From Toto

I saw another one before this, that read:
"Dear Auntie Em, Hate you, Hate Kansas, Took the Dog - Dorothy"

Found my shoes via Google?

Some guy posted my shoes from last week's SPD - ?
See HERE, bottom left corner.

6/15/05 Update: "49 Media" changes postings daily to reflect new posts to the web. I've been informed my shoes are no longer shown on the "shoes" page - just flash in the pan fame, I guess. However, even more alarming to discover, 49Media tracks my webblogging in general - ?!? I had to check this out myself, and sure enough, 49Media is currently tracking 26 days' worth of my blogging -??? and I'm not alone - I found ClosetMetro and LaPixatrix!

Suff Portrait Friday ~ more, less, and satisfied!

Meet mybabies, Otis-lazy lil' fatso of love (left) and Owen aka my Ninja Kitty (right).

Purrrrfectly satisfied with these two lil' cuddly buggers.

Would love more of this...

No, I have plenty of clocks and watches (if that's not apparent here). It's TIME!!! I want, I neeeeed MORE TIME!

And no, not all these watches work (although most of them do!) ~ I just can't get myself to toss 'em. Oh and in my defense, most of them were gifts! The blue one is my very first watch, a SNOOPY watch given to me by my mum when I was 7 years old. The first one directly to its right was my mum's last watch. And the one to the right of that is the watch I'm currently wearing on a daily basis. The huge faced wrist watch -if you can't pick it out from that description, I don't know what to tell you- was given to me by my lil' Grams for x-mas when I was in H.S. ~ I'll have to post a story about that one later.

and LESS SPAM puhleeeze!

WHY DO SPAMERS INSIST ON SENDING THIS SHIT!?!?
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Unknown GET GREAT CREDIT - TÏRED HAVING POOR ÇREDÏT [06...Jun 10 3KB
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Unknown Designer Handbag Inc Receive Your -Free- Fendi Handbag Jun 9 13KB
Unknown Prevention Partner 400 Hard-to-Find, Classic Church Supper R...Jun 9 14KB
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Unknown Refinance Now With ChristianMortgageUSA Jun 9 9KB
Unknown Attachment ViagraMAN4Angela@cmb...FW:RE:Viagra Jun 9 48KB
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Unknown Attachment SheenaGROWTHfactor@b...MALE:GR:OWTH Jun 9 2KB
Unknown Attachment ViagraMAN4Brock@ceum...FW:RE:Viagra Jun 8 48KB
Unknown BEST DEAL AUTOS-Lõcal Dealers Compete(Save) [0...Jun 8 3KB

Self-Portrait Day!

Funky perspective, eh?

I'm told this one looks more like me -?

Virtual Lite-Bright!

ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS wanted one of these as a kid - and as an adult, I still do! Mmmkay -well, by some standards I am considered an adult now! ~ no need to debate that really; no really, leave it alone...
Just Check it out!

I still would rather have the real thing...always wanted to do the 'clown' without using the template for help. OR how about this ~ very retro 60s style ~ me way way likey! cool! yes??? or am I all alone here? cowering ahhhloone in a dark corner? ehhh, fine with me, as long as I'm left clutching my lamp!

Hail to Ethel!

"We learn the inner
SECRET OF HAPPINESS
when we LEARN to direct
our INNER DRIVES,
our INTEREST and
our ATTENTION
to something
OUTSIDE ourselves."


Ethel Perry Andrus (1884-1967),
American Educator

"Drink Me..."

Found this in my fridge...thanks to my roomie!

"Doooon't do it," he said

I must deal with the fact that since I began going to school full-time while working full-time, all previously highly organized and concerted efforts to exercise have come to a drop dead halt... no gym, no treadmill, no hand-weights, no yoga, no pilates. This fact makes me feel crummy physically AND emotionally. Last night my honey-man soooo gently proffered the following: if things change and you don't like it, YOU MUST CHANGE TO ADJUST ACCORDINGLY TO THIS CHANGE IN YOUR LIFE and this is true, my friends. My health demands that I exercise regularly. I need exercise! I must have it to be happy!

