A grizzly Ate My GoPro!!! GoPro HD – YouTube
Gah! X-Factor!!!
(Refer to http://carolyncasl.wordpress.com/2010/11/12/the-x-factor/)
LINK URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=81DCfygJWwU
Fun
Archived Posts from this Category
May 17, 2013
May 15, 2013
May 1, 2013
April 26, 2013
Drive.com.au: The car that glows in the dark
Whoa, glow in the dark car! Awesome!
LINK URL: http://theage.drive.com.au/motor-news/the-car-that-glows-in-the-dark-20130426-2iiqe.html
April 1, 2013
Build A Do-It-Yourself Outdoor Cat Enclosure Or Run
I want to make one of these for my cats.
LINK URL: http://www.catandcaboodle.com/Build-A-Do-It-Yourself-Outdoor-Cat-Enclosure-Or-Run_ep_41-1.html
March 29, 2013
The Gargoyles Fans Website :: Gargoyles Merchandise: Trading Cards
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
The Gargoyles Fans Website :: Gargoyles Merchandise: Trading Cards
Trading cards for my favorite cartoon, Gargoyles.
LINK URL: http://www.gargoyles-fans.org/merchandise/cards.htm
March 27, 2013
The Day I Taught How Not to Rape | Accidental Devotional
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
March 11, 2013
http://www.lspace.org/books/reading-order-guides/the-discworld-reading-order-guide-20.jpg
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
http://www.lspace.org/books/reading-order-guides/the-discworld-reading-order-guide-20.jpg
Discworld reading guide recommended by The Jer-Man
LINK URL: http://www.lspace.org/books/reading-order-guides/the-discworld-reading-order-guide-20.jpg
March 5, 2013
The Burlap Bag – High Quality Handmade Goods Shop – Austin Texas
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
The Burlap Bag – High Quality Handmade Goods Shop – Austin Texas
I think I can try this. Seems simple enough. I like bananas… I like oatmeal…. hmm.
LINK URL: http://www.theburlapbag.com/2012/07/2-ingredient-cookies-plus-the-mix-ins-of-your-choice/
February 28, 2013
Guide to Common Home Laundering & Drycleaning Symbols
Here’s another laundry guide that someone had linked to in the comments on the other one I posted…
LINK URL: http://www.textileaffairs.com/c-common.htm
February 28, 2013
CheapClothes_CareSymbols.jpg (530×2334)
Here’s some useful information for laundry.
LINK URL: http://www.primermagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/CheapClothes/CheapClothes_CareSymbols.jpg
February 22, 2013
February 20, 2013
Eat Like A Pagan©: Guinea Fowl – Crock Pot Recipe
Clint got a frozen fowl from the international grocery store, so I need to figure out how to cook it….
LINK URL: http://eatlikeapagan.blogspot.com/2013/01/guinea-fowl-crock-pot-recipe.html
February 20, 2013
Eat Like A Pagan©: Guinea Fowl – Crock Pot Recipe
Clint got a frozen fowl from the international grocery store, so I need to figure out how to cook it….
LINK URL: http://eatlikeapagan.blogspot.com/2013/01/guinea-fowl-crock-pot-recipe.html
February 6, 2013
My Fridge Food – Recipes you already have in your Fridge
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My Fridge Food – Recipes you already have in your Fridge
Select the ingredients you have on hand, and get a bunch of recipes that you can make with those ingredients.
LINK URL: http://www.myfridgefood.com/index.php
January 29, 2013
Convert Files – Free EPUB to LIT converter. Free online ebook converter.
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
Convert Files – Free EPUB to LIT converter. Free online ebook converter.
convert epub to lit ebooks
LINK URL: http://www.convertfiles.com/convert/ebook/EPUB-to-LIT.html
January 28, 2013
Mixing ejuice
LINK URL: http://www.totallywicked-eliquid.com/forum/mixing-discussions/mixing-101-11504/
January 28, 2013
January 25, 2013
Skiing at Snowshoe 2012 – The year of the Fire
Posted by Carolyn under Fun, skiing, Vacation[3] Comments
Whoops, this was in my drafts folder – it was dated 20120216. Almost a year later, here is my journal about last year’s ski trip:
This year, Angel & Ian planned a Snowshoe trip for Thursday, Feb 2nd through Monday, Feb 6th. Feb 6th was a free day included in the lodging so we decided to take advantage of it and stay the extra day. Since my car is limping along on its last leg, I rode down with Angel & Ian. We listened to some podcasts that became the jokes of the weekend. I think it was called SuperEgo. One skit was Zod meeting with his legal counsel. Another skit was Family Feud. They were pretty funny, and they provided plenty of fodder for inside jokes.
We were staying at the Summit again. It was the same unit we stayed in last year. We all arrived on Thursday evening, and it was pretty chill.
Friday morning, I woke up around 8am or so. When I heard other people were up, I went out. Greg had only had 4 hours of sleep the night before, so he had crashed out early and decided to continue sleeping in bed. Ian made a rice egg breakfast that was so delicious! Thanks for the breakfast, Ian!
