Somebody read my forehead, quick!!

Does it say A T M in big letters?? No? You sure??

We just got home after three (count them) three hours at the roller rink. Eldest had a birthday party to attend and youngest went along just to skate.

I swear, except for the time I spent out in the parking lot on the phone with Oddybobo*, I was asked every 8 minutes for money, and not just by MY kids. Oh no... by all of the kids at the birthday party!

What the hell is that about?? They would come up to me, little hands outstretched... "Um, Mrs. D?? Could we have a quarter?? Please?? Maybe two???"

And then with my girls fronting for them... "Mommy? We are going to need at least two dollars. Really, Mommy! We neeeeeeeed it!"

How many times can you say "No" (and it almost became "Hell, no!") to their earnest little faces?? Lemme tell you.... A bunch. Holy crap. All I wanted to do was have some "no housework starting me in the face" time to read my book. Is that so much to ask?? I guess so.

Ah well, at least now I get to have fun dealing with them as they come off of their sugary roller skating high. And it's a school night. And there is homework ("I forgot, Mom! Honest!!") to do. And dinner to prepare.
::sigh::

Where did my weekend go? And does anybody know how to get "Who Let The Dogs Out" outta my head?? Anybody??

*It sounds like Oddy had an awesome time in Austin. I soooo can't wait to meet her! (And a bunch of other folks as well...)

I have arrived...

Whoohoo! This is even better than my first "weird search term" hit!

My very first guest post is up at One Happy Dog Speaks. Want to see my girls making their "hottest, most unhappy" face?? Head on over....

Oh! And I just got off the phone with Sticks... We have big plans for VW's place.... Big plans.... (Some childhood payback is in order). Hee hee!! : )

Quiz fun...

I am all kinds of busy today doing the family thing.... So what to post? Quizes, of course!!

Found via Alli at Fox Rants - wow. Soooooo me.....

.:-What is your true element?-:. -With Anime Pictures and detailed answers-

Your element is Water: Understanding, intelligent, quiet and calm. You know who you are and no one can change that. Usually quiet but only because your listening, don't let anyone think you haven't got an opinion! Your not quiet because your shy or sad, your usually quiet because you are thinking. Your answers are well planned and helpful so people generally seek your advice. Your the perfect balance between solitary and outgoing. But sometimes you need a little time to yourself to sort out your emotions and figure things out. You understand the phrase 'sticks and stone' and rarely let things get to you. What's that important for you to have to get so upset over? You know what you want out of life but are simply taking your time and enjoying things. To you your life is fine as it is, you can always change things later if your not happy.
Take this quiz!








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Make A Quiz More Quizzes Grab Code

And again, frighteningly accurate. Found over at Leslie's place... Wow.

You Are a Peacemaker Soul

You strive to please others and compromise anyway you can. War or conflict bothers you, and you would do anything to keep the peace. You are a good mediator and a true negotiator. Sometimes you do too much, trying so hard to make people happy. While you keep the peace, you tend to be secretly judgmental. You lose respect for people who don't like to both give and take. On the flip side, you've got a great sense of humor and wit. You're always dimplomatic and able to give good advice. Souls you are most compatible with: Warrior Soul, Hunter Soul and Visionary Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

Holding down the fort....

Yup. That's me.

While a whole bunch of other folks are off to attend a HUGE blogmeet in Austin, TX. I will be here. Holding down my little corner of the blogosphere.

It seems like everybody is taking a little vacation right about now! Contagion and Ktreva are off to spend the weekend at the Gathering at Macktown reenactment.

VW over at One Happy Dog Speaks has asked me to guest post since she will be spending the next five days between the Magic Kingdom and (my favorite) Sea World.

Oddybobo's in Austin, Eric's in Austin, Bou's in Austin, T1G, Dash, Leslie, all in Austin. Shoot. I wanna be in Austin too...

So here I'll be, holding down my little corner and along with Sticks, keeping an eye on VW's place. (Hey! You know where she keeps the corkscrew, Sticks? I'm gonna need one...)

Ah well. I guess somebody's got to keep the home fires burning. I've got a good book, a comfy chair, the liquor cabinet is stocked... It's all good, right? Right.

Still.... I hear Texas is beautiful in the springtime... **sniff**

Friday!

Whoohoo! It's Friday! And that means..... housework! Yay! Yay me!! I am so psyched to scrub and vacuum and fold!!!

Okay, so I'm trying to inject a little whoohoo into my day, can you tell? I need some fun.

For today's Brain Bender, we have a math question:

Which three numbers give the same result when they are added together as when they are multiplied?

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Okay, like always the answer will follow in the comments. Have a great afternoon, y'all!

Update: jvh is once again the recipient of the smartypants sticker!! Whoohoo!

20 Questions....

Okay, not really. It's more like 39. I found this meme over at Warts and All (one of my new favorites). Thanks for letting me steal it, Freddie!

1. Were you named after anyone?
Yes. Richmond was my paternal grandmother's maiden name. My father's only sister is also named Richmond.

2. Do you wish on stars?
Absolutely.

3. Do you like your hand writing?
I guess so. I never really thought about it one way of the other....

4. What is your favorite meat?
I don't know that I have a favorite, or at least my "favorite" depends on what I'm hungry for that day. There are a couple of meats that I do not like, such as lamb and gator.

5. What is the most embarrassing CD on your shelf?
Embarrassing? Bon Jovi - Slippery When Wet. What can I say? It was the 80's...

6. If you were another person, would YOU be friends with you?
Definitely. I am a great friend to have.

7. Are you a daredevil?
Nope. Never have been.

8. When was the last time you cried?
Like full on boo-hooing?? When my Uncle Ben was diagnosed with cancer last year. I get choked up and emotional all the time but I have never been much of a crier.

9. Did you ever tell a secret you weren't supposed to?
I'm sure I have - I am female after all. But much of the time if someone tells me something that I am "not supposed to know" I almost instantly forget about it. I think it is some sort of weird defense mechanism.

10. How do you release anger?
Who knew you could release anger?? No really. I just usually have to talk (or rant) it out. Arm flapping in optional.

11. Where is your second home?
One home is all I need to keep track of thankyouverymuch....

12. Do you trust others easily?
Yes. When I meet people I generally have an instant gut reaction. I have a great sense for trustworthyness, though I will sometimes get a "be cautious" vibe. On rare occasion I will have a very visceral negative reaction to someone. And my gut has never lead me wrong, or lied.

13. What class in college do you think is totally useless?
Useless in general? Or useless for me? Useless in general would be..... huh. I am struggling to come up with anything. Useless for me would be Calculus. Only class I ever failed. I just could.not.get.it. Ugh.