Background info:
I come alive at night around the ten o'clock hour and if I don't hit the sack by 11:30pm-midnight, I may be up til 2am ~ My honey-man, on the other hand, turns into a pumpkin around 9pm... when this comatose wittle zombie state begins to set in (more like crash), I must be very careful to keep my giggles somewhat supressed as I witness the transformation - it can be very cute, but my pumpkin can get grumpy if provoked. It really is terribly cute, I think, unless I keep him up past 11pm. Anyhow, the man gets up EARLY. We're not talking a typical 6:45 am (heh-heh, that's when I usually get up, even though my alarm goes off well before 6:30 am). Try 4:30am or 5 am-ish!?! This don't jive with me = I am NOT a morning person. NOooo, this does NOT mean I'm a mega bitch from hell in the AM. I'm actually quite perky ONCE I LEAVE THE BED. I can lay there a good while reveling in Otis-kitty tummy fluff, fitfully stretching and pressing the snooze button, refusing to get out of bed for 30 minutes on average, but once I'm up? I'm up.

One wouldn't think so, but I'm totally capable of getting up before the crack of dawn. In the past as an undergrad, I worked a number of insane campus morning jobs for which I had to be at work by 4am and 5am. To successfully pull off the ungodly-hour-wake-up thing, the trick for me has always been to have a complete and total LACK OF ROUTINE; meaning I don't wanna hafta do a lot of stuff to get ready for the day. I just want to wake up, wash my face, brush my teeth, throw on some clothes, feed the boys 'n' my fishies, grab my stuff and a yogurt and go = 30 minutes tops.

Now that I have class most nights right after work until late, I don't get to go to the gym, nor do I have time to workout once I'm home. Because I don't go to the gym/workout at night, I no longer shower at night, plus I've got homework to do instead. So now I shower in the AM. No biggie, right? WRONG. This adds to my morning routine...I don't like it. And back to the issue of no exercise, because I don't get a chance to vent my frustrations from the day in the evening via any exercise, waking up is even HARDER. Having to shower in the morning helps, but man, I just don't want to add to my AM routine in any way shape or form...more often than not, I'll show up with my hair still wet! Note: I don't ever really "do" my hair. I have various hair clips and ties to put it up (while it's still wet), but that's about it. The ultimate realization is this: if I am to exercise at all, it's gunna hafta be IN THE MORNING.

ALLLLLL That having FINALLY been said...

My honey-man was gunna help me get my butt outta bed this AM so I could go to the gym and reclaim my higher metabolism that's deserted me since I began school. He was going to call me at home, which he did a lil' earlier than expected. So instead of bounding right out of bed immediately, I waited for my alarm to go off, cuddling Otis "just a lil' longer" while in a semi-still-asleep state. My alarm went off and I told myself," GET UP NOW AND GO KICK SOME BUMMY!" [yes, my inner voice said "bummy"] - I turned off the alarm, stretched, rotated my ankles outward and inward and back in reverse and I continued to cuddle Otis and fell right back to sleep, to later wake up at eight o'clock. Yeah. So, I threw on some clothes and a cap to hide my unwashed hair and ran off to work, quite late. I called my honey-man on the way to work and felt soooo horrible that I had to tell him that despite his oh-so-sweet and super-supportive wake up call, I had failed. I was bummed and he was bummed for me, that I was soooo bummed about it.

HERE'S the POINT of my telling this story: After that call to confess failure, he called me right back, but I had entered my neighborhood's crappy deadzone and didn't catch the call. Once I had decent reception again, my cell let me know I had a message...

"Hi baby, it's me. Doooooooon't do it. I'm calling to tell ya, dooooon't dooo it, hon. Don't beat yourself up - don't beat yourself up over this - life takes care of that for ya. It's okay..."

