Why I Love Mah Sweet Honey-Man ~ Reason 2

I hadn't mentioned this in my recent update, but I need to be out of my aunt's home by tomorrow night.

For today, my honey-man has pushed back his return flight to Cali, so that while I'm in my 3rd day of a Grant Writing seminar, he'll be making a couple trips loading and unloading my things, delivering them to my new place of residence...

I love him because it was his idea.

THANK YOU MY SWEETNESS!

Proposing Proposals

For now, a brief update...

I'm at a Grant Writing seminar this week (on lunch break right now), today through Wed., and it includes 'homework' each night, so that's what I'll be up to until Thursday...

Our Thanksgiving was juhhhst WONDERFUL (yes, I'm shouting!)! It was GRRREAT! For those of you who don't know yet, we combined forces this year with my honey-man's former spouse and her man, and we had a grand Thanksgiving feast, all of us together with the boy-O! More on that later, with pictures...

Beyond Turkey Day, the weekend in L.A., although challenging at times, as is the nature of L.A., was great due to LOTS of heart warming cuddle time spent with my honey-man and the angel boy-O and my two fuzzy babies... More on Owen and his new personality development, in particular, much later, with pictures...

And my 'big news' is that I'm finally driving my newly purchased wheels, and doing so legally -- ya know, as in not illegally? The title issues were quickly resolved and we're quite pleased. If there's any question, yes, I bought another Toyota Matrix. This one is a 2005 XR model (my first had been a plain jane model) in a metallic 'charcoal' [this is the color description my honey-man insists it be called - - not dark silver or slate or pewter, but 'charcoal']. More on mah new car later, with pictures, of course...

And more re: my "I Hit a Cow" story: I wrote a public thank you statement for those who helped us the night of our accident, and I submitted my statement, which was published in the 'print' edition of the Bear Lake News-Examiner, on November 22nd. My Grams will be sending me the clipping soon.

My lunch break is not yet over, but I have a L.A. job application to wrap up and send off - - Toodles!

Overwhelmed + Broke = Chocolate

It's absolutely baffling, how my entire being - every part of me, body and soul - it WANTS and DEMANDS chocolate whenever I'm found in these kinds of circumstances...

I'm afraid I'll do a lot of damage this Thanksgiving...

If and when my car title 'situation' is resolved tomorrow (please, please, please, ohhhh PUHLEEZE!), I'll have to rush home for a self-induced, very rushed baking frenzy: homemade Parkerhouse Rolls, pumpkin pie, apple pie, deviled eggs, cheesecake and the ever cherished Cranberry Fluff, and it'll be a double batch of that, of course!

Happy Gobbles to ya'll!
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday, to you and yours!

And it Continues... My "I Hit a Cow" Story, Part V

Well, this past weekend, I found a replacement car in L.A. - For its value and pricing, it's a superb vehicle and I chose to buy it. And now, although I have it with me, come time to register the thing this morning, I find out it can't be mine, as the title I've been given isn't legal... I'll leave it at that for now, as I'm not sure how things will be resolved.

However, I'm hopeful, as the fellow involved has told me we will go tomorrow to the CA DMV together to straighten this out.

P.S.
My honey-man's awesome calming powers over me are an amazing thing. My office staff can attest to this. He's a magic wonder, he is!

My "I Hit a Cow" Story, Part IV: The Search Continues

[Be FOREWARNED, this one's a whiner]

Well, since October 29th, I've been online, searching each day for a replacement car, which I haven't yet found. For the kind of car I want (another Matrix, thanx!), the MSRP/Kelley Blue Book value runs around $18K, but dealership prices seem to run between $15-16K. Yes, this is a great thing, but there aren't many used ones in Vegas - most are in California, which makes my purchase effort a bit tricky. We'd been hoping to score a Matrix from the local LV auctions, priced seriously below not only MSRP, but going prices at the dealership. [BACKGROUND INFO: I bought my Matrix last year for $12.1K. It'd been listed for $14K at the time, but I was able to have the price knocked down.] The auction list came out today and there's a 2004 listed, but it has 44K miles on it = higher than I want; although not too high above average mileage for a 2004 model. Problem with a 2004 is most I come across, they were purchased in 2003, so the warranty is about to expire, even if it has low miles. Anywhoo...

The rest of the update is this:

I don't have a new car yet (yeah, I probably made that clear already, I know). I hope to buy something this coming weekend.

No news as to who's liable for the accident... I've been told this could take some time, which translates into "not until sometime next year." BUHHT, my insurance co. did finally send/mail the lien payoff amount of $9.9K, just today. And they gave me $11.8K for my car - - only $300 less than what I paid for it a year ago. Toyota sure holds it's value, although the KBB on mine, pre-accident of course, is $13K. BUHHT, after the payoff, minus my $500 deductible, that leaves me $1.2K towards the purchase of a replacement car... even though the Matrix now averages $3K more in price than it did a year ago, BUHHT somethin' is better than nothing, right?

A bit bummed, to be honest... The money I'd managed to save over the past 6 months, living with my aunt Radeane, saving for my move to California, will all be spent and then some, in order to buy a new car. [SEMI-RELATED TANGENT: Speaking of Cali, to continue the update here... No, I still have NO IDEA when I'll finally move to CA, especially now. And no, I have ZERO hopeful California job prospects right now. END OF TANGENT.] Yeah, really bummed out about all that... BUHHT at least I have the money to buy a new car, right? And we're all ohhhkay! Rather buy a new car than pay for a funeral, right?

My Grams is finally feeling much better. Of us all, she had been having the hardest time, physically. One of her shoulders is still acting up, but her energy is finally up and her swelling has subsided.

Oh, another thing re: my insurance: They will not cover the replacement costs for Brianna's aunt's damaged portable DVD player or the cost of a new baby car seat, nor my aunt's wool-cashmere blend peacoat... "only items physically installed as part of the vehicle, itself."

Also, my living situation must change: Without going into details (absolutely nothing went wrong at all between us or anything like that), I've been staying at my aunt's for 6 months now (THANK YOU, RA!), and after Thanksgiving, I need to move out. Not wanting to get tied up in a lease, considering I'm TRYING TO LEAVE LAS VEGAS, I'll be looking for a room rental situation. Not terribly thrilled - I feel like I'm living in my early 20's again -very transient- and I do not like it at all.

Winter is just about here. We still enjoy some 70s weather, but the nights are definitely cooler and the days will only lower in temperature from here on out. Typical. Problem is this: All of my winter clothes are deeply packed away in my very packed storage unit and I don't know where.

...BUHHT, we're allll OK!

[TRANSLATION: Tryin' to stay positive, although it hurts like hell.]

Matrix-Buyer Demographics!

HOW WEIRD! HOW UNCANNY?!? And how unremarkable, really, but REALLY, it's this funny in an odd way!?! Check it out...

Buyer Demographics published for Toyota Matrix Buyers (that'd be me), from the J.D. Power Consumer Center website:

Favorite TV Shows**:

CSI (the Las Vegas version, of course!)
Law & Order (SVU!)
Desperate Housewives (newly discovered source of laughter!)

Favorite Sports or Activities**:

Walking for Exercise (yuppers! - treadmill owner)
Gardening (indeed!)
Entertain at Home (love to!)