14. Have you ever been in a mosh pit?
No. And for the love of Mike, why would you ever?

15. What do you look for in a guy?
('Course it's been a while since I have "been looking"...)

A nice smile, sense of humor, kindness, great eyes, arms, and just a sense of "guyness." Metro-sexuals or sensitive girly men need not apply. (They tend to piss me off.) Oh, and they have to smell good...

16. Would you do a bungee jump?
Not a chance.

17. What's your favorite ice cream flavor?
French vanilla.

18. What is your least favorite thing?
Spiders.

19. How many people do you have a crush on right now?
Not telling. ; )

20. What do you miss most right now?
Having no responsibilities. (This was Freddie's answer, but I am hard pressed to come up with a better one...)

21. What are you listening to right now?
Silence. The kids are at school and all is quiet. Okay, the dog might be snoring just a little.

22. What is the weather like right now?
Sunny and 64. Gorgeous!

23. Last person you talked to on the phone?
My husband.

24. The first thing you notice about the opposite sex?
His eyes and how he carries himself.

25.Favorite drink non-alcoholic?
Diet coke

26.Favorite alcoholic drink?
I like wine, dark beer, and Scotch. Picking a favorite is tough, it depends on the day and my mood...

27. Haircolor?
Blonde (Though it is getting darker as I get older...)

28. Eyecolor?
Blue - Gray

29. Wear contacts?
No. And no glasses.

30. Last movie you watched?
The Weatherman - it sucked.

31. Favorite day of the year?
New Year's Day. It marks a new beginning, I don't have to cook a big feast unless I feel like it, and we generally have the day off and can all hang out together.

32. How many people have a crush on you right now?
No clue. I think I am pretty non-crushworthy.

33. Scary movies or happy endings?
Happy endings. I am a sap, and an optimist. And I just can't do scary movies anymore (nor do I want to).

34. Summer or winter?
Yes! There are parts of both that I love!

35. What book/magazine are you reading at the moment?
Predator by Patricia Cornwell

36. What's on your mouse pad?
Nada. It's gray.

37. What did you watch on TV last night?
American Idol. Buh-bye Kellie!!

37.Favorite Smell?
I have several... Vanilla, line dried sheets, rain, my grandfather's pipe tobacco, lemon, freshly mowed grass. Oh wait, I wrote a post about this ages ago...

38. Do you regret ever breaking up with someone?
Sort of. I probably could have handled the ending of a few relationships better. But I wouldn't want to be married to anyone else, so things obviously worked out the way they were supposed to.

39.Favorite actor/actress?
Like as far as actual acting goes? Or as eye-candy? For acting, I love Tom Hanks. For eye candy, Hugh Jackman. Mmmmm....

Okay, yay! That was fun....

Four letter word...

No, not a $%^*&! kind of word. A four letter word is what we need for today's Brain Bender...

What one four letter word can be placed in the blanks below to make three different words?

_____ IVE
_____ ORED
_____ RAIN

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Okie doke. Like always, the answer will appear in the comments later. :)

Update: Today's winner is jvh from Showcase of a Shattered Mind! Rest... I'd like to get some too...

40 minutes...

Until my second shift begins. I gotta catch that second wind or they will eat me alive!!

He sounds kinda snobby to me...

But hey, maybe the MENSA folks are just feeling a little mean today... Here is today's Brain Bender:

What two words, formed from different arrangements of the same seven letters, can be used to complete the sentence below?

The would-be man-about-town spent an inordinate amount of time cultivating society friends so that he could _______ around to as many _______ as he liked.

--------------------

Holy hyphens, Batman! Well whatever. Like always, answers to be found in the comments later. Have fun!

Update: Teresa from Technicalities isn't just smart, she's speedy too!! Whoohoo!

Tired...

That's me. Tired.

It's dark. It's cold (32 degrees). And after a night filled with intense and mostly unpleasant dreams, I do not want to be up yet. (But maybe it's good that I'm up, just to be out of that f*cked up dreamland I was in. I don't know.)

Either way I may seek a rare experience later this afternoon. A nap. Preferably, a dreamless nap. Can I order one now??

Yesterday I missed it...

With all of blogger's problems yesterday, I totally forgot to post the brain bender. Since I am all about helping folks waste time at work keep those braincells percolating, today we'll have a twofer. Here we go!

--------------------

1) Add an "R" to a word that means "wearing a particular piece of clothing" to find a word that means "criticized about details."

2) Add an "R" to the word for a measure to find a word for an embedded design.

--------------------

Okay. Like always, answers to be found in the comments later. I'm off to drag portions of my house away from "going swamp."

Update: Kudos to the two smartypants sticker recipients! Rachel from Pereiraville correctly identified #2 with pint/print and Teresa from Technicalities came up with an alternative and acceptable answer for #1 - cap/carp! (The official answer was cape/carped but who the hell wears a cape these days, I ask you??) Whoohoo!

'Tis the season....

Yesterday, many items were crossed off Hubby's "honey do" list...

Lawn mowed Check.

Spray the basement and foundation for eight legged critters Check.

Weed and feed for the newly shorn grass Applied.

Clean out corner flowerbed Check.

Play video games Check. (Not technically on the "honey do" list, but why fight it?)

Today, the forecast is for a high 67 degrees and sunshine. It going to be like watching a junky waiting to get a hit. It's golf season....

And this is more true than I care to admit.














So while I think I'll skip going for a drive with him, I have to think of something fun to do this afternoon myself. Hmmmmm....

Finally!

Freekin' blogger has been down all day! There is something quite frustrating about trying to post and not being able too....

Time to poison the environment!

The other rite of Spring...

And you know, I block out forget about our need to do this until the problem is (literally) staring me in the face. Or in my case, scaring the livin' crap outta me.

Yesterday, no less than 3 spiders decided that they needed to make my acquaintance while I was working in the basement. And this morning there were two more. Ugh. Now, I am all for getting my blood pumping first thing, but this is not a good way to do it. No sir. Not good at all.

And I know countless other eight legged critters are just biding their time, waiting for the perfect moment to say hello give me a freekin' heart attack. Lovely.

The first five, of course, are no longer of this world. And today the rest of the arachnids are going to get a message from me. This is MY house, fellas. You are not welcome here. And I've got a special cocktail formulated just for you.

Hubby's "honey do" list just got a little longer...

One of those days....

It's been one of those days. One where seemingly everything and nothing got done. Where the kids go from "Wheeeeee!" to "Mooooooom I'm bored!" every few minutes.

The weather is great. Dinner is in the oven. Homework is done. Clean sheets on all the beds. The house.... well, it's not perfect. But when is it? Really. Sunday school was a hit. We had Chinese food for lunch. The sun is out. What could be better?

Of course, tomorrow is Monday so there will be plenty of opportunity for this idyllic situation to change. But for now? It's just nice. Really, really nice.

(I know. Boring assed post. But what can I do?)