Have I mentioned that I totally love this man? Of course, I totally teared up - cuz that's exactly what I was doing and he called me on it. And of course, I called him right back, totally giggling and laughing, so grateful to him for the invaluable reality check.

Stuff Portrait Friday! ~ Meet my Compooter Desk

Gotta show this first...

The only reason why this looks soooo very clean (referring to the total lack of paperclutter) is that beyond internet-like capability? this PC is a BIG piece O' shhEE-ite!!! I've been using my honey-man's old, total-eye-candy iBook - turquoise - for all my word processing/school work needs.

And THANK YOU AGAIN for that babe!

My "Kids" Bedroom...

Yes, the same space shown above, yet notice anything different?

Here are my "kids" in their bedroom (my bedroom). Honestly, their "bedroom" should be considered anywhere kitty-accessible in my home...the toilet seat lid, the bathtub, top of the fridge, in the coat closet, in a paper grocery bag, or any plastic bag for that matter, a laundry basket or the hamper. ANYWHERE! As far as they're concerned, it's ALL theirs.

My "Collection" for SPD Stuff!

My featured collection is stashed in this cute lil' box...which is kept out in my front room on a side table.


The contents therein, revealed...


How many do you think there are?

I've been collecting fortune cookie papers since I was eight years old. I remember the very first...at the "Mandarin" chinese restaurant in Bountiful, Ootah with my father's family all together for dinner. And my Gpa Billy was gorging himself on Kung Pow chicken that evening (which is funny to me because he's never been a big man - and I can remember being amazed at how much he could consume!).
Why did I start? and why do I still do it? I dunno.

..."many, many fortune cookies." INDEED! If I keep this up, I'm gunna hafta find me a new box!

SPD - "Transportation"

My FEET! shown here wearing my favorite shoes, which I bought in San Fran back in - geez, um? - bought in 2002! from the mega, ultra wonderful DSW shoe store located off Powell, near the Union Square. I was there for nearly 3 hours ~ bought 3 pairs of shoes!

My take on Amish Friendship 'CAKE' for Amy

This one's for CanadianAmy...cuz she asked!

First of all, "Amish Friendship Bread" should REALLY be considered CAKE! it's sweet, super nummy and totally dessert-like, quite delicious with a cup of coffee or some ice cream, PLUS, I make mine in a bundt CAKE pan. Ya can add chocolate chips to it, shredded coconut, raisins, crushed pineapple, dried apricots, mini marshmellows, diced apples, shredded carrot... I favor cranberries myself. Cooks.com has THIRTY different starter recipes alone and if one searches diligently, there are entire cookbooks dedicated to the use of "Amish Friendship Bread" starter. I dunno why they insist on calling it bread though - it's CAKE, I say! Cake! Let them eat CAKE!

I first encountered Amish Friendship CAKE in 1994 while I was at Ricks College (gag), now known as "BYU Idaho" (double-gag, hard hacking cough, followed by a heavy "'excuse me - pardon me" - gagging again). Some giggly girl (shall remain nameless) who lived in my apt. complex (Harmony House aka "Ho House," still known in Rexburg as such) gave me the 'bread' recipe on a super-cutesy, lovingly decorated 4 x 6 index card along with my first cup of Amish Friendship CAKE starter in a HUGE Cool Whip container (only Mormons keep those on hand, I swear). The card had strict instructions to be followed over the next 10 days. During which, I would gently stir/mix the starter daily, twice adding 1 cup milk and 1 cup sugar to the container on the 5th or 6th day and the final 10th day. These additions are meant to literally feed the starter... "Don't be alarmed," the instructions read, "it will bubble and expand and this is a good thing." ~ starter resembles a glue-like substance (horribly cruel stuff if spilled on carpeting - not that I, um, would know about that from any FIRST HAND EXPERIENCE!). It has a sickly sweet, yeasty smell. That's probably not a good sell, eh? For a lovely intro to starter, read "Getting Started with Starter."