The only thing that could have made this any more perfect is if it had also included the TV show House, which we're now watching together every Tuesday night (which we've followed now, at best, um, for 2 episodes in a row?), and either Sewing or Furniture Refinishing (or both) in the 'Activities' listing.

Mind you, I'm not a big TV watcher, but if I were to follow any other shows than House, it'd be Law & Order: SVU (I used to occasionally catch it after I got home from a grad school night class) or CSI Las Vegas (I rarely catch this one, but when I do, me way likey). Post-car accident, my cousin Tyler's cutie-pie wife, Brianna, lent me her first season DVD set of Desperate Housewives, which it turns out, I juhhhst absolutely LOVE! Online last weekend, I watched the last four shows I'd missed... Mind you, once again, up until the Sunday night after our accident, in Brianna's home, I'd never ever even watched Desperate Housewives. . . so I've 'missed them' all, really. But back to the consumer research on Matrix owners.... how funny is that? Anywhoo... back to car shopping!

Why I Love Mah Sweet Honey-Man ~ Reason 1

Although this may be my first reason I'll post here, it's not to be confused with the 'number one' reason why I love mah honey-man... I could never narrow down my reasons to a "number one" anyhow...

Reason 1: Unless it's a serious situation (e.g. a group photo, a pose w/ the angel boy-O or a paid photo session), OR he's being threatened by me not to do it or else (which rarely works; who am I kidding?), my honey-man almost always sticks out a little bit of his pink tongue in almost every picture I take of him. I have countless pictures I could share to illustrate this habit of his. [BACKGROUND INFO: I just uploaded photos taken from over my last weekend in L.A., in which I found 3 such photos.] And although I scold him every time he does it? - - it totally cracks me up, how he'll pose, sans tongue, yet when I press the button to take the shot, he somehow manages to time it just right...

To be honest, I secretly love it when he pulls it off...

A New Personal Rule of Conduct - #3

I will no longer allow the automatic 'click and download purchase' capability feature on my iTunes. Never again.

Child Car Safety - Can't Take it for Granted

Ohh my guhooodness - this one makes me bawl. Considering my own recent accident, although our outcome was quite fortunate, any effort on my part now, to prevent or minimize the results of any future accident, I'm all over it... My honey-man's angel boy-O may be 8 years old, but he weighs under 55 lbs still.

On my things to do list for today: pricing for a Britax Regent car seat!

I'd Sing 'Happy Birthday,' but I love him too much!

It's my lil' bro-bro's birthday today - he turned 18 years old...

*sigh*

Makes me feel OLD!

I've been thinking about my little 6' 8" tall brother all throughout the day, today, remembering him when he wore diapers and drooled and cooed, and when I taught him to sing "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," by the Beatles (of course!) and songs by the Cure, and how he always pronounced my name with a distinct 'Z' sound... and how he would sprint down the basement hallway, as much as a 2 year old can 'sprint, giggling and shrieking with sheer delight, as I'd chase after him...

He was so cute! Still is, of course. Happy Birthday, Pizza-boy!

A CHP's Cow Crash

Man, even in Modesto, California. . .

Read this
and/or this - both have news video links. . .

Self-Portrait Day, um, a day early ~ I Voted!

And yes, I'm trying to keep my eyes open in this shot...

My "I Hit a Cow" Story, Part III: Who's Liable?

In the last week, each time I tell my "I hit a cow" story, invariably, people will ask me about my car and my insurance and who's liable for what, etc. etc.

As a recent anonymous commenter wrote, I was, indeed, driving in "open range" territory. [SIDE NOTE for 'Anonymous' from Colorado: Yes, lucky we were! I'd heard too about the very unfortunate older couple who had hit a cow, driving their Harley, and how terribly awful their experience was. I also heard there was another cow struck last week, before I hit mine, and that it happened on that very same road I was on, involving the same rancher's cattle, although I don't know the details with certainty. In dealing with the Sherriff's office after my accident, however, at no point did anyone warn nor tell me that I'd be liable for the cow. In fact, I was told more conflicting information, that because both sides of that hwy road are fenced, and that particular area may also be a 'herd district,' the owner of the cow is potentially liable because he had not maintained his fence line - ?!? - Either way, anyone would have to agree it's irrefutable that had the damn [other explitives removed] fence line been closed properly, there would never have been any cows on the road to hit. Am I liable for killing the cow? or anything at all? If I'm not liable, what about the rancher for not maintaining his fence? I dunno. Indeed, interesting points to ponder... END OF NOTE]

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the meaning of "open range," here's the Idaho state provision for your reading pleasure:

TITLE 25 ANIMALS, CHAPTER 21 ANIMALS RUNNING AT LARGE,

25-2118: ANIMALS ON OPEN RANGE -

- NO DUTY TO KEEP FROM HIGHWAY.

No person owning, or controlling the possession of, any domestic animal running on open range, shall have the duty to keep such animal off any highway on such range, and shall not be liable for damage to any vehicle or for injury to any person riding therein, caused by a collision between the vehicle and the animal. "Open range" means all uninclosed lands outside of cities, villages and herd districts, upon which cattle by custom, license, lease, or permit, are grazedor permitted to roam.

So yeah, how about that? Given free license to let 'em roam anywhere...

There are many issues of debate when it comes to no-duty open range laws.

Taken from a newspaper article published in 2003 in the Billings Gazette:

..."I guess the question for the 21st century is, should a black
cow at midnight have more right to a highway than a person?"
asked Andy Kerr, director of the National Public Lands
Grazing Campaign,which is trying to get Congress to pay
ranchers to give up federal grazing permits.

"These laws have been on the books since before Henry Ford
invented the automobile. How fast could you go in a horse
and buggy? The law hasn't kept up with reality.
Open-range laws may have made sense in the 1800s,
but they don't make a lot of sense today," said Kerr.

Why should drivers be punished for lawful travel on a public road?

What do you think?

If you're possibly interested in knowing more, the National Public Lands Grazing Campaign website is uber loaded with info right here. And here's an article from High Country News.

My "I Hit a Cow" Story, Part II: Spontaneous Tears

Yesterday, I was at a baby shower for someone in my office - a very 'the cutest' preggers someone, who has lots and lots of friends and family, who all love and adore her. [Note to Self: Do not attend any more baby showers for the next year. My ovaries just can't handle it.] At some point near the shower's end, I overheard someone say to someone else, "She's the one who hit the cow," and once again, there I was with a group of people gathering around and looking at me, asking to hear my story. And so again, there I was, telling my story, and again, trying hard not to cry...

The word spread around my office rather quickly once my boss, at our dept. meeting held on Wednesday, made an opening announcement, stating that he wanted everyone to know and be thankful that I was still here, going on to briefly explain the 'highlight' of my Nevada Day-weekend vacation in Bear Lake Idaho. As people turned around in their chairs to look at me, my eyes welled up and my chin began to tremble as it hit me again: We could have been seriously injured - - we could have been killed.