Balls....

Well, this morning we are off to chase ones of the soccer variety....

Contagion has asked for his to be rubbed (score: 5000 pound freezer 1 / Contagion ??).

And this guy?


Well, he needs a tagline, a caption, or some therapy. Possibly all three.


You 'spoze he has change for a dollar somewhere??







h/t Loretta and Dal

Choices.... Choices....

The bathroom? Needs to be cleaned.

The living room (heck, the whole house)?? Definitely needs to be vacuumed.

The laundry??? Threatening to take over. I should be in the basement right now.

But, outside??? It's sunny with just a teeny breeze and I could go out to the patio with a Newcastle Brown Ale* and read my book...

Oh, the dilemma. Do I learn a lesson from Tammi?? Or throw caution to the wind (and my house under the bus) and take the afternoon off.

What would you do?

*I looked for Boddingtons but they didn't have any. And Newcastle is a favorite of mine....

Sounds about right....

(a funny via email...)

I went into the gas station the other day and asked for five dollars worth of gas.

The clerk farted and gave me a receipt.

T.G.I.F.

Happy Friday! 'Tis the end of what was a fast paced and busy week. Fortunately, today's Brain Bender is short and sweet...

--------------

Fill in the blanks to complete the word below:

_ N _ N H I _ _ _ ED

---------------

Hmmmm That's something I occasionally wish I *was* more often....

The answer will be found in the comments later.

Update: Kudos to Dash from The Boiling Point! Whoohoo!

What's going to happen next???

So for yesterday's Brain Bender, I suggested that we see what happens to Meg along her way to the train station... Poor Meg had a flat tire on her bike and had to hoof it. Since we now know that Meg is going to miss the train by at least three minutes:

"The train will be here in twelve minutes!" Meg started to panic. "And it takes me fifteen minutes to walk a mile!"

Guess she'll have to freakin' jog . . .
Rich Blank

I'm curious to see what happens next...

To sum things up:

"Shit!" Meg shouted, seeing her flat tire for the first time. "Oh now, that's just perfect!"

Fuming, Meg started walking toward the station knowing that today of ALL days it was most important she make it into the city. Preferably, on time. And alone... (R)

But as Meg was walking along the sidewalk and paused to look at her reflection in a store window, she saw a darling little purse...and shoes to match! Looking at her watch she wondered if there were any seconds to spare...>(Judy)

Just then, Meg was startled to see her boyfriend enter the Pub across the street accompanied by two large men. Not that seeing him going into a pub was unusual, but the way he was moving he looked as if he had no choice. "Shit." she said again. Now she would have to make a decision. Keep trying to make it to the train station, or see what was going on (if anything) at the Pub. (R)

Meg glanced again at her watch and was super pissed that her alcoholic boyfriend was at the pub - drinking, no doubt - at eight a.m.
"That bastard!" Meg thought to herself. "He told me he wouldn't drink before noon."
Still pining after those cute shoes and purse, Meg turned to cross the street toward the pub... (Rachel)

Stopping in front of the smoked glass window, Meg peeked into the Molly Brown. Still fairly empty (hell it was 8:30am on a Wednesday!) she could see her boyfriend deep in conversation with the two men that had escorted him in.

Glancing at her watch (8 minutes to go!), she thought, "Oh to hell with him. He's a big boy. He can take care of himself!" And once again started off toward the station.
She had business to attend to. In the city.... (R)

Meanwhile...back at the pub.... (Rave)

-----------------

So okay, you get the idea. What happens next? The story will continue in the comments... (I'm curious as hell to see how it goes!)

MENSA must stand for...

Mindless
Entertainment
Not
So
Arduous

Check out today's Brain Bender. (And I'll even "hide" part of the clue...)

Find the word that fits the definitions below when it's 1) a whole word and 2) divided into two words.

1) (blank) situations

2) a. arrive
b. expires

Answers will follow in the comments.... Personally, I think we should check in on how Meg is getting along.....

Update: Today's winner of the official smartypants sticker is Dash from The Boiling Point! Whoohoo! And Dash? Here's your sticker!

Oh yay! Humidity!

The good news?? I have happy skin today. No need to moisturize within an inch of my life with my face continually crying out "Thirsty!! Still thirsty!!" Nope. I have happy skin.

The bad news? My normally rational little follicles seem to be channeling either Sally Struthers or David Lee Roth - not good. Not good at all. ( And definitely not attractive.)

In other news, I have a couple of memos that I cannot post at work so I have no choice but to vent post them here.

First up, hey Crazy Lady?? Can I call you Crazy? Yeah? Okay. Please, for the love of Mike, if you want us to admire your pedicure just WEAR SANDALS, hmmmmkay? Do not run up to me squealing "Ooohhhh, look! Pretty!" While ripping off your shoes and socks. It's disconcerting to say the least. San-dals. It's not that hard... And you're scaring people.

And notice to the one woman in the whole place who wants to carry with her the protective aura of fruit and fresh flowers and gin soaked rotten roses (or whatever that stench is) at all times?? Look. If I can smell you five minutes before you arrive and continue to smell you fifteen minutes after you leave IT'S TOO FREEKIN' MUCH. Tone it down, please! I do not want your "aura" haunting my senses for the rest of the day. We are not meant to be that intimate. And I like being able to breathe.

Okay, I feel better now. Can't wait to see what happens today!

Double Tagged

I was tagged by this meme yesterday by Rachel of Pereiraville and had completely forgotten about it until I clicked over to Bad Example and saw that she had tagged Harvey too. Then in comments today I discovered that Judy from The Funny Farm tagged me as well! So much for thinking I didn't have anything to post about, huh?

Update: Wow, I got triple tagged with this one!! Datbury tagged me too! I can't decide if a triple tag with a "weirdness" meme is a good thing or a bad thing....

Six Weird Facts About Me and/or Habits I Have
....bring on the weird!

1) I get the hiccups daily. And sometimes multiple (hello, 6+) times a day. This is a side effect of the surgeries I had 22+ years ago which also left me with my "Hey, do you have laryngitis? " voice. I have tried every hiccup cure there is, from spoonfulls of sugar to pressure points. What works? Everything... sometimes... until it doesn't... *hic*

2) I was a complete and strict vegetarian for 5 years in my late teens and early twenties. It is uncertain as to the origins of my self imposed vegetarianism. But a summer spent as a grill cook at Burger Bob's in my home town is suspect. Times have changed, though. I now enjoy my filet mignon medium rare, thankyouverymuch. Mmmmm.... meat.

3) I have double jointed knees that I can partially dislocate at will (without pain). Reason number 6,528 why to this day I do not ski. No matter how loose the bindings are set, my knees are looser. And having to put my knee back in every time I fall (a lot) while trying to make it *back* to the lodge is a pain in the ass. I'd much rather stay in the lodge and drink toddies, thanks.

