Raspberries to the American Press

Some eye opening news from Britian from May 1st of this year:
www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-1593607,co.html

Big, Green and Unpretentious

I took a break from packing last night to watch Shrek 2. I haven't seen the first one but was utterly charmed by the second. The jabs at Disney and the altered scenes from other movies (LOTR, Ghostbusters, Pretty Woman, etc.) were truly delightful and I found the stress of moving evaporating as I lost myself in the cartooned hijinks. Antonio Bandares as the formidable Puss-in-Boots made me howl with laughter; kudos to DreamWorks!! I was impressed with many things about the story but the one that stood out the most was that the characters are far more realistic (true this is a fairy tale and animated) Instead of male characters built like Gold's Gym Cavemen, they're shown in a realistic light with pot bellies, farting, burping etc. Female characters aren't whittled down to Barbie-like dimensions-it was refreshing. Go figure, an animated film that doesn't show women with legs up to their armpits and men who actually resemble real men?! Something struck me as I pondered the immense creativity that went into making this amazing film. I wanted a man like Shrek! An unpretentious, good hearted, wise cracking, flawed, guy who enjoys mud baths-yep, that's the man for me. It doesn't bother me that he lives in a swamp, rides around in a giant onion and has an ass for a friend (could this possibly be more realistic ladies?) I don't care if he's 6'7" and an allarming shade of green, what lies beneath is far more important to me. I do have one pet peeve that I cannot discount, men chewing with their mouths open. I can see what's for dinner by looking at your plate bub-I have no desire to watch the meal being masticated between your jaws.

Movie Quote of the Day

"Good relations with the Wookiees, I have." -Yoda
-Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith

A Sad Day Indeed

Don't go to the Fun Site O' The Month, sadly the squid passed away today. And now a moment of silence for our dear departed aquatic pal. (****) I'm getting all kinds of choked up here because I used to watching him regularly. *sniff *

Thursday Warm Fuzzy

I did not want to come into work today and would rather be waiting in line to see the final installment of Star Wars. Hopefully I'll see it this weekend. Hoooo Hahhhhh!

I was walking past one of the three large conference rooms here at work and I overheard a man speaking to his wife on his cell phone. Not that I wander the halls eavesdropping but I thought it was very touching that he used loving terms of endearment. It made me think that when you're having a rough time, all it takes is a kind word of encouragement or a murmured "Hi Honey" to turn your day around. I guess words are really more powerful than the sword.

On a far different note...it is just my imagination or is the Islamic right identical to the Christian right in this country. I mean both groups are convinced that their doctrine is the One True Path, they're both very conservative in their life styles, they're extremley inflexible; even though the Quran and Bible both say that killing is a sin-both of these groups seem to endorse it with vigor (blowing up clinics, killing innocent hostages, the Crusades, The Inquisition, just about every war that's ever taken place, etc.) Both are righteously convinced that their way is the ONLY way and the rest of the planet should live by their standards, because for some unknown reason, God spoke only to them and told them that this was The Plan. Why didn't God tell everybody? Why does God only talk to them and not the rest of us? Personally, I think the Creator likes diversity which is why there are so many differences between races, cultures, animals, plants and people. Why not celebrate and embrace our differences? Why is it that mankind's reaction is fear when presented with something that is different? Wouldn't it be a dull planet if there was only one kind of plant, one kind of water, and populated by clones? Where's the fun in that?
My thought is that beliefs are good things but inflicting your beliefs upon someone else is unfair. Killing someone because they don't agree with you is just plain goofy. That's like killing someone because they wore plaid pants to work. Depending on the pattern of the plaid it might be a bit rough on the eyes but basically harms no one. That person might believe that the pants are fabulous, which is just fine they don't need to die over a choice.

The fun just never stops when you're selling a home. I pulled out the stops and got the garage door open, don't have to call a locksmith. I hadn't been in it for years and I think some of the roof beams need to be replaced. My fridge is also about to die. There was a large pool of water in the bottom of it this morning and I'm wondering if it too will need to be replaced. Like I need to be spending more money. The home inspection is on wednesday and I'm hoping for the best.