We went to the slopes around 11am. Yeah, we took our time eating breakfast and getting ready. Of course, the Summit stairs were annoying, but what can you do. Summit is pretty close and I think it’s cheaper, and the stairs-of-death are just a price to pay.
Angel, Ian, Peter, Quinn, Ken, and I did a few runs on the greens around Powder Monkey and Powder Ridge and then made our way over to the Ballhooter area. Eventually, we moved all the way over to the Widowmaker area. I didn’t do the Widowmaker, but I hear it wasn’t that bad, and there weren’t any moguls.
Lauren made lasagna for everyone for dinner on Friday. It was yummy! After dinner, we went nightskiing at Silvercreek. Only Quinn stayed behind because he wasn’t feeling 100%.
Friday night, I drank the wine I brought. Lauren kept saying that the sign with the skier on it looked like the skier was taking a dump. We had some fun with a slim jim. Good times. We all had fun, and then finally went to bed.
Around 7:30am, I heard a commotion in the hallway of the unit. I heard Lauren say “They’re knocking on peoples’ doors and telling them to get out of the building.” I wasn’t sure what was going on, so I got up. Apparently, the building was on fire. We all quickly gathered a few things and evacuated. When I got outside, I realized my wallet was inside, so I quickly ran back in and grabbed my ski pants that contained my wallet. Ian was rescuing his and Angel’s snowboards, so I also grabbed my skis, poles, and boots. Someone (I can’t remember if it was Peter or Ian) just zipped up their suitcase and had everything they needed. My stuff was all over. When I was standing outside, I realized the camera was still inside on the dining room table. We heard the people in the units next to ours say that the sprinkler system had gone off in their unit, so all their stuff was wet. So then I got worried that the sprinklers were going to go off in ours, soak the camera, and I was going to be responsible for the death of yet another camera. Luckily, though, our unit was perfectly fine.
Greg had a little teensy problem. His shoes were locked up in a locker up by the main slopes. He tried to wear Ian’s snowboard boots, but they wouldn’t fit, so he decided to hang out in Angel’s car “to sleep off the hangover.” Well, poor Greg’s hangover was exacerbated by the cold and not having shoes, and he ended up really miserable.
Lauren & Matt stayed behind while the rest of us decided to get some breakfast. Lauren was worried that they’d let people back in and she didn’t want to miss that. Well, it was lucky they stayed behind because they were able to get us the upgrade, and the resort also provided them a free breakfast. D’oh. The rest of us went to The Junction, which was serving a breakfast buffet. I was still in my pajama pants, but I did have my ski pants with me, so I snuck off to the bathroom to change because it was weird being in pseudo-public in my pajama pants. So I was glad that I had left my wallet in the ski pants instead of my jacket, because otherwise, I wouldn’t have had them with me. Speaking of my jacket, the zipper broke and so I couldn’t take it off. I thought I was going to have to get a new one, and it would have been the end of an era (I’ve had that green Miller’s jacket since 2002. ) However, it magically fixed itself after breakfast. Just one of those things, I guess.
The rest of Saturday morning was spent trying to get everyone situated and moved into the new unit that Lauren procured in Alleghany Springs. Greg sent a text requesting help and to please get his shoes back. Lauren had an issue where she didn’t have her keys. She thought they were at Summit, but when we were able to get into Summit to get our stuff, the keys weren’t there, so she realized they must have been in her purse, which was now at Alleghany Springs. So she didn’t have the key for the locker. We had a plan where Angel & I were going to get Greg and bring him back to Alleghany Springs, while Lauren and Matt were going to go to attempt to get Greg’s shoes from the locker, and go shopping at the convenient store. When we got to Summit, we saw Greg lurch inside the unit, so Angel & I waited around outside for him. Then Peter arrived, and we decided to go get the stuff. Angel tried to send me on a mission to bring the Helement around, but unfortunately, I couldn’t get the emergency parking brake off. I was like, “You push the button and push the lever down. It shouldn’t be that hard!” I tried many different ways to push the button, but nothing worked so I finally admitted defeat. Angel had no problem, but she did mention it was on there pretty tight. Apparently, the OK was given for people to enter the units again, so we gathered everything up. Ken brought his rented pick-up truck and we loaded the stuff and the food in both cars. We weren’t sure about Lauren & Matt’s stuff, but then they showed up and were able to gather their own things.