4) I take the same route everytime I go somewhere. The. Exact. Same. Route. Sometimes in the event of bad weather I will have a slightly alternative (and usually longer) route, but that's it. I am directionally challenged and hate to feel lost. In a new place I will literally print off maps to get to the grocery store (and back).

My hubby, on the other hand, is constantly changing the way he goes from point A to point B. Reason #86 why to this day I cannot find my way around the Oklahoma City area worth a damn even though we lived there for 2 years. Had it not been for Pennsylvania Avenue I would have been totally screwed. (Or at the very least, driving aimlessly somewhere in Texas.)

5) I have a habit of making up words to better convey (at least in my mind) what I am trying to say. For example: CrapopottamusRex! or Schmugly or Grotokomous. Sometimes you just need a new word.... I am sure that people who don't know me well and overhear are wondering what the heck I am on.

6) I loooooove to make lists. I have master lists, chore lists, grocery lists, "honey do" lists, all kinds of lists are my kinds of lists. And more than I love making lists, I love to cross things off of my list. Ooooooh! Heaven. The funny thing is that more often than not, I will forget to bring my list along (like to the store). But I do so love to make them.

Okay, there's my six! Am I weird? Probably. But that's okay.

And other people to tag? Well, I think I'll tag Sarah at That's Not Very Nice and see if I can get her posting again. ; )

Traveling

No not me, just the unfortunate chicky-poo in today's Brain Bender....

Ready? Here we go!

-------------------

Meg's local train station is one mile away from her house. It takes her 10 minutes to bike there. Today, Meg got a flat tire 12 minutes before the train is scheduled to arrive. Her maximum walking speed is 4 miles per hour.

Can she make the train on foot?

-------------------

I cannot imagine this taking long to answer. So just for fun, let's see what happens to Meg on the way, shall we? Answer (and alternative scenarios) to be found in the comments later. Have fun!

Og's Right....

Sometimes these freekin' Brain Benders are just lame. Lame-o. Lame-o-rama-lama-ding-dong even.

As Og said in a recent Brain Bender comment:

You need a way to put spoilers in. Like a blackout. Anyway, I'll leave this one for someone else.

He's right, I think. We need to shake things up a bit. So today (just for the hell of it) along with the regular winner of the smartypants sticker, kudos will go also to the person that submits the most creative non-word and definition. Hey, use it in a sentence even. We all need a new word once in a while!

Here is today's (lame-o) question from the handy dandy discount MENSA calendar:

-------------------

How many rather unusual English words can you make from the letters below, using all five letters once in each word? What are the words?

A - G - O - R - T

-------------------

Okay. Like always, answers will be found in the comments later. Made-up words can be used more than once with alternative definitions or creative sentence use. Have fun and I'll see you later!

Update: Okay, so today's official smartypants sticker goes to Dash (from The Boiling Point) for giving us the only "official" MENSA answer - and I like his definition better than the real one!

Groat (n) :the process of growing (in the New Jersey vernacular).
(Real definition: An English silver coin worth four pence, used from the 14th to the 17th century.)

And creative kudos go to Og (the Neanderpundit) for this entry:

Goart: (n) a small pendulous growth located on the rectal tissues of amphibious creatures. Sometimes referred to as the plug that makes a frog's ass watertight. "to hell with caviar, I've got a four ounce tin of south african curare frog goarts in my fridge"

Honorable mentions are as follows: Rave from Quid Nunc and Rachel from Pereiraville. :-)

The other "official" answer was ARGOT (Definition: A specialized vocabulary or set of idioms used by a particular group: thieves' argot.)

Thanks for playin' everybody!

What am I again?

Hey now. This was fun.... It looks like Dash over at The Boiling Point and I have something in common!

I will have to try one of these sooner than later. It's not as dark as I usually like, but what the hey -- it's gotta be better than that swill Contagion and T1G were consuming over the weekend. Right?

Boddingtons (33% dark & bitter, 33% working class, 66% genuine)

Boddingtons is a slightly ritzy, but truly tasty, beer. In case you don't know, each can has this little contraption inside that fizzes when you open it to give the beer a delicious creamy head. Now, being a good girl, I will make no claims about the creaminess of your head. But I will suggest that, based on the results of your test, you have a light, friendly disposition, and I consider the bouyant fizz of a Boddingtons to be the beery analogue of that. Your test also indicates you have refined tastes, and Boddingtons is my favorite beer. If you've never had one, get one sometime soon.

Link: The If You Were A Beer Test written by gwendolynbooks on Ok Cupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

I got nothing....

And I 'spoze that's not a bad thing. Nothing really tweaking my radar and/or pissing me off. Nothing really important to say...

Just going to have a day.

Of course, this might just be the lull before the proverbial storm... Is there something I am forgetting about? Something on the horizon that I need to be preparing for??

Hmmmmm. Am I the only one that get a little weirded out when things get really calm?

Time to wake up those brain cells....

After a nice weekend filled with chocolatey bunny goodness.... Here's Monday's Brain Bender:

Find the word that fits the definitions below when it's 1) a whole word and 2) divided into two words.

1) Whole word: Factory lunchroom

2) Two words:
a. a container
b. a young person

Okay, like usual answers will follow in the comments. See you later!

Update: Og the Neanderpundit wins the smartypants sticker today. And he has a new puppy named Max! Head on over and give Max a welcome, will ya? :)

Monday...

After a perfect weekend.

Good friends, tons of fun, excellent food, and it rained the day after the big party. It just doesn't get any better than that. Well, not without a winning lotto ticket anyway.

Last week as I was working my ass off preparing for Saturday's Easter party, I began to wonder why the heck I do this stuff to myself? I mean, it's a lot of time, energy, preparation, well.... work! Then I saw one of the little kids that was going to be attending Saturday's festivities at youngest's soccer practice...

"Hey, I hear you're coming to my house on Saturday..." I said. "You ready to have some fun??"

"I am?" she replied. Then eye's getting wide, "Oooohhh is this gonna be the big Easter thing like last year??? 'Cuz that was awesome!!!"

Oh. That's why.

And this year was awesome too. For one thing, the weather was gorgeous - 75 and sunny. 400 eggs were hidden and everybody got their fill of lemonade and prizes. We had all sorts of yummy picnic food and grown-ups had an opportunity to just hang out and relax and visit for a change. It was nice.

The scavenger hunt clues were just hard enough to keep the big boys on their toes and the little kids involved, and we had a huge game of "kick/dodgeball" to round out the afternoon. Nobody got hurt, and we all had fun. Like I said, perfect.

Yesterday it thunderstormed all day, which was really pretty fine by me. We went to services** in the morning, and got home just in time to read the paper and prepare for more friends to arrive for dinner. Steaks and asparagus on the grill, yummy garlic bread, and hot artichoke dip to get us all started.