After the baby shower last night, I went to the store to buy some things. Having wandered the store for nearly 45 minutes, not wanting to go home yet, I meandered over to the 'Personal Care' section to find my facial scrub of choice and go home. Having found it, I looked at the price and realized that it wasn't a matter of this store vs. another store - -over the last couple months, the price has gone up by $1.50, regardless of where I shop. For a moment, this bummed me out for an itty bit, just thinking about the sad subject of money in general - and then? I was struck absolutely dumb and I began to bawl in the middle of the aisle, clutching my stupid tube of facial goop, feeling overwhelmed by my idiocy, feeling so fortunate to even be there buying my ridiculous facial scrub.

I've had a lot of moments like that throughout the past week. On Thursday, alone, I think I burst into tears about 5 different times throughout the day. My general state could simply be described as 'teary.'

At any point, whenever I begin to feel sad or angry about my car and all the expenses I'm about to incur (about $4,500 = no joke), I think this: Better to be spending some money I do have, than to be planning a funeral.

Drivin' Again, Post-Cow Crash

Yesterday morning, my aunt Radeane offered her extra vehicle for my driving, seeing I'm without a car now. Until yesterday, I'd been bumming rides to and from work, so back behind the wheel again, once I made it to work, I was pleased with the morning's drive. It was technically fine = I made it to work. However, I was a bit paranoid throughout the entire drive, worrying that I'd either run over anyone in my blind spot or rear end someone, driving my aunt's big Ford Exploder SUV - - whoops, I mean Ford Explorer.

Driving home in the dark last night, I had NPR on the radio as I made my entrance onto the freeway. As I merged left from the on ramp to join the existing traffic, my heart began to race a bit. Telling myself that everything was juhhhst fine, trying to focus on the NPR after-work broadcast, nonetheless, I began to sweat. I knew what was happening and told myself, "There are no cows in Vegas, you silly. Relax." Regardless of sound reasoning and solid logic, my hands began to shake, and so I moved from the center hwy lane, back into the far right lane. I glanced down at the speedometer and saw that I was driving only 55 mph in a 65 zone - - and with that, I burst into tears and didn't stop crying until I was 'home,' standing in my aunt's kitchen.

This morning's drive was much better than yesterday's... wish me steady hands and dry eyes for tonight's drive home. And everybody, HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND! I'll be out and about, shopping for a car! ~ Wish me luck for that too!

And lastly, but not least, THANK YOU SO MUCH to EVERYONE for their sweet well wishes and their caring interest in my safe condition. As things did turn out okay - thank our lucky stars and all that is good in this world - in that no one was seriously hurt (with the exception of the poor cow, of course), I guess from now on, I'll always have a fantastic "I hit a cow" story to tell.

UPDATED: Holy COW Crash - the night of

First of all, EVERYONE is okay. Yes, despite how awful my car looks, remarkably, we're all juhhst fine. My Gma Rae was sitting in the front passenger seat and and my cousin Tyler's wife, Brianna, was in the backseat with their 2 yr old strapped in a childseat behind me. My Grams had to be taken in for x-ray that night and watched over at home. Her entire chest is deeply bruised from the airbag's deployment and she's still terribly sore, but she doesn't have a single scratch. In fact, she'd been doing well enough that she was sure and able to see the hairdresser the very next day for a new shampoo set.

Brianna had some glass picked from her face, and just last Sunday night, a tiny sliver more was removed from her right ear. She was scratched the worst of us, with a good pair of 2-inch long, thin scratches on the right side of her cheek, up near her ear. Right before we'd hit the cow, she'd taken off her seat belt to comfort her baby who was crying - ?!? - I know, I know...we were really lucky that Brianna wasn't seriously injured. Not having her seat belt on, however, allowed her to shield her son and to also keep hold of her fluffy Chihuahua, Issy. The baby had only a few tiny scratches at his neckline and some light bruising about his clavicle area, caused by the strain of his child seat restraints. And Brianna's little Issy, although desperately in need of a bath later on, not unlike the rest of us, was totally unharmed.

On Saturday, the day after the accident, I went in to see the hospital for a spinal x-ray to be sure I was fracture-free, and then I was treated for very mild whiplash and general muscle strain. I have a lot of muscle soreness and neck pain, but nothing too terrible. Both of my knees are deeply bruised, as both my feet had lost contact with the floor upon impact, both legs folding upward, hitting the underside of the steering wheel. Other than that, I have 4 itty bitty, extremely minor cuts on my face - - that alone is amazing because the windshield was resting on my face, laying over my hands and arms when the car stopped!!! Even so, I have only a few scratches on my left hand from shoving the windshield off of me.

What happened is this: Last Friday on the 27th at 7:45 p.m., I was driving on a small 5 mile-long stretch of rural highway between two small towns in southeast Idaho in Bear Lake County. On either side of the road, there's pasture, but both sides are supposed to be fenced. At the beginning of a rather straight stretch of the hwy road, an oncoming car passed me without time to give any kind of flashing brights to warn me of anything. Once the car passed and my eyes had barely readjusted, immediately thereafter, there was barely enough time for me to see a big black cow standing straight ahead. I didn't even see its head or its feet or legs - - just a big, very broad and very black cow side, and we slammed into her at 70mph, before I could ever touch the breaks. It was so fast, my Gma Rae never saw it coming, nor did Brianna.

So immediately after the passing of that oncoming car, my eyes saw the cow for a mere split second. The only reason I recognized it to be a cow is the fact that I already knew we were in cattle country, and I'd seen before what the side of a deer looks like in headlights, and this thing was black and 3 times larger than any deer I'd ever seen = thus, it was a cow. It happened so fast, I don't remember even having a chance to scream. I do know though exactly how fast I was driving, as just a couple minutes before the accident, my Grams had complained I was driving too fast [SIDE NOTE: Frankly, any speed over 45 mph is too fast for her. It's true Grams and you know it!], and I assured her I was driving just 5 over the 65 mph speed limit, having set my cruise control. So yeah, driving 70 mph, I hit that damn cow without a chance scream or to even hit the brakes.

As the photos indicate: All in split second time, the cow ripped off the entire front side of the driver's fender and bent that same side of the front axle, rendering that front tire almost useless. The cow then went up over the hood of the car, and shattered and caved in the windshield, and then the cow broke through my side of the windshield, and then moved further upward, falling off from the side of my car's front roof, denting inward and partially collapsing the car's rooftop, also tearing off the driver's side mirror.

What the photos clearly show, but can't exactly explain: On impact, the cow's side split and exploded open, and once she'd slammed upward onto the hood and into the windshield, the windshield collapsed and a trap-like door-like opening was created in the windshield on my side, allowing very wet, hot and very heavy and super smelly cow shit and cow stomach contents to funnel into the car, in a manner reminiscent of a salad shooter - - I had about 60 lbs of it on my lap alone. In fact, once the car had stopped moving, the wet heaviness and the steaming heat of all that crap on my lap, coupled with the firm resistance of my airbag, I thought I had a cow's head in my lap, and it was in that first moment when we'd stopped moving, not knowing what was on me, I nearly lost my cool - - although it was a no-brainer, determining what I had in my mouth. I think I spit and screamed for no more than 5 seconds, something along the lines of "I dunno what this is, I gotta get this off me, get me outta here," buhht quickly realized my screaming wouldn't help anyone.

