Candy

I miss the light brown M&M's (I think they were replaced with blue).

The light brown M&M's tasted very chocolatey and natural, the blue ones taste like Blue #22.

365 Days of Knowledge #70, 71, 72, 73, and 74

It's illegal to put change into someone else's parking meter. In other words, the government doesn't want you to be nice.

The superstition surrounding the unluckiness of Friday the 13th has it's origins in Christianity. 13 is thought to be unlucky because Judas (Jesus' betrayer) was the 13th attendant at the last supper. Friday is the supposed day Jesus died on the cross. Therefore, bad things occur on Friday the 13th.

I always get a cold when spring is around the corner.

When I don't have cable, I don't miss it.

A queen bee only uses her stinger to sting another queen bee. Queen bees are divas, a diva is a female version of a hustler.

365 Days of Knowledge #34, 35 and 36

While surfing the web for origami patterns, I came across a craft called "iris folding". Iris folding is a simple and inexpensive craft that involves folding paper and layering it in a pattern to create a beautiful effect for cards, scrapbooks, and decorations. I should probably stick with my crane making since my quota of 1,000 paper cranes isn't even close to being met but I thought this was just as interesting. This is a great craft to do with kids because it's simple and yields beautiful results. Here's an example of a simple iris folding project.


To learn how check out Iris Folding @ Circle of Crafters

Sternutation is the medical term for sneezing.

Lastly, today I learned that there will be six more weeks of winter.....Thanks Miss Lippy.

365 Days of Knowledge #22, 23, 24, and 25

Haven't been able to blog much, it's been a pretty crazy week, good crazy though, not the kind that makes you fantasize about strangling don't knows (alternative word for strangers) in the grocery store.

Four things that I've learned in the last four days huh?

1. Both Albert Einstein and Adolf Hitler were vegetarians.

"I have always eaten animal flesh with a somewhat guilty conscience."
- Albert Einstein-

2. The original title for John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is Something that Happened. Good thing he slept on that one. Of Mice and Men is one of my favorite books. I read this novel for the first time in sixth grade. After finishing it I remember feeling very old and wise. Being eleven years old it didn't take me long to recover.

3. Sasha Obama is the youngest child to live in the white house since John F. Kennedy was in office. Amy Carter was nine years old when her father was President and Malia Obama is just one year older than her. I think the presence of President Obama's daughters in the White House will add some much needed energy and freshness. I found this article which discussed a letter written to the Obama girls from Bush's twin daughters, it is very sweet and touching, you can check it out here:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/21/bush.twins.letter/index.html



4. About four seconds ago I learned that an eleven year old matador apparently beat a bull fighting record. After killing six young bulls in a single fight, Michelito Lagravere Peniche became the youngest matador to achieve this feat and set a new record.

Sorry to rain on your parade Michelito but I think bull fighting is a cruel and disgusting act. People call it sport, I don't think anything that results in the death of a living thing can be considered sport. One of the main aspects of sport is fun for all involved, unless you can prove to me that the creatures being executed are suicidal, I don't buy it.

Sorry for my rant, I hope everyone has a good week!

365 Days of Knowledge #15, 16 and 17

Everyone is familiar with The Little Mermaid. I myself love the movie, when I was little I wanted to be Ariel. Anytime I was swimming I re-enacted the scene where Ariel is singing "Part of your World" and launches herself up on a rock. Anyway, I learned that in the original, Hans Christian Anderson tale, Ariel wanted to be human for two reasons. The first being, like in the movie, to marry and love prince (who doesn't want that?). In the original however, Ariel also wants an eternal soul. Apparently merfolk don't have souls, when they die they turn into sea foam.

Last night I went to this Rocky Horror Picture Show party/movie showing/play. Now, I have NEVER seen this film. I have heard about it and get the cult classic-ness about it but am unfamiliar with the movie in general. My friend called and asked if I wanted to go. I said sure and she said, "People dress up." Hhhhmmm I thought, what do people dress up as? So, what did I do? I googled "Rock Horror Picture Show costumes". What came up is a whole lot of transvestites in lingerie and corsets. Now, we're experiences below zero temperatures here in Wisconsin and the last thing I'm going to be donning is nylons and booty shorts. Tossing that idea I continued to surf the internets until I came across this character.

His name is Riff Raff. What drew me to this character was not his striking good looks or his winning smile, it was his clothes, he was actually wearing some. I threw on some black pants, white shirt, and suit coat, slicked back my greasy hair, darkened my eyebrows and threw on some dark lipstick. I didn't have to paint my face white because it's the middle of winter and I already look like a ghost.