On a lighter note, I went to the local Hair Cuttery and got a disasterous haircut. I was disturbed when she called another hair dresser over and began to ask questions about how she should cut my hair...this did not bode well. When she finished I raced out of the store, came home and put a baseball cap on to hide the horror. I left a message for my previous hair dresser in Frederick(an hour and a half away) to see if she can fit me into her schedule to correct the damage. I have no idea what the woman was thinking while she clipped me but the Bee Gees are singing at my house today. (Tragedy, when the feelin's gone and ya can't go on...tragedy, it's hard to bear with no one beside you, you're going nowhere...) My hairstyle resembles some kind of mutated mullet and I wish I could wear a paper bag over my head to work tomorrow. It's not fashionable to wander about the office in brown paper but then again I'm not looking forward to, "Oh my God who did that to you?" comments. I never was on the cutting edge of fashion but this haircut makes me want to shave my head and pretend I'm Yul Brenner. Well perhaps a short, fat Yul wearing a bag over my head? UGH!

Friday the 13th

D'OH I just realized it was friday the 13th LOL. OK I brough Gilbert O'Sullivan along with me at work and am happily humming Get Down around the office. I did leave the high heeled sneakers, Elton sunglasses and Glam Rock gear at home though, didn't want to freak out the co-workers. Being a Temp already makes me an office oddity and I don't want to expose myself to complete strangers LOL.
On a better note-I cannot wait to sleep in tomorrow morning, getting up at 5:30 am just sucks! Gee I could sleep until 8 am and really live on the edge of sanity. I'm putting a call out to all strong men for this weekend. I need your biceps to open my garage door-anybody not doing anything please feel free to stop in and flex. It's rather important because the sale of my house depends on the door actually opening and I can't get it to move. Or I could pay a locksmith $55 and miss a morning's work. ARG! I'm not free of home ownership just yet and it's killin' me!
Happy friday the 13th everybody!

sings: "Told you once before, an' I won't tell you no more, get down, get down, get down...you're a bad dog baby but I still want you around..."

A 70's kind of evening

Hello all! Things have been extremley crazy around here since the contract was put in on the house. Needing a break from reality I purchased a copy of The Best of Gilbert O'Sullivan. He had a string of forgettable hits in the 70's, Alone Again, Naturally is probably the best known of his songs. My favorite track off the cd is called Get Down. Anybody who knows me, and knows me well, is aware of my ecclectic taste in music. So I've got my Glam Rock gear, high heeled sneakers and fuzzy Elton John sunglasses on in a vain attempt to relieve stress. Hopefully I will not overload on nostalgia and journey into full blown Disco. I live for the Bee Gees and don't think they deserved the wrap they got during the whole "Death to Disco" backlash. Who knows? The evening is young, I might delve into some Abba and break out the mirror ball (giggle). The details of selling the house are beginning to grate on my nerves and I haven't been sleeping well. The plans for moving are chaotic and I wish I could wake up tomorrow and everything would be done. Unfortunatley my magic wand is out of order this week and it ain't gonna happen that way. I've gotta sing along, "Told you once before, an' I won't tell you no more, get down, get down, get down...you're a bad dog baby, but I still want you around, around...I still want you around"
Actually my keen ability for forgotten trivia is legendary. My family calls me The Keeper of Useless Information. I often get phone calls from my sisters asking me strange things. A true story here. Five years ago, it's 2:30 am, the phone rings I groggily pick up the phone thinking that there's something wrong, "Hello?"
My sister slurs (she'd been a bit deep in her cups), "Hey who was that guy on Saturday Night Live that said, "I must say!" all the time?"
I yawn and reply, "Ed Grimley played by Martin Short."
"Thanks." she says and I hear the click of the line being disconnected. Even during the wee hours of the morning I can still pull it together LOL.

Good News

I SOLD THE HOUSE TODAY!!!!!!!!!! WHOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!!! If all goes well I will settle on June 30th!