Instead, I had to shove the windshield off me, and then I fumbled for the car's hazard lights and set the emergency brake. By that time, my Grams was able to crack her door open, engaging the car's interior light. We all began to frantically yell at one another, asking each other if everyone was okay - - any broken bones? any heavy bleeding? We all had cow shit in our hair and in our mouths, but that was really the very worst of it. Brianna called my aunt Brenda on her cell, who I'd spoken to only 2 minutes earlier, as later verified on her caller ID log, and Brianna told her we'd been in a car accident and to come quick. At the time, Brianna didn't tell Brenda how it had happened, but made it clear that we were all well enough that no ambulance was needed. Thereafter, all stuck in the car together, although I'm sure we were all in shock and a bit deliriously so, we actually began to joke around:

Me: Grandma, you got shit in your hair. You're gunna have to get a new shampoo set. [All of us then laughing together, knowing how particular she is about her hair, seeing her with the equivalent of a cow pie on the side of her head.]

Brianna: Well, now you can get your gray interior, Ang. [Referring to an earlier convo we'd had in the car while driving that night, about my Matrix and how much I liked it, and how if I had to do it over again, I'd change nothing except its black interior; that I'd prefer gray or beige.]

Me: The shit has really hit the ceiling. [Note the obvious photos included further below]

Grams: I dunno if I shit my pants or peed them! [My Grams is so small, she had lifted up and forward in her seat, enough so, the cow crap had landed behind her, so that she wound up sitting in it.]

The laughter wore off quickly though, as our surroundings sank in. We had to get out of that car. My Grams, with a 2nd adrenaline rush kicking in, bailed out her door, falling down into the bar pit. She had to crawl up and out from it, around to the back of the car. At the very same time, we realized 2 different cars of people had stopped to help us, including the car that had passed us just before the crash. Later on, once I had been pulled from the car, they told me how they had actually heard us hit the cow immediately after they had passed me, and that they had not seen that cow themselves until they were actually passing it, one second before I hit it head on. And another fellow and his family who had stopped to help, who actually got me out of the car, all said they'd seen the cows long before I hit one, but had returned to help move the cattle off the road, not realizing one had been hit until they drove up to it, lying dead in the middle of the road.

It was amazing how many people stopped to help. The first man at the scene, Jerry, who helped me get out, he gave jackets to Brianna and my Grams, and a woman, Katie (you can see the back of her blonde head in a couple shots), she gave us blankets from her car to keep us warm and helped to unload our things from my car. She even dug in the backseat to help find my cow-crap-laden purse.

The police were awesome and showed up 2 minutes after they'd been called. Also, my uncle Trent's boys, Tanner and Thayne, who could see from their home the lights of my flashers and the stopped cars on the hwy road, guessed right that someone had hit a cow (the second one that week), and they drove up the road from their house to check, showing up right after the 2 other cars that had stopped first. As Thayne and Tanner pulled alongside my car, I turned around and Tanner saw me first - - I think his eyes about popped out of his head, realizing it was his Las Vegas cousin who'd hit the cow they'd seen lying in the road, who's car was smashed, who had blood and shit smeared all over her face and in her hair. And shortly after the boys came, my aunt Brenda and uncle Kevin arrived in separate cars within 10 minutes... they'd been delayed some; my aunt Brenda was pulled over by the police for driving too fast through town, on her way to see us. It was then that she found out we'd hit a cow, as the policeman who'd pulled her over said he'd heard the report.

Just how lucky were we? - A very seasoned sheriff's deputy told us that night that if I'd seen the cow any earlier and had I tried to brake or swerve first, we would have probably lost our straight arrow trajectory, and would have gone right off the road, flying off into the deep bar pit, and we would have rolled at least twice - and we probably would have hit the cow anyhow... and we probably wouldn't have been able to walk away from an accident like that. But who knows...

What we do know is that I'd stopped the car just 4-6 inches from losing the car's balance and going off the road = any further and we would have had only one tire in contact with the road, which would have caused us to roll down into the bar pit. Also, past the point of impact, we could see where I hit the brakes, and that it took several feet before we came to a stop. Having not been able to brake before impact, and having lost contact with the foot pedals post-impact, I had hard time trying to secure my foot to the brake with all the shit piling in over my feet and the car floor. As for my steering, I tried as hard as I could to maintain a solid grip on the steering wheel, remembering the road was straight, trying hard to keep the steering wheel straight against the rightside pull created by the braking of my one good front tire. And couldn't see a thing!!! Nothing! My hair was plastered across my face with all the crap in it and in my mouth, and the airbag was up and the windshield was pushed in on my hands and arms, its bottom edge resting on the upper bridge of my nose! Once I stopped, the back driver's tire was clear off the ground by nearly 2 inches and the car was high centered, the front end tilted down towards the bar pit. The pictures totally fail to show just how slanted the car was and how deep the bar pit is... Anyone who tried to come around to that side of the car wound up standing only one-head above the base of the car door's frame.

And that poor damn cow: Once I was pulled out of the car and checked over by a policeman, I was coherent enough to not only take a gazillion photos of the scene, but to first locate flashlights in my car trunk and run off with Jerry down the road, in an effort to prevent others from hitting the cow I'd killed or any of the other cows out loose on the highway. We do know the owner of the cow was Dennis Hunzeker, by checking the ear tag, and we had several witnesses give their info. to the police. People who'd stopped and one of the sherriff's deputies helped haul the cow from the middle to the side of the road. We were later told that night and several times since then that it wasn't the first time the Hunzekers have failed to keep up their fence lines. The next morning, driving over to the accident site, in fact, one of the Hunzeker boys was out repairing the 10 ft wide gap they'd deliberately left open in their fence line. Yes, deliberately.

More details to follow... here and Part II here, Part III here, and here,
here and Part IV here , Part V here and Part VI here,
here and HERE and Part VII, the NOT so final word re: liability right here ...

This is my poor Matrix ~ pictures taken the day after the accident.

Holy CAR Crash! - the day after

I'll give the story later (right here), but for now, these speak for themselves...
This is my Matrix, pictures taken yesterday.

6 lbs of Preciousness

I'm in Utah right now - - enjoying my friend Suzanne's latest addition to the family. . .

Do you hear that?

Do you hear that sound?

It's me - it's my ovaries, screaming.

Tomorrow afternoon, I'll be leaving SLC for family time in Bear Lake and more babies. . . I apologize for the noise...

I won't be back to Vegas until Halloween night ~

For the First Time, I'm kind of a Fan Now...

http://thinkprogress.org/2006/09/24/clinton-video/

I Can Hear Him Laughing

My parents were visiting not too long ago - - My father often comes to Vegas for work, but now that my sister is also here, my step-mum plans to come along from here on out. Anyhow, they were both here for 5 days, sans my lil' not-so-little-6'8"-tall brother (he's too cool now - want to stay home and hang with his homies and go to the home football games and the like, lil' stinker!), amounting to lots of endless shopping and lots of eating out and more eating out. [SEMI-RELATED TANGENT: I am SOOOO not a shopper = take me shopping, and you'll find me waiting it out with the men; ya know, sitting and waiting in those lounge chairs found in the dept. stores, specifically placed for men who've been dragged there by their wives or girlfriends? Yeah, that's me on a shopping trip (unless it's IKEA - I could roam IKEA for days, as long as I don't go more frequently than 4 times a year, however!); you can always find me wherever those chairs are located in the store. With me, if I go shopping, I know exactly what I'm looking for, I find it, I buy it, and I go home! END OF TANGENT]

Anyhow, we all had lunch together at a seafood joint one day, and I took these drink napkins home with me... For fun (or cuz I'm ridiculously silly -I think both are true), I'm going to mail them to the angel boy-O. I can hear him laughing right now...