After the 10 days' time, ya measure/separate out 3 individual cups of starter and give these away (I use 1/2 gallon-size Ziploc bags) along with a copy of the actual CAKE recipe and directions to 3 friends of your choosing, hence the reference to "Friendship" in the CAKE's name. The remaining leftover starter (that sounds redundant doesn't it?) is to then be used to finally make your own bread -I mean CAKE!
IMPORTANT NOTE: If one doesn't want to go through this whole 10-day-long starter dance, make the CAKE within 2 days of being given your starter...but if you're like me???

I was again given another cup of starter in 1995...I faithfully fed my starter for over 2 months, giving starter to friends, neighbors, co-workers, always keeping at least one cup for myself, repeating the 10-day deal over and over, making an Amish Friendship CAKE nearly 3 times a month. I finally gave it up before the summer's end... Early 2001, I got a major hancoring for some Amish Friendship CAKE and it'd been nearly 5 years since I'd last had any and I wasn't gettin' any starter from anyone anytime soon, living in Las Vegas. So I looked up on the web how to start your own Amish Frienship starter...I found many links, but this one was the best and remains so.

My starter from 2001 is still 'with me' to this day. I've been feeding it regularly and using it at least once a month for over4 years now. Yup, FOUR YEARS. See my jar of starter kept in my fridge here from an earlier SPD stuff post last week.

Good Things Come in Three's

Three nicknames you go by:
Angie-pangie
Squireletta (used to be a good one)
Ms. Angeline
Three screen names you've had:
Annejelynn
Buffy
BigTimeFruitcake - 1st name I came up w/ on a whim for AIM - sent a message to my father and he immediately knew it was me
Three physical things you like about yourself:
Toes
Belly button
Earlobes
Three parts of your heritage:
Scandinavian
English
Waloon (some Mongolians who fooled around with the Belgians - no joke!)
Three things that scare you:
Alien movies that DON'T show you what 'they' look like until the end
Thought of losing a loved one
Taking on any debt
Three things you're wearing now:
Olive colored, cargo capri pants
Dijon mustard colored (best color description) tank top
Khaki-tan, 2-buckle strapped Birkenstock sandals (had 'em since summer of '95 - been resoled twice- in remarkably good shape still)
Three of your favorite bands or musical artists:
(there is NO WAY I could ever narrow it down to a mere 3 for this one...but I'll trrry)
Joss Stone - the new
Sarah McLachlan - throughout my formative years (ongoing)
The Beatles - the old
Three of your favorite songs:
Time to Say Goodbye (goooosebumps), Sarah Brightman & Andrea Bocceli
It's Oh-So Quiet, Bjork
Here Comes the Sun, Beatles - absolute FAVORITE, hands down!
Three things you want in a relationship/lover:
Laughter and lots of it
Trust (goes hand in hand with honesty and respect, I think)
A mutual willingness to meet in the middle
Two truths and a lie (which one is a lie?):
I refuse to eat certain foods based on texture alone
I eat sweetened and condensed milk by the spoonful
I've never had a professional massage session
(No, you have to GUESS the lie!)
Three physical things about the preferred sex (MALE, thank U) that appeal to you:
Hands - well kept, but NOT baby soft
Neck - just below the adam's apple (very sexy)
Bummy! - preferably small, easy to 'cup' (giggle)
Three of your favorite hobbies:
Refinishing cool furniture-finds
Photography
Baking sweets and giving them away!
Three things you want to do badly right now:
Work on my article review due tomorrow (haven't yet started)
Go see my cousin's brand new baby twin girls -Bailey & Bostyn- in Ootah
Have a Dairy Queen Cappuccino Heath Blizzard (yes, right now please!)
Three careers you're considering:
Paid-professional volunteer coordinator or a paid-program evaluator
Yoga instructor
Being a mommie
Three places you want to go on vacation:
Italy (anywhere would do, but Rome for sure)
Camping in Sequoia Nat'l Park
Provence, France
Three kids' names you like:
Hannah
Juliette
Nicolas -the french pronunciation, please
Three things you want to do before you die:
Write my mother's story
Visit Thailand, specifically Ko Phi Phi
Jump out of an airplane
Three ways that you are stereotypically a girl:
I love to hear 'how we met' love stories
Babies make my ovaries scream [a new phenomenon (not entirely) since turning 30]
When 'Auntie Flo' comes to visit, commercials (anything) can make me tear up
Three celebrity crushes:
Jude Law
Johnny Depp
Not Orlando Bloom necessarily, but him as LEGOLAS of 'LOR' (if you don't know who Legolas is or what 'LOR' means? tisk-tisk ~ and yes, let me reconfirm, I'm a total nerd)