The girls hunted for their baskets, and though the magic of the Easter Bunny is gone, the fun of having to look for goodies remains. Let's face it, the thought of a giant egg hiding rabbit breaking into your house every year can be a bit disconcerting anyway...

All in all, I really couldn't ask for better. And I don't think I'll try. Well, not without a winning lotto ticket....

**About the service. Guys, you had me right up until the "interpretive dance" segment. Really. I guess I am a little more conservative when it comes to my worship style than I thought....

Renewal...

That's what I love so much about this season. The sense of renewal that is evidenced everywhere.

That feeling of new beginnings and fresh promise - spiritually, and within the new blades of grass seeking the light.

Faith renewed with the bright blooms of color that seem to appear overnight, and in the budding of the trees...

For once, hope is easy to see. And well represented.

That is what I wish for you this weekend. A weekend filled with hope and renewal in whatever form it takes for you. Happy Easter.

459

Thursday's Brain Bender. Seems pretty straight forward. Ready? Here we go!

There are four sets of three digit numbers (no digits the same) that add up to 459. One is shown below. Can you find the other three? (Transposing top and bottom lines is not allowed.)

176
+283
------
459

----------------------

Answers to follow in the comments like always... :)

Update: Today's official smartypants is Blue Tige! Whoohoo! Thanks for playing everybody!

Oh boy...

Well, this should be interesting... It's picture day at school, today. And hubby is in charge of "hair fixing" and "outfit" duties as I will be at work.

I am curious to see how this all turns out.... Oh boy.

Gotta love a small town....

So the other day as Hubby and I retrieved and set up the patio furniture, Hubby (for no good reason at all) decided to check out the attic in the Weird Little House that exists behind our house. Remember how I said there were places around here that you could hold a gun to my head and I wouldn't go in? Yup, this is one of them. Spidery attics are not my thing thankyouverymuch.

A few minutes later, here he comes. Holding two stuffed bears that I had never seen before, a trophy, and a small manila folder.

"Hey, I found this stuff..." Says he. "Looks like this Angela was a big Rick Springfield fan..."

"What stuff?" I asked. "And how much are we talking about?"

Three largeish cartons. Photo albums, school awards, bears, letters... Just a whole lotta memorabilia circa 1985 - 1989. Not ours, obviously. But things that were precious to someone at one time. And left behind.

"So what do you want to do with it?" Hubby asked me.

As if there were any question. "What do I want to do with it?? Well, return it of course! I've got a phone book, lets see if we can get lucky!"

"I'd like to get lucky," he replied.

(::sigh:: Boys -- one track mind....)

As the fates would have it, the second person I called happened to be Angela's uncle. Surprised to hear from a perfect stranger, I am sure. But sensing that I was neither serial killer nor bill collector, he hooked me up with Angela's sister's phone number. She still lives in the area and would know just what to do, he said. God, I love small towns.

So now, everything's squared away and three cartons of forgotten treasure will soon find their way to South Carolina and back into the right hands. After all, I have plenty of my *own* Rick Springfield memorabilia around here somewhere. And you never know when your 8th grade graduation diploma might come in handy...

For the birds...

Wednesday's brain bender....

What two words formed from different arrangements of the same six letters, can be used to complete the sentence below?

The Bird-watchers were so interested in the new ________ that had chosen to nest nearby that it was necessary to put up a ________ around the area to protect the bird.

---------------------

As always, answers to follow later in the comments. And in keeping with the "bird" theme today, I am off to go boil three dozen eggs!

Update: Today's winner of the official smartypants sticker is friend and reader Rich Blank! Whoohoo! :-)

An Easter funny

With Blondes! :)
------------------

Three blondes (natural) died and found themselves standing before St. Peter. He told them that before they could enter the Kingdom, they had to tell him what Easter was.

The first blonde said, "Easter is a holiday where they have a big feast and we give thanks and eat turkey."

St. Peter said, "Noooooo," and he banished her to hell.

The second blonde said, "Easter is when we celebrate Jesus' birth and exchange gifts."

St. Peter said, "Noooooo," and he banished her to hell.

The third blonde said, she knew what Easter is, and St. Peter said, "So, tell me."
She said, "Easter is a Christian holiday that coincides with the Jewish festival of Passover. Jesus was having Passover feast with His disciples when he was betrayed by Judas, and the Romans arrested him.

The Romans hung Him on the cross and eventually He died.
They buried Him in a tomb behind a very large boulder ..."

St. Peter said, "Verrrrrry good."

Then the blonde continued, "Now every year the Jews roll away the boulder and Jesus comes out. If he sees his shadow, we have six more weeks of basketball."

----------------

I wonder where St. Peter sent her?

h/t Loretta and Dal

Real quick...

I'm running a bit late, but this is important!

Quaker Breakfast Cookies (especially apple cinnamon)? Chewy, delicious, breakfasty goodness - and pretty good for you....

Kellogg's All~Bran Brown Sugar Cinnamon bars? Leaves and sticks held together with tasteless honey like (read: sticky) substance - and pretty good for you....

You do the math.

Fun with camels...

Yes, really! It's Tuesday's Brain Bender...

The discount MENSA calendar is lame-o today so I am pulling a question from an alternate source (a game called MindTrap). Ready?

-----------

An old Bedouin who is about to die, informs his three sons that he will leave them his camels. To the eldest son he leaves half his camels. To his second son he leaves one third of them, and to his youngest, he leaves one ninth.

After the old man died, the three sons went to get their camels, but discovered there were 17 animals. They did not want to kill or sell any of the camels, and they could not think of a way to divide the camels exactly as their father wished.

Just then, Abdullah came riding along on his camel and listened to the brothers' problem. Immediately Abdullah thought of a way to divide the camels just as the old man had wished. What was his easy solution??

-------------------

Okay, like always answer to follow in the comments. And watch out! Camels spit...

Update: Today's camel division expert and official smartypants is Teresa from Technicalities! Whoohoo!

Ahhhhh.... Now this is the life!

Patio blogging. That's me. Cocktail, computer, singing birds, no mosquitoes, kids playing... (Dinner not ready, laundry to fold, lunches to pack, the smell of thawing silage, Monday...)

Okay, so it's not perfect. But maybe my putting the snow boots away has broken winter's icy grasp. Or maybe Mother Nature is just in a good mood... I don't care. I'll take it.

I have broken out the summer clothes, applied my first bit of sunless tanning lotion (hey - I don't want to be as white as Eric, ya know), put on my ankle bracelet, refreshed my pedicure (a nice garnet) and dusted off my birks. I'm ready.

(Now watch, it will snow next Thursday....)

I hope that Spring found you today as well... Without the smell of silage.