I like the sushi one best, myself.

Farewell, my fellow, I mean, ex-blogger, dear ClosetMetro

Okay, until I checked my Bloglines account (why I did not do this first thing, I dunno), I was thinking this:

"Where'd Dave go? I know I've been an absent visitor in the blogosphere for a couple weeks, but man, I can't find C.M. - ??? I clicked his link in my blogroll, I checked Google... and I got nothing but "Hooter Jokes" - Hooter jokes?!? What the hell? Where's DAVE!?!"

Sadly, I've discovered that Dave aka 'ClosetMetro' has retired from blogging, but for good reasons! Good luck to you! And your lil' Dizzle!

Self-Portrait Day!

Today's my 'Friday' - - I should be in L.A. sometime late tomorrow. But today? I'm scrambling to get as much stuff done as I can before I leave town... I call this look my 'squirrely' face.
And see!? I DO have eyes!

"Sleepy Kitty Making Biscuits"

This one's great too!

"Sweet Tired Cat"

The best part happens near the end of the video...

Even MORE Trivial Stuff About Me

1. Name someone with the same birthday as you. -My Gpa Billy, Francisco, Haldan and Keith

2. Where was your first kiss? -In Billings, MT, behind Shannon Jeppson's house, on the 3rd upper garden terrace.

3. Have you ever seriously vandalized someone else's property? -Yes; it's a naughty story and most wouldn't believe it.

4. Have you ever hit someone of the opposite sex? -Yes.

5. Have you ever sung in front of a large number of people? -Yuppers.

6. What's the first thing you notice about the preferred sex? -Smile and hands.

7. What do you order at the Coffee Bean? -I don't, I prefer Starbucks, but rarely indulge in the purchase of any4 dollar drink, unless I've got a stash of gift certificate cards from work. Usually, I'm a "water's fine for me, thanks" kind of girl.

8. What is your biggest mistake? -Geesh, I don't think I could name just one mistake as the all time biggest one.

9. Have you ever hurt yourself on purpose? -Oh yes, a glutton for self-punishment, I am.

10. Say something totally random about yourself. -I used to collect Pez dispensers.

11. Has anyone ever said you looked like a celebrity? -Not exactly celebrity status, but more than a couple times (when my hair was shorter and more curly), I've been told I look like "Tia," the snotty niece in the movie Uncle Buck.

12. Do you still watch kiddy movies or tv shows? -I absolutely love Pixar films and other similar productions!

13. Did you have braces? -No, but I went through 3 different retainers and headgear to avoid them.

14. Are you comfortable with your height? -Juhsst fine with it, although I find it funny that I'm the shortest in my father's fam, yet the tallest woman on my mum's side, after my mum, who was 5'8" - All her sisters, plus one sis-in-law and my Grams, they're all shrimps = 5'2" or less.

15. What is the most romantic thing someone of the opposite sex has done for you? -No comment.

16. When do you know it's love? -If anyone can ever find anyone who can answer this question, let me know.

17. Do you speak any other languages? -Speak? Um not really, but kinda understand, yes - - Spanish, German and I'm working on my French for my honey-man and his angel boy-O.

18. Have you ever been to a tanning salon? -Yes and if I could fall asleep in one without the fear of frying (and if I ever stayed longer than 10 minutes), tanning could double as naptime (although I have managed to conk out in less than 10 minutes of tan time). [SIDENOTE: In college, I was famous for going outside to study in the grass and for falling asleep in the sun, for a mid-study break = nasty sunburns on the back of my legs!] I haven't gone tanning in a couple years - - used to twice a week, 10 minutes at a time, prescribed by my doctor, for A, B and D vitamins 'activation' -?

19. What magazines do you read? -Smart Money and Time

20. Have you ever ridden in a limo? -Yes, a few times; highly overrated each time.

21. Has anyone you were really close to passed away? -My mother, in 1987.

22. Do you watch MTV? -Used to live and breathe MTV, but haven't watched it with any kind of regularity in years (oh, I feel old).

23. What's something that really annoys you? -When people don't return their shopping carts to the designated stow-it-here spot.

24. What's something you really like? -CAMPING!

25. Do you like Michael Jackson? -When he was black and a man, yes I did. Now, not so much.

26. Can you dance? Depends - I love dancing, but that doesn't mean I do it well.

27. What's the latest you have ever stayed up? -46 hours straight.

28. Have you ever been rushed by an ambulance into the emergency room? -No, not that I remember...

29. What's your favorite jelly bean flavor? -Pear made by Jelly Belly.

30. Do you actually read these when other people fill them out? -Of course.

A New Kitty

Since I've been without seeing my fuzzy babies for 3 weeks now, a friend of mine gave me a new kitty here to substitute for a while, but although a cute concept, this lil' guy just won't cut it...

"You Poohed Your Pants!?!?"

Yesterday, I had lunch with my so dear, uber adorable friend, Ryan, after which, he knew full well why I've been feeling so in the dumps. So, knowing my state of general neediness, he offered me an evening of homemade quiche if I'd come over to his place after work, but I declined the offer, thinking I had too much to do. [SIDE NOTE: Ryan is The Quiche King. I love him only for his quiche (j/k, Ry Ry!).] Just before he'd be leaving work at 5pm, I called him back, asking if I was too late for quiche...

So last night as the kitchen timer ticked down to quiche-time, we sat on the couch together watching something I cannot remember right now - Seinfeld? Friends? I dunno. Anyhow, we were on the couch, both of us chuckling at the appropriate times, occasionally spacing out and/or blurting out any observations and personal thoughts unrelated to the TV show we were watching. At times, these various spontaneous declarations to one another would totally throw the other off, so that one would miss the words and meaning of declaration altogether.

The best declaration began like this: I'm spacing out and Ryan blurts something I first perceive as completely unintelligible, but instead of first asking him "Wha'd you say?", I take a guess and say to him what I think I heard (I do this kind of thing a lot, not hearing spoken words right).

Me: You pooed your pants?!?!

Ryan: "No, ...." [and he repeats whatever it was he'd said]
Me: Ohh. You pruned your pants? [I then glance down at the hem of his shorts and sat forward to give them a closer inspection]
Me: Did you trim the fray off the hem? [He grins at me and then stares at me in disbelief for a brief moment]

Ryan: "No, I prunned my.... " [He places vocal emphasis on the very last word, which now doesn't exactly sound like "pants," but I totally miss it, again. I give him a pained 'I-still-didn't-catch-that' look]

Ryan: "Plants." [I give him the same look again]
Ryan: "Plants. I pruned my PLANTS." [vocal emphasis given for each 'T']

Me: OHHHH! [I'm now choking up with laughter]
Me: I knew I had it wrooong... [Laughing still, I then begin to ramble on, amid spurts of our shared laughter, explaining how I had thought about our breakfast together last weekend, and how he had been wearing a pre-worn, yet brand new pair of shorts then, complaining about the already frayed hem... and Ryan then interrupts me]

Ryan: "Yeah. I guess 'you pruned your pants' makes a lot more sense, doesn't it?"
Revisiting that moment from last night has had me in stitches again today, at least 4 different times.
I love you, Ryan! You're a wonderful friend! Thanks so much for last night.