I'm not going to officially tag anyone, but whomever reads this and finds it amusing, please feel free to tag your ownself. I got this one from Susie.

Stuff Portrait Day! ~ Contents of my purse...

I hate carrying a purse. HATE. IT. -repeat- I HATE IT!!! If only all my clothes had decent pockets, I'd carry a wallet and my cell phone and that's it. BUT because I'm a woman and I can't possibly shove ANYTHING larger than a vitamin in my pockets -cuz they don't make pockets for women's slacks with any real intended purpose in mind- I have a purse, a small one.

Religious Symbols?

As for any religious symbols found in my home - ? No, not really. I have a lil' (very little) buddha in my home that was given to me by Jelena Komad (hail Yugoslavia!) and a happy lil' buddha in my car ~ but I surround myself by printed words of wisdom. Does that count?

This one comes from a religious resource... I have quotes from all over... (notice Douglas Adams just above?)

Central Point of Creative Expression Found in my Kitchen

COVERED WITH STUFF!

Like the mini-smiley faces? Just don't want anyone to get mifted, if I were to post their pics without their permission...and I already know I'm not to show off my honey-man's sweet angel boy-O (although I'd love to - yet I understand why someone I love and respect dearly does not want me to).
I used to have one of those romantic poetry magnetic word kits, but Otis and Owen kept playing with them and chewing on them. They (Otis especially) can still be found sitting in the kitchen, staring up at the various magnets laid out above his reach, occasionally swatting at a 'bulldog clip' or some other poor, unsuspecting magnet. The red star near the paw print magnet is quite mangled.

I have the 'top' section of the fridge - my roomie has the middle, and we share the bottom, the door and the freezer. That glass container on the left filled with a 'glue-like' substance (not that you can tell that from the pic) is actually "Amish Friendship Bread" starter I made nearly 4 years ago - I use and feed it monthly. The blue lidded container is RICE PUDDING, what little remains from a double batch I made recently. Very nummy, I must say - but I like making it b/c my honey-man LOVES it.

Self-Portrait Day!

SPD - no clue as to today's theme...here's my reflection shown in the glass of two framed postage stamps (centennial celebration series), Ootah and Iowaay. And if I had Idaho, I'd frame it too. The Utah one shows the famous "Delicate Arch" and the Iowa one shows a famous Grant Wood painting of rolling hills - yes, there are hills in Iowa! Really, not many, but they're there.

Gimme' a D, Gimme' an E... an EFFIE!

Was driving in L.A. in Silver Lake and saw this street sign - and I whipped out my camera! Here's a nod to fellow-blogger, Effie!

Stolen from SFG, who stole it from...

Got this one from Southern Fried Girl, who 'stole' it from Lawbrat...
The One Word Meme: Mmkay, ya choose one word and one word only to describe different aspects of oneself and/or one's feelings; an exercise in efficient, suscinct expression - a challenge to do actually, but here it goes...

