

2. That I MUST show this to everyone. Or at least those that might not be offended.

3. Sometimes, I am not sure whether to gasp in horror, shock, lunacy, or hilarity.

4. My inner cynic wants to say: "No wonder French women don't get fat if this is what they do with their food and drink."

5. My inner puritan wants to say: "I'm outraged! What about the children?"

6. My inner liberal wants to say: "Get over it! It's French. Let them show orgasmic animals in their commercials if they want to."

7. My inner twelve year old boy wants to say: "Hehehehehe. You said orgasmic."

So...you watch it. Tell me what YOU say:

Discuss...

Important, yet random things about me

I was tagged by Stephanie over at Live. Laugh. Love. to do a 6 important things about me meme. I’ve done a 6 random things about me meme before. Somehow, I think these important things are similar to random things. And because I’ve been too lazy busy to do a 100 things about me post…maybe we can string together a bunch of these lists of 6 and call it a day.

1. I am a really good swimmer. I learned how to swim at the lake near my house in Florida. The lake was called “Dinky Dock.” And I was taught by a man named Fleet Peoples. I can’t make these things up. I have an anklet for swimming ¼ mile when I was 2 and then a bracelet for swimming 1 mile when I was 4.

2. When I was in college at UGA, I worked in the dining hall the summer between my Freshman and sophomore year. One night, I was helping to clean up, and I fell and cut both of my arms on glass. They were some pretty nasty cuts. One of the managers gave me a rag to help stop the bleeding…and then he put me in the van and dropped me at the university clinic. Yes, you read correctly. He dropped me off. I got out of the van, looked around and I didn’t even see a clinic. So, I wandered around a bit looking for some sort of signage. Finally I asked someone for directions – and I guess she felt pity for me with my rags and profusely bleeding arms. She walked with me…and guess what that clinic was closed! Closed!

Okay…this is way before cell phones. And I had no idea what the phone number for the dining hall would have been. My wonderful angel drove me to St. Mary’s hospital where I got 2 stitches in one arm and 15 in the other. I called Cindy Sue and she came to pick me up…and then take me back over to the dining hall to get my purse. They had me fill out all kinds of workman’s comp paperwork…including one set of papers about how I wouldn’t sue them. If I had only know then what I know now…because ya know, I *am* scarred for life.

3. I have an inner GPS. Sort of. I am really good with directions. I give great directions – because I remember not only landmarks but road names. But, I get stuck when someone tells me to “turn” north on a certain road. If I am not coming off of a highway that is clearly East-West…how on earth would I know which way is north? Or what store lies on the west corner of an intersection?

4. You all know that I don’t do crafts. And we don’t have paints, glue, glitter, play-do and things like that for my kids to do crafts. But…at one time, I tried to like crafts. I sponge painted placemats and aprons. I used to own a bunch of stampin’ up stuff to make cards for people. I was a collector and a dabbler…and then I sold all my stuff on ebay when I firmly realized that I liked the idea of it rather than the actual “doing” of said craft. And guess what? I have a craft that I did do…and do pretty well if I do say so myself. A few years ago when we went to Disney…I made t-shirts for all of us. With fabric paint. Wanna see?! I even got stopped at Disney to get compliments…and requests for directions on how to make these. So…what do you do then? Retire, of course.

Here is Michael's Georgia Tech Mickey Head. And for my shirt - and the ones I made for the girls, I really had to be careful as to where I put those ears...

5. In high school, I took 5 years of Latin and 4 years of Russian. I wonder why it is that I can remember my Latin…but the Russian? Not so much. I think I would still be able to read it. And I remember very little of the vocabulary. Except this. There is something in Russian called “ovat” verbs. They are verbs that pretty much come straight from English…with an “ovat” added to the end. For example, to photograph is “pho-toe-gra-fear-o-vat” or to flirt is “Fleer-toe-vat.” So…when we couldn’t remember a verb…we naturally turned it into an “ovat.” Like “eat-ovat” or “drive-ovat” or “read-ovat.” We thought we were so amusing…much to the chagrin of our teacher.

6. It’s painfully obvious that I love to read. I read all the time. I like just about everything. But, I must admit that I am addicted to smutty books. (Maybe I should do a Thursday Thirteen on these.) And not your momma’s romance novels…not the Sweet Valley High of your tween years…not the bodice rippers of the 80’s…but the “modern” romance novel. The ones with an edge. The ones that you need to read with a fan and a big glass of cold water. Ice water. The ones that you read and then later your husband might be heard to say “what the hell got into you? How did you learn to do that? And when can we do it again?”

Did you know that when you list your interests on your profile…you can click on those terms and see other people with similar interests? Apparently, I am the only one on blogger that admits to liking smutty books. There are 8 of us with an affinity for trashy books. But…if you were to put sex as one of your interests…you know just for scientific research purposes… there are over 18,000 people who say that is one of their interests. Just sayin’.

On that note...I am supposed to tag people to do this too. So...here we go:

Teri from Let Me Think on It

Kim from 4 Chambers of My Heart

Amy from The Q Family Adventures

Dancing Queen from To the Moon and Back

Elena at Manwaring Moments

Michael Flatley, Eat your Heart Out!