'Disconnected,' or better yet, 'Discombobulated'

I'm sad and confused. Although I'm sure as to why/where it's coming from (no confusion there), I'm unsure as to what to do about any of it. It all just seems to involve the kind of stuff over which I am purty powerless. The attitude I choose regarding this, that and the other, is my only hope - or - it'll be the end of my sanity.

It's all so painful. I wish there was something more I could do to help alleviate the pain or better yet, obliterate the pain, but there's nothing I can do to that end. Sometimes it just hurts. And sometimes, all we can do is be there for each other.

By the way, if you're ever suddenly thrown into a state of upset and confusion, 'discombobulated' is a fantastic word to describe that very state of mind = it's the only way to go. I like to pronounce it adding "boo" though, instead of "bob" alone...

"Dis - com - BOO - bu - lat - ed"

I could see me doing this... heck yeah!

First time I watched this, the realist in me was all "How could they do this?" Imagine how many people scoffed at such an offer, I'm sure... and how many thought they were nuts? and thought they were just plain stupid... and How many suspiciously suspected some kind of perversion as the motive for such a thing? And then I thought, overwhelmed by tears, it is so sad that we wouldn't all jump at the chance for a free hug.

It's too bad that half of us are too scared to even offer up a pleasant 'good morning' to an unknown passerby. Some of us, we can't hardly look one another in the eye and offer a smile without the fear of rejection... It's so sad.

For Wendy and Sannie: Julie's Mac n' Cheese

After "An Inconvenient Truth" and "Bush v. Bush", it's time to lighten up... although, regardless of either two, doesn't change the impending fact that I'm going to IRELAND!!! (= I'll sooo be using this one as my instant-pick-me-up until we're there, I swear!)

So, okay - like, months ago? Wendy (my honey-man's lovely former spouse) asked me for my mac n' cheese recipe (I didn't forget, Wendy!). "Sure! Absolutely! Will do!" -or something like that- was my reply, buhhht the hold off has been that I've never really had the recipe written-down and ready for sharing. So, maybe three weeks ago when I knew I'd have several eager mouths to feed, I was determined to make my mac n' cheese and take real measurements and write 'em all down and make my notes into a real recipe.

So, while I threw together this and that into my deep skillet pan, my honey-man volunteered to diligently write notes and track the various additions = and the final result: Julie's real Mac n' Cheese!

THE HISTORY OF JULIE'S MAC N' CHEESE: This Mac n' Cheese recipe of sorts is a long-time family-loved creation of my mum's - - Historically, a bit of this and some of that; all the ingredients merely added "to taste." I know there was at least one hand-written recipe card in existence at some point, but not only are its whereabouts unknown, I do remember that all it had been was just a listing of the ingredients involved, sans actual measurements.

Now that I've compiled and written down my version of the recipe, I realize it isn't exactly my mum's to a 'T'. But, I did have my mum's older sister, my aunt Radeane at hand to help me be sure that I have it right. So yeah, it's not exactly from my mum at the stovetop here, and although it's been at least 20 years since I last had her Mac n' Cheese, I'm her daughter and that's gotta be good enough; MY POINT: I've got license to dictate here.

Anyhow, more Mac n' Cheese history: My mum's 2 sisters, including my Grams, have each developed their own renditions of my mum's Mac n' Cheese, each version tweeked a bit (or drastically) from one to the next. For example, my aunt Radeane sometimes adds some sun-dried tomatoes, and if not that, she always adds cayenne pepper! SIDENOTE: My aunt Radeane adds cayenne to EVERYTHING! Meanwhile, my mom's younger sister, my aunt Brenda, uses regular French's style mustard instead of Dijon. And my Grams? With her, there could be minced or white onions thrown in the mix. Either way, no matter who's making it, it'll get eaten -ALL OF IT- in no more than 2 days' time, IF it lasts beyond the 1st night. My mother''s family loves not only ALL THINGS DAIRY, especially cheese, but also Mac n' CHEESE! [SEMI-RELATED TANGENT: We all really love mustards and vinegars too - - Definite family fixations: dairy, mustards and vinegars. END OF TANGENT] And so, I present to you (drum roll please):


JULIE'S MAC N' CHEESE ~ Makes enough for a full 9" x 13" baking dish; Serves: #? - Honestly, it depends upon the appetites of those involved!

Ingredients (with real measurements!):
1 lb package of Large elbow marcaroni

5 Tbls - salted butter (once you get the hang of it, you can substitute w/ olive oil)
5 Tbls - flour
1 Tbls + 1 t. - lemon juice
1 Tbls + 1 t. - worchestershire sauce
1 Tbls + 1 t. - dijon mustard
3 cups of milk, either whole milk or 2% - - skim just doesn't cut it = it's like, why bother?

Seven quarter-inch thick slices cut from a 1-pound block of Tillamook's Sharp or Extra Sharp Cheddar cheese
~ Honestly, we don't ever shred cheese for the sauce = we only know how much cheese to use by 'slice' measurement. ~ For the final bake though, have some cheddar shreds and any mixed cheese shreds (e.g. romano or parmesan) as topping.

1-1/2 t. crushed or minced garlic
1/4 t. ground pepper - or to taste
You're welcome to salt-to-taste, but I don't bother

Optional additions include:
2-3 Tbls - chopped sun-dried tomatoes, the kind jarred in oil;
2 Tbls - dehydrated minced onion;
1 T - dehydrated chives;
1/4 c. - chopped onion;

Cooking directions:
The Pasta: Prepare your macaroni as instructed on the package, but do it in a larger-than-necessary pot which you can use later for sauce-into-pasta mixing efforts - - and don't let it get overcooked (also see "Note re: Pasta prep," further below).

The Cheese Sauce: Meanwhile, in a large, deep skillet pan on low to med-low heat, melt 3 of your Tbls of butter and let it brown slightly, but DO NOT let it burn! Once browned, patiently add a couple Tbls of your flour in and quickly mix together using a rubber spatula, being sure to spread the mix across the skillet bottom to smooth out and minimize clumping. Add the remaining 2 Tbls of butter, patiently melting and mixing 'em in, and then gradually add in the remaining 2 Tbls of flour. Again, be sure to smooth out any clumps in the butter/flour mix, and do not let it get too hot or it will turn into a thick, n' pasty, inedible glue-like substance. If you need more time smoothing out flour clumps (it doesn't have to be perfect), either turn the heat back to low or take the skillet off the heat. To keep the butter/flour mix from getting pasty (if that's where you seem to be headed), add a bit more butter, but no more than a 1Tbls.

Note re: Pasta prep: If the macaroni is ready before your cheese sauce, drain it and rinse it only a little bit with warm/hot water -not cold- and be sure to shake out the excess water. Then leave it in your sive, but covered with an upside-down bowl or plate. I like to time mine so the macaroni is ready when my cheese sauce is ready...