What is the one word you would use to describe your appearance? PLEASANT
Favorite body part? TOES
Least favorite body part? NUMEROUS
Most often complimented on? EYES
Most often criticized for? SELF-CRITICISM
Your romantic relationship? MIRACULOUS
Your relationship to your parents? EVOLVING
Your feelings about parenting? POSITIVE
Your hobbies? ECLECTIC
Your favorite personality type for a friend? LOYAL
Favorite personality type for a spouse or lover? TRUSTING
Favorite type of movie? DRAMEDY
Favorite cuisine? CHEESE - JUST KIDDING - um, ASIAN (yes, I realize there are MANY - I love 'em all, especially Thai food)
Favorite treat? TWIX (carmel! chocolate and crunky cookie all in one!)
Favorite gift? KISSES
Most sensitive, unusual erogenous zone? um, my NECK?
Favorite pet? INDETERMINABLE
Subject of blogging post that got the most hits? MOLD
Feelings about memes? AMUSING

I'm stuck in class today, ON A SATURDAY (with access to a computer, thank goodness) from 8AM until 4:30PM, and my attention span is already waning (obviously)...it's a good class though, really. "Fiscal Adminsitration." sound exciting? I think it's absolutely fascinating - no sarcasm applied - as it deals with how our government budgets are created/determined --that's a grossly oversimplified explanation, of course. One may ask, "If' it's so interesting, why are you dinkin' around online during class?" why? My body does not want to be here (I DON'T WANT TO BE HERE), spending another day in my week stuck in front of a computer screen, bum glued to a chair all day. Get it? K, gunna try to pay attention now (or I may check my email)...

SPD - me and a guest, my wittle Owen

better late than never, eh?

Dandy as Could Be

A 'flower' from my sweet honey-man's lil' boy-O
(yes, it's a dandilion ~and a pretty one at that)

R2 D2 at Your Service

Star Wars Horoscope for Capricorn

You have a ton of ambition and inexhaustible desire to reach your goals. You are very loyal, going to great lengths to help someone out. You are a very social unit, winning the hearts of many with your cute personality. Star wars character you are most like: R2D2

What is Your Star Wars Horoscope?

M.P.A. aka Voluntary Mind Torture

Here's the deal: I'm a grad student in a Public Adminstration Masters program, working full-time at my regular dayjob and going to school full-time in the evenings to earn my M.P.A. (Masters in Public Administration).
What does this mean? - 1. I'm a glutton for punishment; 2. I have a lot of stuff to do (mild understatement); 3. I voluntarily subject myself to hours of painfully boring and excruciating class instruction each week. #2 and #3 are both supportive statements of #1.

What does one do with an MPA? - ya work for a public sector entity = state and/or federal govt. orgs and depts, country and city entities, non-profit agencies...Presently, I work for the state and lemme' tell ya, what they say about govt. jobs is true:

The Good: Job Security & Bennies galore!
Flexibility to handle personal emergencies w/o risking your job
Practically guaranteed job security (ya gotta REALLY suck to get fired!)
3 wks annual leave/year - that's 120 hours of time off per year!?! hell yeah!
3 wks sick-leave/year
11 paid holidays!!! - this alone is fabulous!
Discounts for public ticketed events
Tuition remission for up to 12 credits/year
Health and dental insurance offered at low cost
Almost guaranteed merit increases
Cost of living increases given every 2-3 yrs
Generally stable retirement program

The Bad: Bureacracy! Bureacracy! and more Bureacracy!
LOW productivity!!! Takes so damn long to get things done! and the right way!
Almost impossible to get rid of lousy employees
High rate of absenteeism
Merit increases expected and given to those who DO NOT DESERVE them
Good employees are grossly underpaid compared to private sector pay rates
Not a high yield retirement program (if ya ask me, it's better than nuthin'!)

Why do I wanna work in the public sector at all? 1. I'm good at managing govt. money and organizing policy, resources and people, as my personnel mgmt. skills are improve. 2. I am NOT a career girl and have never wanted to be one - I simply want a secure job that grants me the flexibility and freedom to enjoy what I really love; time w/ my family and friends. 3. As I hope to have a family, govt. jobs of the kind I'd pursue are typically known to be kind to mothers.
I had originally landed the job I now have, hoping it would facilitate my caring for a family...but I had no family of my own at the time. So, I finally got my butt into grad school, so that once that time does come, I'll be even more so prepared to help support and provide for my family.