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Put a Little Seratonin in Me

I am not a patient person. I really don't like riddles and puzzles. I just want to know the answer. I don't want to think about it. Ponder it. I just want to know the solution.

I am also somewhat obsessive. When I find something I like...I like in the extreme. I don't do anything by halves. Which is why I own 12 pairs of crocs. Or why I bought 10 bottles of soap today from Bath and Body Works. Or why I could tell you everything you need to know about the Disney Dining Plan.

You combine these two attributes...and well. Some meds might be in order.

I want to know all the secrets of LOST. And I surely don't think I can wait 23o-something days for just the next season to start. And then I have another season to go before my questions are answered. And even then...I have a feeling there will still be unsolved mysteries. Yep, might need some meds to get me through the winter.

Or...how should I deal with the "Twilight Saga?" Now, I may not have given it a glowing review...but that does not mean I am not counting down the days until the next book comes out. 57 days. 190 days till the movie.

I'm impatiently waiting for the next installment in Heather's love saga. When will Papa Bear finally kiss her? And I don't even have a countdown for that. Definitely going to have to get a little seratonin in me. Or perhaps I can self medicate with peanut m&ms.

(Now...go down and pause the music. And sing along...while we "Bring Paxil Back")

Random acts of useless information

While I was on my cruise, I was tagged by Rhea over at Word Tangle to do a meme. I am so excited to be picked. As the last time I was tagged for a meme (about what was on my desk) was by my own daughter – who was tagged before me. Not that I am bitter or anything.

So…here are the rules:
1. Link back to the person who tagged you. (Check)
2. Post these rules on your blog. (Check)
3. Share six unimportant things about yourself
4. Tag six random people at the end of your entry.

Ummm…six unimportant things about me. Where, oh where to start?

1. The Lost Boys was the first “legal” rated R movie that I saw in the theatre. Firefly mom over at “Pack of Hungry Snails” actually blogged about this movie a few weeks ago. What a great 80’s movie. It has Kiefer Sutherland and his Billy Idol hair…all those great 80’s outfits…and the wonderful line “death by stereo.” Did you know that there is even a band who named themselves that? Or that in the first season of 24, Jack Bauer actually killed a terrorist by biting him on the neck?

2. I am allergic to shrimp skin or raw shrimp or something. I used to cook shrimp all the time. I would buy raw shrimp…and peel and devein it…and cook it. And then one day, I was doing my thing…and my hand got swollen. And red. And extremely itchy. I can eat shrimp…it’s just the raw version that gives me hives. It is a wonderful allergy. Peeling and deveining is a pain. We have taught the children how to do it. That’s what children are for, right? Free labor?

3. I don’t drink coffee. Ever. In any form. Yuck. I don’t get the worship of Starbucks. I don’t like coffee ice cream. Kahlua. Tiramisu. I get my caffeine from Coke Zero. Or Diet Coke with lime. People say they want to get together for a cup of coffee. It would seem strange to say “let’s meet for a diet coke.” But that’s what I would have.

4. I have never seen an episode of “Friends,” or going back a few decades, an episode of “Dallas.” I am not sure what I watched instead…but I have not seen either. I think I might have missed out on some cultural literacy. Or not.

5. Our team came in third place last night for trivia. There was just three of us last night…and I think we did pretty well. Final question: What is the oldest city in the US that is a state capital? No one got it correct. We were actually in a three way tie for third. Tie breaker question: according to the US census in 1860, what percentage of South Carolina’s population was slaves? We were the closest…and won the $10 in house cash. It should pay for one of Michael’s beers next week.

6. I have never mowed the grass…changed a tire…or cooked on a grill. I am such a girl. I like to cook…but, I don’t know…there just seems to be something inherently dangerous about lighting up that gas grill. It’s a man’s job. Me cook with fire. (insert your own Tim Allen grunts here) No thanks. I don’t even fire up the gas logs in our fireplace. I did it once and almost singed my eyebrows right off. I did not have a picture of Michael being manly and cooking on the grill. So I was FORCED to go to Target and get steaks for him to cook tonight for dinner. The things I’ll do for my readers.

Well…there are some random things…and quite unimportant. Now, my next job is to tag people. I can tag you…doesn’t mean you’ll actually participate…but hopefully you’ll feel loved. Admired. And most importantly, obligated.

1. Kim at Four Chambers of My Heart. Because she humored me and was the only one to do the last tag.
2. Gwyneth at Daily Goon. Because she blogs about her kids…I would love to know random things about her.
3. Joye at Here I am. Joye is a teacher. And has her kids write stories about potatoes. Random could be really fun with Joye.
4. Yertle at Smile, Play, Dream. I have just discovered Yertle’s blog...and she does some amazing pondering. And she participates in memes. So I think she might do this!
5. Sugar at I like Pi. This is my daughter. And she has a beautiful blog. Corrupted with horrible grammar. Because it’s her place. And I make her speak and write properly…except here.
6. Debbie at This is the Life. Because she doesn’t drink coffee either.