Back to the sauce: Switching to a wire whisk, gradually add 1 cup of the milk to the butter/flour mix, adding no more than 1/2 a cup of milk at any one time. Once mixed well, either maintaining low heat or returning the skillet to low on the stovetop, gradually add another 1/2 cup of milk, along with the lemon juice, worchestershire and mustard. Once that's all mixed/whisked together well, it's time to start adding the cheese.

Cut or break up two of your 1/4" thick slices of cheese into thin strip-like chucks and add them to the skillet, stirring still with the whisk, gently scraping the bottom of your skillet. You may increase the heat to med-low, if you're not there already, or try just shy of 'medium' heat on your stovetop dial, but BE CAREFUL not to let the mix start bubbling. If it begins to bubble at all, turn the heat down and stir madly! and remove it from the heat if you have to! It will turn into a rubbery mess if it gets too hot!

Once the first addition of cheese is almost melted entirely, still gently whisking and scraping the skillet bottom, add a couple more of the 1/4" thick cheese slices, broken or sliced into smaller pieces, along with another 1/2 cup of the milk. And repeat for the 3rd addition of cheese. Then add the last cheese slice along with the garlic and pepper. Once the last of the cheese is all melted and all the milk's been mixed in, remove from heat and put aside and set your oven to 375 degrees. At this point, if timed right, your marcaroni should be done, ready and waiting to be drained.

Bakin' the dish: Transfer your cooked marcaroni pasta back to its boiling pot and pour the cheese sauce all over it. Mix it well, but gently... The goal is to get the sauce into the pasta tubes without mashing up the pasta. Then transfer to a 9" x 13" baking dish (I use a glass one, but I guess any kind would do?), and spread it out evenly without packing it down. THEN go ahead and shred some cheddar and/or hard cheeses on the top - - I use both. Only bake it in the oven long enough for the cheese shreds to melt, and then remove it from the oven and let it sit for about 5-10 minutes before serving. And then?

Enjoy ~ I always do!

It's both Funny AND Absolutely Terrifying - what do you think?

BUSH v. BUSH
(or 'What a Schmuck!')

A New Personal Rule of Conduct - #1

I will not throw away anything with water content in my office trash, not ever again.

UPDATE; An explanation for Kati: I had had a forgotten conglomeration of various very moist food items I'd thrown away in my office trash can... When I removed the trash liner from the trash can, I set it on my lap (why? WHY, oh why?) to tie the liner bag shut before setting it out in the hallway [SIDE NOTE: My office is not keyed on the master key, so custodians can't collect my trash unless I set it outside my door before leaving work.]... Anyhow, so I set the damn thing on my lap (WHAT AN IDIOT!) and the liner leaked very wet and very stinky trashy-food-juices (EWWW!) alllllll over me; yup, nasty trash juices soaked right through my pants, etc. Indeed, the worst thing I could do: place a trash bag of any kind on my lap (why? WHY!?! wwwwhyy?).

Although the floor would have been a much better choice on which to set the trash liner, either way would have resulted in a wet, sticky, oh-so-freakin'-smelly mess.

It took me days to recover from the incident.

ANOTHER NOTE: An earlier post, "Lesson Learned" has been updated... it's now "A New Personal Rule of Conduct - #2"

An Inconvenient Truth

I'm not sure yet, but I think I finally figured out how to embed a YouTube vlog into a blogger post... Here's one that I so wish were as popular as the Ok Go videos... I can't believe 'the U.S. masses' can't care about this more... and as for our government's role in all this,
I am scared.

"More Guiness, Please!" or "How does one say 'Killarney'?"

Last Saturday, we were all at a local Burbank fundraiser; one in the audience (that's me), 2 in the sound booth (my honey-man and the angel boy-O), plus 2 performing on stage (Wendy and her dear beau) to the benefit of all those in attendance that night... And it was a fully packed house!

APPLY IRISH ACCENT TO THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH: There was gut wrenchin' poetry to be heard n' felt, rousin' live music, absolutely gargeous voices; basically, a lot o' song n' dance, loads of emotion, and a lot o' clapping n' foot stomping. And of course, loads of beers and wine, soda breads, cheeses, fruit and oatmeal cookies galores, plus a lovely beer wench n' dirty limricks - oh my! - It was a wonderful, wonderful evening of splendid talents, heartfelt sharing and Irish honors. I loved it!

And beyond the admission price to garner additional funds for the fundraising effort, there was a raffle which offered a broad range of unique and novel prizes to be won. What? - "unique and novel" sounds kinda redundant to you? Well, how else does one describe such prizes as these, ranging from 4 1-hr workout training sessions with a personal trainer, to an hour of live harp at the event/location of one's choice? huh? Anyhow, lots of cool prizes were available for the winning and many raffle tickets were sold. I had planned to buy 2 raffle tickets - that'd be enough you'd think. Instead, I decided to buy five.

The grand prize was called as last of the raffle items - - the ticket number pulled just before the final call for the 2nd to last prize had accidentally been returned to the ticket 'pitcher', pulled for a 2nd time... WHOOPS! A bit anti-climatic, but so, a 2nd ticket had to be drawn for the final grand prize winner...

So yeah, I'd bought 5 tickets, right? Numbers 695049 thru 695053 - - (you should so know where this is going by now)...

"... number 52..."

And in my head, a split-second thought process: "Number 52? Wait, Number 52?!? NUMBER FIFTY-TWO!!!" - followed by very loud screaming... I'm tellin' ya, I screamed like an absolute ninny - and screamed some more.

After the performance portion of the event was over, the rest of the evening, people I didn't know would offer hearty words of congratulations, and to also often approach me saying something along the lines of "Oh, you're the one who won...you're the screamer." [SEMI-RELATED TANGENT: In my winning/screaming moment, I actually had someone turn around in their seat to tell me in this loud and annoying, most goofball condescending tone -to be sure I knew, which I already did- that my grand prize didn't include airfare - ?!? - So what the hell is your point, you rain-on-my-parade total goomba!?! It's still a prize worth $1,600 that I wouldn't have otherwise, and certainly, we can manage the airfare to get us there. END OF TANGENT]

So yeah, what did I win? Ohh, well, just two "Taste of Ireland" tour tickets for a 6-day paid trip in Ireland? Yeah, that's all... Can you yell, "Whoa Maggie Maloy"?

We didn't get home from the fundraiser until after midnight, but we still managed to investigate Dublin airfares online before hitting the sack - - hee hee. Since that winning moment, in the sound booth, in the car, in the kitchen, about to go to sleep, waking up, standing over the bathroom sink, sitting on the couch, unlocking the front door; at any moment, either my honey-man or I will turn to the other and say with a spur-of-the-moment questioning voice, "Hey, you want to go to Ireland?"

At 8pm, the Top 5 Most Requested Songs of Today

So earlier tonight, around 7:50-ish, I was on my way to the grocery store to buy some missing essential oatmeal cookie ingredients (like, say oatmeal!?!). I was listening to radio station 94.1 FM, and they announced that it was the last chance to call in one's favorite request before today's Top 5 most requested songs would be played in five minutes, starting at 8pm.