Update: A silage link has been added. Silage is fermented feed, usually for cattle. It stinks to high heaven! Blech!

(And Rachel, I'm *glad* you don't know what silage is... That means you don't know what it smells like!) ;-)

Lots to do... (Monday's Brain Bender)

It is sunny and 60 right now and promises to get even warmer as the afternoon progresses. I even saw some blooms on my way home from work! Whoohoo!

And just to show what an optimist I am, I moved the snow pants and boots to the basement. They are not yet "put away" but they are out of the way. I like it. (Shhhh don't tell Mother Nature...)

Lots for me to do today as we are having our annual Easter party on Saturday. (I got 500 eggs to fill!) So the time to start prepping is at hand. Hubby of course, plans to golf... Life's rough.

So anyway, today's brain bender is easy schmeasy. A good way to sliiiiide into the week I think.

--------------

Carrie is twice as old as Jean. Five years ago, Carrie was three times as old as Jean. In five years, Jean will be three-fifths Carrie's age.

How old are they now?

------------------

See? Okay. Same as always. Answer to be found later in the comments...

Update: Today's winner of the smartypants sticker is Blue Tige! Whoohoo!

Tammi asked...

Tammi over at Tammi's World had a few questions she wanted answers to.

What about you? What are some of your preferences? And yes, this is a very weird twist on the old Saturday Questions. Come on. Talk to me!!!

Who am I to refuse?

*Barefoot or shoes? Both. (And no, that's not a cop out.) I looooove my birks and have them in all colors and styles. Cutest shoes on the planet? Well, no. But comfy?? Hell yes! As close as you can get to going barefoot while still wearing shoes.

*Tea - sweet or unsweetened? Unsweetened.

*Clothes - fitted or loose? Loose. I'm all about the comfort.

*Fish - fresh water or salt water? Salt Water. Definitely. And preferably shell fish that can be dipped in drawn butter. Mmmmmm. Lobster, crab, shrimp, scallops... Yummy!

*Gravy or plain? I'm a gravy girl.

*House - spotless or "lived in"? Between my hubby and kids and dogs, "lived in" is my only option here. I would never get a chance to rest, otherwise. Basically once again, I am all about the comfort. I like my house to be the kind of place where folks are comfortable to come in, kick off their shoes, and find a great spot to settle in. Need a throw? Here you go. What can I get you to drink? Dinner is in 20 minutes....

*Solitude or people? People, usually. But there are definitely times that I crave the quiet.

*Beer or alcohol? Beer if I am out (the darker the better, usually). At home, it's wine. If I am going to have a drink, it will be something straightforward. A screwdriver or 3 fingers of scotch. But I have the fixin's on hand for martinis or margaritas... You just never know...

*Fiction or nonfiction? Fiction. I read for pleasure.

*Weather - Hot or cold? Both. I love having a distinct change of seasons. I love taking the kids sledding in the winter and then coming home to a warm house and hot cocoa. Getting to curl up on those cold days with a good book and a bowl of something hot and yummy.

In the summer I love the long days and warm nights. Hanging out at the pool and grilling outside or simply making salads because it's just too hot to cook. And today, it's supposed to be nearly 70 degrees here. Whoohoo! Summer is on the way!

Anybody else want to play? Feel free! (It's pretty fun...)

And just for fun....

My cousin Inga sent me this Intelligence Test. Want to see how smart you are? (I hate to admit, it was harder than I thought...)

I need a hero...

I was surfing around yesterday, looking for something to watch while I folded clothes. (Hey, c'mon. It's a big part of what I do!) Anyway, on some relatively obscure network, I ran across Blind Fury. Oh man! I hadn't seen that movie in years, and had forgotten what a great freekin' story it was...

Rutger Hauer was the epitome of kick ass cool in that movie. I mean a blind guy who's cane is actually a sword? (And he knows how to use his sword, girls...) A man takin' care of business [read: kicking bad guy ass] while helping out an old buddy and caring for said buddy's kid?? Beyond hot. Hot, hot, hot. And that single tear he sheds at the end of the movie after catching the toy dinosaur out of thin air while the kid laments, "I'm gonna miss you, Uncle Nick!"??? Classic. Just classic. And hot.

'Course I have always had a thing for the hero/anti-hero type. Sure the golden boyscouts have their place, but Superman (in any of his incarnations) never did it for me like Clint Eastwood as Harry Callahan, or Bruce Willis (all bloody and battered) in the Die Hard flicks. Wolverine? Oh help me! Even cheesy Ben Affleck in DareDevil had that..... oh something that just works, even when most of the time he annoys the crap out of me.

I can see I am going to have to take a break from Harry Potter and see what else is out there. I seem to have forgotten about a lot of movie.... um..... magic that I could definitely be entertaining myself with. And there is always more laundry to fold...

Buddy Widsom...

I didn't do it...

I swear!

I suspect the fish...

Saturday...

Whew. I am so learning to appreciate the weekends. And this being the last Saturday we are going to have for a long while with no activities planned I hope to really enjoy not having a set agenda.

Soccer starts next week as does swimming lessons. So for the next umpteen Saturday mornings I (and about 48,000 other parents) will be sitting on the sidelines of a local frosty field freezing our collective asses off while wondering what we were thinking signing our kids up for Spring soccer.

See in the fall, it is cool in the morning. But there is still that residual bit of summer warmth to take the edge off of 8am Saturday morning. In the spring, you get up to 65 or 70 degrees in the afternoon, but at 8am??? It's fricken' frozen tundra. Brrrrrrrr. Oh well. Such is life. And the kids have a blast.

So today I need to do general re-con on cleats, shin guards, swim suits, and goggles in addition to the regular stuff. It's also time to begin the seasonal clothing switch. Seeing what summer stuff we having that will still fit (or get handed down) and generally preparing for the change of the season. I am ready for warmer days. (Or at least I say that now - I know I will be complaining about the heat in three months, just like everybody else.)

So, Saturday. Anybody else missing the days when having a Saturday just meant that you got to watch cartoons all morning and play with your friends all afternoon?? Yeah, me too...

Party time!

Well, it's Friday (thank heavens). Today's Brain Bender has a bit of a party feel to it...

Rachel went out shopping for her birthday party. She spent half of the original amount plus $5 on a very special cake, half of what was left plus $5 for paper plates and cups, then half of what was left plus $15 for soda. Then she had no money left.

How much did she start with?

---------------------------

And poor Rachel, having to throw her own party and going broke to boot! That's no fun....

Anyway, the answer will follow in the comments like always. Happy Friday!

Update: Today's smartypants sticker winner is jvh from Showcase of a Shattered Mind. Yay! And thanks for playing everybody...

Names

I have posted before about the fact that I have an unusual name. And about a boy named Wrage in youngest's class...