So (a recap), what will an MPA mean for me? - it'll gimme' gimme' mo money! SHOW ME THE MONEY!

According to Kristine, it's SPD for Stuff?!?

Okay, I'm supposed to post the ugliest thing up on my walls, my hair products and my most prized possession - but due to short notice and the fact that I discovered this once I got to work? I'm just gonna post pics of 'stuff' I have readily on hand...


This is aT- shirt I wish was part of my 'stuff' - I bought it and my honey promised me he'd never, ever be able to wear it with pride...and the size I had bought was for him. Sadly, I returned it (naah, I knew I'd end up returning it...but it made me laugh so hard, I had to buy it and show it to him!).


This is my office chock FULLLLL OF STUFF!


and THIS is some stuff (cream cheese), I found -long forgotten- in the back of my fridge...juhhhst lovely, eh?

I'm it! I'm IT!

YEA!~ With some gentle nudging/sniff-sniff hinting, I've been tagged by Sweet Dang Cold!! Although I won't really have more time over this summer than I did this past semester, as I'll be taking 9 credits over the summer term, the lull between one semester to the next offers a bit of reprieve in terms of workload = more time to dink around and blog! So, I'll pick 5 of the following "if I could be"s, and then I'm gunna pick 3 other fellow bloggers to tag thereafter...

If I could be a scientist: I would find out once and for all and let the whole world know how cats purr. k, this one seems silly, I know, but honestly, I don't understand how 'they' -the scientific vetrinary world- doesn't yet know how cats purr!?!? What is up with that?

If I could be a farmer
If I could be a musician: As a little girl, I wanted to be a flutist - I had a babysitter who played the flute. I wouldn't be a classical flutist though - I'd play in a disco band!!! you know it, baby!

If I could be a doctor
If I could be a painter
If I could be a gardener: Man, I'd be in hog heaven! I would have dirt stained hands and fingernails at all times no matter how much I'd try to scrub them clean...and all those T-shirts and baggy jeans I've refused to toss would resume' their purpose in life. I'd have fruit trees galore and veggies comin' outta my ears to make my Gpa Farrell proud, and flowers in bloom year-round (which CAN be done in Cali) rivaling the gardens my own mum once tended...plenty of daffodils would be had, for sure. I once took an occupational aptitude test in high school and I was told I should be 1) a gardener, 2) a farmer, or 3) a carpenter...test told me to stay away from teaching, government and law. Which is funny, ain't it? considering I'm in an MPA program?

If I could be an architect
If I could be a linguist: I'd speak french and - well, I only care to speak french in terms of really knowing any language in and out - I've taken spanish and german, but french would be the way to go so I could actually talk with my sweet honey bee's entirely french Canadian family...they ALL live in Montreal.

If I could be a psychologist
If I could be an athlete
If I could be a lawyer
If I could be a world famous blogger
If I could be a justice on any one court in the world
If I could be married to any current famous political figure
If I could be a missionary
If I could be a writer: I would write the story of my mother's life and her 15 year-long battle with Hodgkin's disease (cancer centralized in the lymph glands). I have various resources: my own memories, stories from friends and family, my father, various audio and video tapes, and she had volumes upon volumes of journals [I haven't yet read a word of them -my father and I have agreed I'm not ready yet, but I'm almost there (if that kind of thing can be determined at all)]. I also have boxes of letters written to her from a gazillion friends, including old boyfriends she had when she was a sweet young thang.

If I could be a professor
If I could be a musician
If I could be a justice on any one court in the world

NOW I gotta chose who to tag....hmmmm, who will it be?
The Shiz aka Journalicious, LadyBug, and I'm not sure if she's been tagged already, but I think Wave of Modulation could offer us some thoughtful answers.

Count the P-Funk!

As of last night @ 8:30pm, my spring semester finals came to a glorious end! and then I was off, like a red hot flash (in a white Toyota Echo) to Mandalay Bay to the House of Blues to see George Clinton and the pa-pa-pa-P-Funk!!