NOTE: I haven't called a radio station to request a song since I was 21 - ? - It's been at least a decade.

Next thing I knew, I whipped out my cell phone, dialing the request line as the DJ listed off the phone number... Ring, ring, ring, ring... and they answer:

"Hello, 94.1 FM..."

"Hi, I'd like to request Ok Go's "Here it Goes Again, please!"

"Ohhkaay. Will do, sweetheart. Thanks for calling 94.1..."

And I hung up, giddy like a school girl... And then I managed to make it out of the grocery store in time to hear the end of song #3 of the Top 5... and I drove home listening to song #2 and sat in the driveway as it ended, waiting to hear song #1...

"And today's most requested song, 'Here it Goes Again,' by Ok Go!"

Very Nyce.

I'm in Love with Ok Go

Thanks to Dooce, I discovered what is now my new found source of toe-tapping, head bobbing, instant laughter.

Ok Go (also here with loaded music play)


I love them. I wish them oodles of mind boggling (yet healthy, if that's possible) success! They're great! Great fun. I haven't yet figured out how to post Ok Go's YouTube.com vlogs (oh yes I have, now! ~ as you can see below my original links), but here's a couple links, if you haven't already heard about Ok Go:

Their 1st video, for which now exists a gazillion published video parodies:



And Ok Go's most fab follow-up video, which I think I've now watched at least a dozen times:

You're On Notice!

Found this, thanks to Erin!
~ Go here to make your own, like I did ~

Bernina Bliss

Last Saturday, I was finally able to attend my Bernina Basics Orientation class in Pasadena, where my honey-man had bought my lovely Bernina sewing 'computer' - - they don't call it a "sewing machine," but a "sewing computer" - ha! Yeah, I've had my new Bernina since my MPA graduation in May (!?!?), BUT the thing was just far too intimidating to try out on my own - - I'm not kidding. Not only did I not have the time to sit down and devote the hours needed to make sure I could operate it properly, I was simply afraid I'd break it or mess it up with all those buttons and settings.

The Bernina dealer didn't offer a weekend orientation class until last weekend = yes, not one weekend course until September!?! All of the previously scheduled orientation classes were for weekdays from 10am until 4pm... for people who don't work during the weekdays, obviously.

So anyhow, I registered for the very 1st weekend class offered and it didn't happen until last weekend, but it did finally happen AND it happened on my mother's birthday - - quite appropos and more than I'd thought it would, it made for a very emotional day.

To give the short of it (too late), my machine is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING and all throughout the training, I was oohhing and ahhing, wowing and 'holy cow'-ing, in a constant state of awe, swearing under my breath and tearing up about every 5 minutes. I was a happy girl, a very happy girl.

Thank you, my sweet honey-man ~ what a show of support for my personal interests!

P.S. - It was a darn good thing I'd waited to try out my machine like I had! One very capable woman who was also in my training class showed up with one thing she'd broken and another thing she'd damaged in her efforts to try learning the machine on her own!

Mine are All ObSOLete or Already Taken!

Top 100 Baby Names for Girls in United States (2004) ~ Info. from Social Security Administration ~ Note: +X indicates the name has become more popular since the previous year by X positions, while -X indicates the name has become less popular since the previous year by X positions, and ++ indicates the name has become more popular and was not listed in the previous year's records.

1. Emily
2. Emma
3. Madison
4. Olivia +1
5. Hannah -1
6. Abigail
7. Isabella +4
8. Ashley
9. Samantha +1
10. Elizabeth -1
11. Alexis -4
12. Sarah
13. Grace
14. Alyssa
15. Sophia +5
16. Lauren -1
17. Brianna
18. Kayla -2
19. Natalie +4
20. Anna +1
21. Jessica -3
22. Taylor -3
23. Chloe +1
24. Hailey +2
25. Ava +16
26. Jasmine +1
27. Sydney -2
28. Victoria -6
29. Ella +15
30. Mia +5
31. Morgan -2
32. Julia +1
33. Kaitlyn -1
34. Rachel -6
35. Katherine +1
36. Megan -6
37. Alexandra +1
38. Jennifer -7
39. Destiny -2
40. Allison +5
41. Savannah +1
42. Haley -8
43. Mackenzie +3
44. Brooke -1
45. Maria -5
46. Nicole -7
47. Makayla +4
48. Trinity +9
49. Kylie +1
50. Kaylee +4
50. Paige -3
52. Lily +17
53. Faith -1
54. Zoe +4
55. Stephanie -7
56. Jenna -1
57. Andrea -1
58. Riley +14
59. Katelyn
60. Angelina +11
61. Kimberly +2
62. Madeline -2
63. Mary -2
64. Leah +19
65. Lillian +12
66. Michelle -4
67. Amanda -14
68. Sara -3
69. Sofia +24
70. Jordan -21
71. Alexa -5
72. Rebecca -8
73. Gabrielle -5
74. Caroline -7
75. Vanessa -5
76. Gabriella -1
77. Avery +13
78. Marissa +20
79. Ariana
80. Audrey -2
81. Jada -1
82. Autumn -6
83. Evelyn +6
84. Jocelyn +4
85. Maya
86. Arianna
87. Isabel -5
88. Amber -14
89. Melanie +5
90. Diana +18
91. Danielle -7
92. Sierra -19
93. Leslie -1
94. Aaliyah -3
95. Erin -14
96. Amelia +17
97. Molly +5
98. Claire -3
99. Bailey
100. Melissa -3

So, why share this list here? What else does this list of 100 baby girl names further indicate, beyond name rank? (NO, I'm NOT pregnant - but my cousin Shanna is! WOO-HOO!!!) Ummm, ah... don't know? It indicates that I'm totally screwed, when it comes to potential baby daughter names!?! My all time Top 5 favorite baby girl names are all located within at least the Top 20 shown here, with my 2 very favorites listed in the very top 5 most popular baby girl names!?! akkk!

I have been loving these names since I first began playing with dolls. My most favorite one happens to be #2 - - how much does that suck? I will not give any child of mine a name that's within the top 50... that leaves me only 4 names leftover, which really leaves me none... #69 and #84 won't work at all with my name as the middle name, unless you're fine with the first name and middle name rhyming with one another... Neither #80 or #96 will work as each begin with an 'A,' unless you're fine with first name and middle name alliteration... Yeah, I'm not too keen on the whole rhyming of the first and middle names thing, nor am I game for some given name alliteration. Sure, I could use something else for the middle name, but being one the of the first grand-daughters to be called by my middle name, also nicknamed 'Angie' after my great-great grandma Angie, I gotta carry on the tradition; if I have a daughter, she'll be an Angeline = the 8th generation of Angeline's in my father's mother's family.

Maybe it won't be an issue at all - we'll end up with boys, and I'll have to pass down my sterling spoons to a cousin (middle name Angeline), who has a girl... Why am I thinking about any of this at all right now? (NO! I'm not pregnant, Poppy!) Ya think I've got babies on the brain? (someone puhleeze help me!) I'm surrounded by expectant women! and friends who have babies!!!

oh, wait - Do you hear that? You hear that sound? - - - it's my ovaries, screaming!