But this fun was found over at Risawn's (Incoherant Ramblings) place:

Names
1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet and current street name)
Taylor Plumb (That's a rock star? I don't think so...)

2. YOUR MOVIE STAR NAME: (grandfather/grandmother on your mother's side, your favorite candy)
Inga Hershey

3. YOUR "FLY GIRL/GUY" NAME: (first initial of first name, first two or three letters of your last name
R Da (...that's kinda weird. How would you even pronounce it?)

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite animal, favorite color)
Otter Green (What kind of a lame-o detective would be named "otter" anyway? But I suppose that's better the Chipmunk Orange or something...)

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born)
Brooke Laramie (That works.)

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (first 3 letters of your last name, last 3 letters of mother's maiden name, first 3 letters of your [other - ed.] pet's name)
Dav Coybud (that makes me sound like a Star Wars stoner...)

7. JEDI NAME (first three letters of your last name, first two of your first name, first two of your grandmother's maiden name, first three of the town you were born in)
Dav Riollar (uh... okaaay)

8. PORN STAR NAME: (middle name, street you grew up on)
Brooke Bernard (Nope, don't want to see her naked...)
-----------------------

You know, That was fun. But I think I'll just stick with "Rich" - it suits me...

A funny for Friday

Two rednecks, Bubba and Earl, were driving down the road drinking a couple of bottles of Budweiser.

The passenger, Bubba, said, "Lookey thar up ahead, Earl, it's a
dadgum police roadblock!! We're gonna get busted fer drinkin' these here beers!"

Don't worry, Bubba," Earl said. "We'll just pull over and finish drinkin' these beers then peel off the label and stick it on our foreheads then throw the bottles under the seat."

"What fer?" asked Bubba.

"Just let me do the talkin', OK?," said Earl.

Well, they finished their beers, threw the empties out of sight and put the labels on each of their foreheads.

When they reached the roadblock, the sheriff said, "Howdy boys, ya'll been drinkin' ?"

No sir," said Earl while pointing at the labels...
...
...

"Me and Bubba's on the Patch."
---------------------

For more wisdom from Bubba and Earl, you can go here. VW has a good one!

Feta Summer Salad

This is a salad I make whenever we have a big potluck to go to or are entertaining a bunch of guests in the summer time. (Since there is no mayonnaise, I don't have to worry about inadvertently "poisoning" anybody.)

You will want to make it up at least 3 hours ahead of time (so the flavors have a chance to mature and get happy) and after a day or two of marinating it is really, really good...

The recipe that follows is for a reasonable amount (like say 10-14 servings).

Feta Summer Salad

One head broccoli
One head cauliflower
16 oz grape tomatoes
14 oz can of pitted black olives
4 oz Crumbled Feta cheese
½ C. Fat Free Italian Dressing**
(pick your favorite)
(Picture by Richmond -- looks good enough to eat! And I did!)

Wash broccoli and cauliflower well, and cut into bite sized florettes. In a large salad bowl, combine broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, drained olives, Feta cheese and dressing. Toss to combine. Chill for at least a couple of hours and Enjoy!

**This time I didn't have any black olives so I substituted "caesar/parmesan" burgundy olives and they were fabulous. Also I used "sundried tomato/basil" feta cheese and Kraft fat free caesar dressing. I never measure the dressing so the ½ C. is an estimate. The amount of dressing you use varies according to how much salad you are making. (You just don't want the yummy veggies drowning in it. Use your best judgement.)

And just for the record, I have thought about adding maybe half a cup of thinly sliced purple onion, or maybe some artichoke hearts. I think they would be wonderful additions to an already great salad.

Not feeling very friendy toward our Hippie friends?

Well, neither are the maker's of this commercial. It kinda makes me want one... A green one...

Hat tip to Mr. Vanderleun at American Digest

From Meat to Fish...

I can name that tune in 4 notes, Bob!

Whoops, wrong game. Apparently the handy dandy discount MENSA calendar is mindful of Lent as well. Today's Brain Bender is as follows:

Make your way from MEAT to FISH in only four steps, changing one letter at a time. (Words should be in English.)

• MEAT
• _ _ _ _
• _ _ _ _
• _ _ _ _
• FISH

--------------

Okay, you know how this works. Answers to be found later in the comments. (And there's more than one way to get there, folks. So we can have multiple smartypants today. Whoohoo!)

Update: Multiple winners today (can I call 'em or what?). Our official smartypants for Thursday are jvh from Showcase of a Shattered Mind and the lovely and talented SarahK from Mountaineer Musings! Yay!

Also, an Honorable Mention goes to friend and reader Rich Blank for using the Scots irregular verb fesh on Tartan Day. Whoohoo!

Paging Cliff Claven...

Just some questions I want answered...
--------------
Why do kids think it is so much fun to chew the erasers off of pencils and leave eraser chunks all over the floor??

Why must as much water "escape" the bathtub as possible for them to feel really clean?

Why do polish sausages have to be so fattening?

Why do coat hooks work at school but not at home?

Why are trashcans invisible to certain members of my household?

Why is mud a magnet for kids and creatures?

Why does it sometimes feel like I am being attacked by my bra?
-------------

No biggy. I was just curious.... And also, why is it that sometimes I feel more tired 20 minutes after I get up than I do 20 minutes before I do?

Oh, that's right. Caffeine. Gotta go get some...

Sick....

Oh crap. I woke up this morning with a head full of cement. Scratchy eyes, scratchy throat (oh great - I can kiss whatever voice I have goodbye...) , achey everything, upset stomach, the whole nine yards. Bleh.

And it's going around too.... VW has had sick kids this week and is hoping that she doesn't succumb to the illness, Trouble tried to kill herself gardening and then got the flu... Me? I had no idea you guys were so freekin' contagious! Good grief!

I've survived work today and just taken some more cold meds. (What a choice, I can be stuffed up and miserable or edgy... lovely.)

I think I'll blame Daylight Savings. I want to go back to bed now....

Hi! My name is....

AKA Wednesday's Brain Bender... Ready? Here we go!

------------------

If seven people meet each other and each shakes hands only once with each of the others, how many handshakes will there have been?

------------------

And do we still have to wear the stupid name tags?? Anyway, the answer will follow in the comments.

Update: And we have a winner! Blue Tige is today's official Smartypants! Whoohoo! Now let's all go wash our hands....

Buddy Wisdom...

No Mother,

That green mist won't kill you....

I'm just perfuming your area!




(Dude! What did you eat?? Pheeew!)

Huh...

Which Extremity of the World Are You?
From the towering colossi at Rum and Monkey.

Well, I never would have guessed that. I think I'll go get a glass of water now...

h/t CalTechGirl

Oh yeah....

I think I have finally found my song.... 1970 somethin' ? 1980 somethin' ?? That would be for me...