So I get to the theater and it takes half a second to realize that I made a mistake. Instead of dressing up as characters, people just dressed up. The sluttier the better. I ordered a beer and sat by the bar listening to some shitty new age music and waiting for my friend who showed up a half hour late. I think people thought I was a dominatrix.

My friend finally showed up and we ended up having a really really good time. I still don't know what the movie is about. So, what did a learn? I learned how to dance the Time Warp.

Finally, today I learned that the word "toast," when people are cheersing <----made up word , means a wish of good health. This tradition originated in Rome, where a piece of toasted bread was dropped into wine.

365 Days of Knowledge #9

Today I learned that radio city music hall cost eight million dollars to build $$$$$$$$$$$ and that was in the 30's, you can imagine what the cost would be now.

More important than the home base of the Rockettes, I learned that I'm a pretty damn good poet/rapper. Check out the "rappet" I wrote for my friend at From the Desk of Miss Lippy, she won my cool contest and I rewarded her with the following:

*names have been changed to protect identities

No Title

Her hair is long, soft, and fly
Her favorite dessert is pecan pie.

There's nothing this lady can't preserve in a jar
She used to drive a pretty, pink, stripper car.

I'll tell you what, and it's for sho'
Give her a gun and she'll shoot you a doe.

She loves the environment and BLEEP too,
Her baptismal name happens to be CENSORED Sue.

CENSORED'S my friend, it ain't no lie,
Now get in the kitchen bitch and make me some pie.

My English major boyfriend later corrected me (throat clearing), I realize now that sho' does not rhyme with doe. Thanks again Richie....

365 Days of Knowledge #8

Sadly, what I learned today wasn't happy news. The legendary sexual revolutionist, Bettie Paige died on December 12th, 2008. While many don't condone Bettie Paige's lively hood, I can only speculate that she helped a lot of folks living in the depression and post-depression era escape reality for awhile and just fantasize. And I think that's quite alright. Thanks Bettie!


rest in peace

Snickity Snackity

I just remembered this funny story. I wasn't even involved in this hilarious exchange but I was told it and I have the right to retell it because it involves two of my closest friends.

During college two of my roommates, Choppa and Miss Lippy, had a class together, as we often did. This class (I believe history but am probably wrong) was in a very large lecture hall and came at the end of a very long day for Choppa. Choppa, was always really hungry by this time and would routinely get a bag of Cheez-It's from the vending machine to munch during her final class. Choppa (Cheez-It's in hand) and Miss Lippy would meet before class, sit together and commence learning. One day, Choppa was extra hungry and decided to get two bags of Cheez-It's. Other than this anomaly, events transpired per usual.

Choppa finished off her first bag of Cheez-It's and without skipping a beat, opened the second and resumed munching. Although this was not relayed to me, I'm sure Miss Lippy had some thoughts running through her head surrounding the double serving of Cheez-It's being inhaled by her dear and petite friend. Choppa did indeed finish the second bag of Cheez-It's and in my mind's version of this story, she straightens out the corners of the bag and pours the crumbs into her mouth*.

After finishing off two bags of Cheez-It's, wiping crumbs off her face, her chest and I'm sure her books, Choppa slowly leans back in her seat, throws an arm around Miss Lippy's chair, turns to her and says, "Woof, shouldn't have had that second bag of Cheez-It's".

What makes this funny is the fact that this hunger response and subsequent satiated reaction is coming from one of the cutest and tiniest people I know.

Guess what? In writing this I made up a word. The plural for Cheez-It is NOT Cheez It's like I have been using, it's Cheez-It crackers. Scrumtrulescent!


*please note this detail has not been verified

Chillaxin' at the Masonic Temple

I went to my friends house last night and he lives across the street from a Masonic Temple. There was a group of about three or four people hanging out by the Temple and I walked over to see what was up. I started talking to this gentleman named Tony and I asked him what was up with the masons. He started explaining to me that I need to get invited to enter the temple and that women can't be free masons, they're called something like Goddess of the Moonlight or Walla-walla woman.

Anyway, he went on and on about the masons and their wealth and the secretiveness. After chatting with Tony for about 20 minutes I began to think that my "friend" Tony, was not a free mason, but a drug dealer.

I left.

2 liter bottles seem a lot bigger than just 2, 1 liter bottles

I couldn't read the font I was using so I've changed it.

Tweens: WTF?

I was a prepubescent person at one point in my life, and a teen girl at another point of my life. I listened to music and preferred certain bands over others. I however, never looked like this:



The following is an excerpt from an article in the August issue of Rolling Stone. The article focuses on the Jonas Brothers (a uber-famous boy band whose fan based is primarily adolescent girls), it's titled, "The Clean Teen Machine".