Gratitude for Moms

Today is Mother's Day, a day to celebrate love, affection and thanksgiving to the woman who brought us all into this world. My mother died a week before this day of remberance when she was 51 years old. It was a long time ago and I cannot forget the day she left us. I am humbled by her sacrifices and the love that she unconditionally gave to me and my sisters while she was alive. She endured 15 years of physical and mental abuse from my father and I wonder, to this day how she managed to survive it. Her strength and courage are shining beacons to me when I experience dark times. I feel honored to have such a strong influence in my life. Without her "Momilies" (akin to homilies) I would not be the person that I am today. Thank you Mom, for the love, laughter and warmth of your soul. I miss you and have thought of you every day since you died. Happy Mother's Day.

New Info on the House Sale

I just got an e mail from my real estate agent. She wants to stop by tomorrow night and I do believe that I've got an offer on the house. HOOO HAH!!!! Pretty quick stuff if you ask me. It listed on thursday at 1 pm and I've had an army of buyers coming through so it looks like a possible move might be in order. If anyone is interested in helping me move please e mail me LOL!!!! (Just kidding-moving is tough work)

Housing Market

OK the house went on the market yesterday at 1pm and last night I had my first prospective buyer walk through at 7:00 pm. I awoke this morning to find that the Long and Foster Elves had planted a For Sale sign in my front yard. The neighbors were a bit surprised and so was I. Damn those elves are quick! Over the last 48 hours my nerves have been stretched to their limit and I'm beginning to spazz out. I had a showing this morning at 8:45 am, one at 3:00 pm and two more tomorrow (9:00 am and 1:45 pm). I feel like I'm on a treadmill and am wondering if I have made another one of my colossal blunders. I think I'm just second guessing myself and have not been sleeping well.

The Temp Agency is a bit ticked off with me. The company that I was temping for last week (EMC) really liked my work skills and called me to see if I would be interested in staying longer with them. I agreed and asked if I should call the Temp agency people and let them know what was going on? The company representative told me no, she'd take care of it. I figured everything was set until I got a call yesterday morning from the Temp agency reassigning me to another job. I called EMC to find out what had happened and a barrage of angry phone calls ensued from the Temp agency. I apologized for the error and sincerely told them I was informed that everything was being taken care of, I did not know that communications between the two companies were not flowing. I know that we as human beings are prone to errors, hell I try to limit myself to at least 200 a day but I was terribly hurt by the Temp agency representative who yelled at me. I am not an evil person and my actions were not malicious or premeditated. So all day today I've felt like crying. It could be PMS. I'm tired and feeling a little overwhelmed right now. Selling a home is a very detailed process and I'm wondering if I'm up to the challenge of getting all of my puzzle pieces in place. ARG! I have a few more projects to finish around the outside of the house but must wait for warmer weather. Does anybody know how to replace a torn window screen? Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

Movie Quote of the Day

"Oh yes, I'm so Mary Tyler Moore, everyone says so."
-The Matchmaker

Bonehead of The Week Award

OK I am a COMPLETE MORON and this week's winner of the Bonehead of the Week. I have been sending out a slew of resumes and wondering why I haven't heard anything from prospective employers. I found out today that my telephone number on my resume is incorrect, which is why I haven't gotten any calls. Yes I am admitting, in a public forum, that I pulled a Homer on this one. So gentle readers, take my advice and PROOF READ your resume before e mailing it out for jobs!
D'OH

Adventures in Home Improvement-Continued

It is a bright spring morning here, birds chirping, cool spring breeze a-blowing and I need to drag my body away from the computer and start work in the bathroom. Like a fool, I scraped caulk from the tub until midnight on saturday and am paying the price today with a very stiff, sore body. I guess it all boils down to "how badly do I want to get out of here"? Pretty darn bad. I also need to get a plumber in here to fix some stuff that I noticed over the weekend. A little voice keeps telling me-Don't think about the cost, you can pay it off after the house sells-I'm trying not to worry. So it's off to do more painting, which I'm beginning to loathe.