Got the date?

Today's Brain Bender...

Following the pattern, fill in the missing number below.

• May 5
• October 11
• March 9
• April ?

Okay, you know the drill. Answer to be found later in the comments...

Update: Looks like we need a clue. So here you go. Consonants and vowels are the key.

Update #2: Whoohoo! We have a winner!! Wxman got it in one. Way to go Wxman! And thanks for playing everybody!

Well, that's another 2 hours I'll never get back...

Yesterday, Hubby and I watched The Weather Man starring Nicholas Cage. You know, I thought it might be kinda cute considering the fact that Hubby is a Meteorologist by degree and was doing the weather on TV when we met. (Whoohoo! KCTZ channel 7!)

But The Weather Man? Totally a crap movie. I mean crap as in not good. And I mean NOT GOOD as in don't even freeking bother. Ugh.

I am still trying to figure out what the whole point was... His life was screwed up? He was completely incompetent as a parent/spouse/son (except when he wasn't)?? The word f*ck should be used as often as possible when dealing with everything from your ex-wife's boyfriend to getting a cup of coffee?? Archery after an ice storm is cool?? SpongeBob can be an epiphany?? What??

All I can say is that the movie was pointless and a downer. Again, don't bother.

On Saturday night we had the joyous experience (not!) of watching Open Water. Oh, holy Mother of crap. Heavy emphasis on the crap part.

You know, as the movie starts out, the banter between husband and wife (all alone in the middle of the ocean drifting through shark infested waters) was kinda fun, in a "Good grief, what a horrible situation" kind of way... Hubby and I kept remarking how we would be snarking at each other in a similar manner.

But last half hour to the end?? Gimme a break! You guys are just going to give up?? You were in the water for only one night! And they were headed out to look for you fergoddsakes! I mean I know it seems hopeless and scary but you don't just quit! Arrrrgghhhhh. Frustrating.

So obviously, we are no good at picking movies this week. Have a suggestion? We could use the help...

Monday's Brain Bender

Is a palindrome... [ I know, Triticale -- they're not your thing. :-) ]

-----------------

What Senor Diaz says after he fires his secretary, Ida.

S_ , _ _ _, _ _ _ _ S!

------------------

This is what he says after he has ducked whatever Ida chucked at his head, I imagine. While peeking out from around his door...

Anyway, answer to follow in the comments.

Update: Well, Og the Neanderpundit is the palindrome master! Whoohoo!

Today is a good day for a miracle....

And no I am not talking about opening day for the Brewers.

Lucky, home from his deployment to Qatar is anticipating the birth of his third child today. He's somewhat live blogging the happy event so head on over and wish him well...

Happy Birthday young Benjamin! (Try to take it easy on your Mom, okay?)

And Congratulations, Lucky! Do I need to send more cookies?? ;-)

Monday (freekin' early...)

And you know? I really don't want to be up right now. I just don't...

I'd like to make a deposit, please...

So that happy day of the year has arrived once again where we all get to lose an hour, for no good reason. (With exception for our fine friends in Arizona -- the only people sane enough not to play. Lucky you!)

For the rest of us, today marks the beginning of daylight savings time. What I want to know, is where all the daylight we are supposedly saving is stored?? And who gets to use it?? Because I'll tell you what. To me, practicing "daylight savings" makes about as much sense as a man trying to make himself taller by cutting off his head and standing on it. Yeah, that's the ticket! Not.

Nothing like having a whole day where you wake up feeling behind and you have the potential to either inadvertently be late to work,

"Whaddya mean it's 9:00???" Looking at your watch... "I left the house at 7:45!"

or walking into church right as they are finishing up communion. Nice. Real nice.

For me, it means driving to work in pitch blackness again. Oh joy. Glad I got to see a sunrise or two... no more for me. And just generally feeling off. Off kilter, off my game, off line, whatever.

And yes, admittedly I enjoy falling back more than springing forward, so sue me. But either way it's an adjustment. I mean I know it's only an hour but my whole sense of time is screwed up for probably two weeks! Until my brain and body synch up again, I will be constantly mentally telling myself what time it "really" is, and feeling disconcerted that I am not tired at 9pm like normal, or ready to start dinner at 4:00 (hello, 'cuz it's really 3:00...) It's just stupid.

And this year as an added bonus, daylight savings arrives at the tail end of Spring Break. So after the girls have had a nice week of sleeping in, and having a restful schedule, they get to go to school an hour earlier (technically) tomorrow. Nice planning, people. Nice.

So anyway, it's almost 9:00. Breakfast isn't ready and I'm running late... Poo.

Genie in a bottle

Some funny via email...


A woman rubbed a bottle and out popped a genie. The amazed woman asked if she got three wishes.

The genie said, "Nope, sorry, three-wish genies are a storybook myth. I'm a one-wish genie. So...what'll it be?"

The woman did not hesitate. She said, "I want peace in the Middle East . See this map? I want these countries to stop fighting with each other and I want all the Arabs to love the Jews and Americans and vice-versa. It will bring about world peace and harmony."

The genie looked at the map and exclaimed, "Lady, be reasonable. These countries have been at war for thousands of years. I'm out of shape after being in a bottle for five hundred years... I'm good but not THAT good! I don't think it can be done. Make another wish and please be reasonable! "

The woman thought for a minute and said, "Well, I've never been able to find the right man. You know - one that's considerate and fun, likes to cook and help with the house cleaning, is great in bed, loves women, and gets along with my family, doesn't watch sports all the time, and is faithful. That is what I wish for...a good man."

The genie let out a sigh and said, "Let me see that map again."

h/t Inga :)

Hoo boy...

My neighbors are getting a hot tub.

I thought they were kidding....

They plan to put it on the deck.

The deck where we hang out all summer long....

Between our households we have 6 kids.

This is going to be funny....

Cloudy and gray....

....and that's okay.

I'm taking today off. It's a good day for jammie pants and comfort food. We have movies to watch and books to read. Minimal laundry to do and it's April Fool's Day so by in large it's a good day just to stay at home.

I may get into an mood to do some de-cluttering and organizing. Or not. It's nice to have the option.

I almost posted a yummy Greek salad recipe for the carnival, but then I remembered that they are doing a "spoof" carnival this week. The recipe is too good to get lost in a bunch of fake recipes, so I'll hold off until next week. Can't wait to see what does end up in the carnival though - should be funny.

Speaking of "spoofs" You should go and check out the very fake Harvey's Badder Example! Lot's of funny folks from around the blogosphere have taken the time to poke a little fun at our favorite blogfather. We love you Harvey! Even if you are the consummate Bad Example.

Oh and see?? This is why I think it's a good idea to stay home today... Good grief, Dude! Didn't anybody ever tell you not to play in the street???