"Suddenly, the lights go dark, triggering a roar in the 20,000-sear Cricket Wireless Pavilion that can only be described as primal. And it is, in a way. The neuropsychiatrist Dr. Louann Brizendine, author of the bestseller The Female Brain, says the release of dopamine in a screaming teenage girl's brain upon seeing her pop idol is like "injecting heroin." Being with other screaming girls, she says, only makes the effect wilder.
"There's a thing in biology we call synchrony," Brizendine says. "Basically, one girl affects another affects another, and it becomes a domino effect building up to that level of hysteria. They are getting all these brain hits of dopamine, and also oxytocin, which is a love-and-bonding hormone. Teenage girls have so much estrogen, which just catapults the level of dopamine and oxytocin in the brain, creating this sort of ecstatic rush in themselves and others. It truly is a state of ecstatic love."

Wow!

"Quick as a Cat" is so Cliche

I came home from work last week and decided my place stunk, instead of cleaning I lit a few candles, a stick of incense and proceeded to "google" insanely expensive real estate (it's an obsession of mine that often leaves me quite depressed).

About 15 minutes into the self pity I knowingly set myself up for, I smelled something, something putrid. I had the dryer running and at first hypothesized that the smell was a broken belt from the dryer. I quickly realized that the smell was a too intense to be coming from the basement. I followed the smell into the kitchen where I found the following scene. The picture shown is obviously a reenactment (and quite a good one if you ask me).




Needless to say, Roswell was on fire! I had had a candle burning on my above the sink shelf and Roswell was wandering around on it and caught fire. As soon as a ran in the room and assessed the situation I yelled out. Roswell looked at me and meowed, clueless to the fact that he was quickly transforming from a fur ball, to a fireball. I ceased to think and began reacting, I grabbed the cat and threw him in the sink and turned the water on. After I successfully extinguished the cat I assessed the damage. The hair on Roswell's right side was singed and black but the skin had not been burnt at all, I don't even think the cat ever knew he'd been on fire. After a big sigh of relief and hugs and kisses, I gave the cat what he needed and what he deserved, a bath!

Lessons learned: 1. Cats are NOT fire retardent.
2. Fire safety won't save you in the clutch, instinct will.

I'd Rather Be Napping

If I were asked to rewrite the song, My Favorite Things, from the Sound of Music I would replace "schnitzel with noodles" with naps. It's this author's opinion that naps are highly underrated and it's about time we give credit where credit's due, with that said....a little business about naps.

Naps are nothing new, in fact you'd be hard-pressed to find a person who hasn't, in their adult life, taken a nap. (If you do in fact find this mythical person let me know because I wouldn't be surprised to find them mentally unwell). Naps are part of everyday life in many cultures, as routine as showering. Despite the desirability and necessity of naps however, people often feel guilty for taking them. I don't find it necessary to explore the benefits of the nap, this is a non-debatable issue for me and frankly, a nap needs no justification. There are many different kinds of naps and many different reasons for taking naps, let's explore these.

The NECESSARY NAP is one which, if not taken, could awaken demons within a saint. The title says it all, this nap is a necessity. A poor nights sleep, a stressful day, or a illness could render the need for this nap.

LAZY DAY NAPS are the casual naps one may find themselves taking on a low-key day, possibly a weekend or a sluggish weekday. These naps are spiritually gratifying and are best taken with a friend or pet.

It's funny when one experiences the, I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW I WAS TIRED NAP. I often find myself a slave to this stealthy nap during movies or while reading. These surprise naps manage to sneak up on even the most alert person.

Now my favorite nap is the one a person manages to unexpectedly sneak in between obligations during a busy day. What makes these naps so scrumtrulescent is that it serves as a buffer between morning and afternoon during a long, hard day. During college I enjoyed taking these naps on the couch between classes while some game show was playing on the television (due to this my dreams were often infused with prize packages and buzzers). I refer to this nap as the SIMPLY DIVINE NAP.

The SWEATY BABY NAP is among the most fulfilling and is often induced by heat. The sweaty baby nap is characterized by a gaping mouth, snoring, and drool. The sweaty baby nap participant can be prepared for a deep and long sleep. I speculate that Rip Van Winkle was at the mercy of the sweaty baby nap when he made shut-eye history.

Me participating in a sweaty baby nap with Scout & Roswell

Among the most popular and well-known naps is the CAT NAP (aka - the power nap). The cat nap, popularized by our feline friends, is a short 20 to 30 minute nap. The power nap moniker came into existence because some felt that the term cat nap was for pussies.

There are as many ways to nap as there are people in this world and this blog is just a sample of what's possible within the realm of dormancy. Now, don't be a baby and go take a nap.