I think it's fair to say I had NO IDEA what was in store for me despite any previous exposure I may have experienced, but before I get into that lemme' tell ya - I love the House of Blues!?! Not too big, not too small - has a certain feel of intimacy. It's perfect. Never there have I sat on my keister at any point, not ever! cuz I'm always way too busy DANCIN'!!! (more exclamations points) !!! I absolutely love they're hardwood floors - not that their gorgeous or anything like that. They're quite ugly, really - BUUHHT - no floor takes a good foot stomping quite like hardwood! There's also a totally righteous (yes, I said RIGHTEOUS!) stage curtain made like a patchwork quilt...rich velvets, brocade, and velour. The visual displays for one's eye to behold; you're surrounded by artwork! oh! and the chandelier looks like a big fat HUMUNGOUS GLOWING JELLY FISH!!! ~way totally trippy to stand just below it and stare up into it's center (and no, I wasn't 'on' anything at the time). You can see a pic if ya check out the LV HOB "Slideshow Tour" on their website! do it!

So, gettin' down to the P-Funk here, finally. um, how does one say this? They were fabulous? - yes, FAH-BOO-LUS! They played for over 3 hours...and yes, that's not one, not two, but THREE HOURS! over 3 HOURS of pure funk!?!??!! one jam went on for 20 minutes alone!?! I think if they'd had it their way, they would have played for another hour.

What's it take to have yourself a Funkadelic Parliment?
juhsst how many P-Funk players are there? - well, I can tell ya cuz I was the big NERD that stopped moving just long enough to perform a solid body count: 4 keyboardists, 4 percussionists, 3 bass players, 4 guitarists, 5 female vocalists, and at least 6 male vocalists at any one time (and those 6 did nothing but sing - no other double duty purpose involved) and sometimes there were up to NINE male vocalists on the stage!
There were also 4 grand-children involved and numerous significant others wandering on and off the stage throughout the show...which was over 3 hours long!

At one point there were 25 people jammin' away on the stage! and all that energy in that room? it was awesome! And so another semester has come to an end and a spectacular one at that! And soon I'll be back in school for the summer term just NEXT WEEK! *sigh*

In the Midst of Finals - (holding back tears)

For the next few days I will be totally buried in textbooks, papers, and soggy tissues - I must devote all my 'freetime' (and sleeping time) to finals.

Wish me luck - I won't be done until the 11th...and that night, I'll reward myself by going to see George Clinton at the House of Blues (and I got the tickets fer free!) ~ woo-hoo!

Doc Ern's Daddy's Chili ~ Guh-OOOD Stuff!

Yuppers, this is it! Doc Ern's Daddy's Chili, made this past Sunday. And boy, was it guh-ooood. We chose kidney, pinto and northern beans; the "de-gas" instructions given were followed strictly = and that part was fascinating! - no, really! I knew yer supposed to soak the beans overnight, but I never knew about the de-gassing measure!? And it was quite an effective 'preventative measure' at that. If only one could de-gas broccoli, Shepard's Pie, onion rings, etc. etc. We also followed Ern's garlic recommendation - LOTS and LOTS of GARLIC! The only major modification made (other than our bean choices) was the use of THREE+ tablespoons of Gebhardt's chili powder...honestly, we're not sure just how much was used; I quit counting after 3 Tbls., but IT WAS GUH-OOOOD! Did I mention that already? It was good!!!

Typoglycemia

Think this looks weird?...just try reading it as fast as you can and you will amaze yourself and find out what this is all about at the same time. START NOW:

I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid! Aoccdrnig to rscheearch taemat Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer inwaht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Such a cdonition is arppoiately cllaed Typoglycemia.
Amzanig huh? Yaeh and yuo awlyas thought slpeling was ipmorantt.

TWO YEARS OLD! My how they've grown...a part of ME!

These lil' brothers love each other...

Everybody now..."Ahhhh!"

"Sun-bathing"