[ETA: Greg reminded me I forgot an important memory] At some point, Quinn pointed out a spot of what looked like soot on the couch. He said it looked like maybe a firefighter had sat down or something and left a butt-print of soot. When the owner of the unit came in to inspect it, Quinn pointed it out. The owner touched it with his fingers… then he taste-tested it… After the owner left, we were talking about that soot, and Greg said, “oh, that wasn’t soot.” When we asked Greg to clarify, he said he had his electric shaver, and it spilled on the couch and all the hair shavings had spilled out……. So then the joke became that the owner had taste-tested Greg’s pube shavings. Poor owner! [/ETA]
We got back to Alleghany Springs, and everyone moved in. Well, by moved in, we mean all the suitcases were just dropped in the middle of the floor. Greg picked a bed and slept peacefully for the rest of the afternoon. Angel also took a nap at some point, after she put the groceries away. It was just starting to drizzle when we were finally settled. Peter & Ian wanted to do the Western Territories, and I wanted to go out skiing, but didn’t want to go to the Western Territories. Nobody else had any interest in going out, so I decided it was high-time I should go out alone. I’ve been skiing since the third grade, and have never once been skiing alone. Well, first time for everything, I went out all by myself. I only got 3 runs. The rain was getting worse, and it was getting foggy, so I decided I was done. I am so glad I went though. I stuck around the Ballhooter area. I think I did Skipjack first, then GandyDancer, and then I ended on Hootenanny and MidFlume and lower Ballhooter.
The new place had a heated pool and a hot tub. Ian had bought some swimming trunks, but then he found out they left the security tag on them. Angel, Lauren and Matt enjoyed the hot tub on Saturday night. I think the rest of us just sat around watching whatever movies were showing on TV. There was some sort of Angelina Jolie marathon going on. Mr. and Mrs. Smith was on, and someone said Tombraider had been on previously. Inglourious Basterds also came on later.
Saturday’s dinner was jambalaya, as created by Ian. It was so delicious! Thanks, Ian!!
On Sunday, we got out to the slopes earlier than we did on Friday. We did the greens by the PowerMonkey, and then Carolyn did 2 more runs over there while Angel, Peter, and Ian went to the Western Territories. Apparently, Carolyn made them wait 10 or 15 minutes. D’oh! Then we got on the shuttle to Silvercreek. Carolyn had never done Silvercreek in the daytime before. She’s only been there for nightskiing. It was nice because it was less crowded, and the conditions weren’t bad.
Lauren & Matt decided they wanted to stay the extra day, but unfortunately, Greg couldn’t. So they figured out a plan where Greg drove Lauren’s car home and left it in her garage and Lauren & Matt rode home with Peter. So everyone was happy.
Sunday evening, we decided to go out to dinner. It was a challenge finding a place that was not showing the superbowl, but we settled on Foxfire Grille. They were showing the superbowl, but it was all the way on the other side of the restaurant, so it wasn’t a big deal. We had fun with the “singles meeting” napkins that had spaces to write your name and number and email address to potential pick-ups. After dinner, the rest of Sunday evening was pretty chill.
We had some excitement on Monday morning because it was discovered that sometime in the night, Lauren & Matt closed our bedroom door to the suite, but it can’t be opened from inside, so we were locked in the bedroom. We can leave the room, but only to the hallway, and none of us had a key to enter the main suite. Eventually, we got that figured out. We were checked out by 9am and on the road by 11am.
December 18, 2012
December 15, 2012
Red-Red Stew – Ghanaian Spicy Black-Eyed Peas with Plantain Pillows | Girl Cooks World
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
Red-Red Stew – Ghanaian Spicy Black-Eyed Peas with Plantain Pillows | Girl Cooks World
Clint & I had Ghana food for the first time today. It was delicious.
December 2, 2012
The Hassle-Free Guide to Ripping Your Blu-Ray Collection
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
November 19, 2012
Animal Control Effort Saves Elderly Owl - Fairfax County, Virginia
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
Animal Control Effort Saves Elderly Owl - Fairfax County, Virginia
Awww, nursing homes for owls.
LINK URL: http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/police/news-releases/2012/111912owlsaved.htm
October 12, 2012
Windows 7 and SSDs: Setup secrets and tune-up tweaks | Page 2 | ZDNet
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
Windows 7 and SSDs: Setup secrets and tune-up tweaks | Page 2 | ZDNet
I’m going to need this for my new computer
LINK URL: http://www.zdnet.com/blog/bott/windows-7-and-ssds-setup-secrets-and-tune-up-tweaks_p2/2910
September 28, 2012
WISHLIST: Aerogard custom salad green seed kit
Romaine mix
baby greens mix
salad greens mix
arugula
mesclun mix
mustard greens
LINK URL: http://www.aerogarden.com/custom-herb-seed-kit-1.html
September 27, 2012
June 1, 2012
Carolyn’s Newegg wishlist. Not much here…
LINK URL: http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=18529492
May 23, 2012
May 18, 2012
Tinnitus – Objective Tinnitus, Subjective Tinnitus – Life Extension Health Concern
Posted by Carolyn under FunLeave a Comment
Tinnitus – Objective Tinnitus, Subjective Tinnitus – Life Extension Health Concern
Maybe I should try taking Ginkgo again…
LINK URL: http://www.lef.org/protocols/prtcl-105.shtml
May 12, 2012
April 25, 2012
41 Uses for Shampoo – Designs by Hafapea
I stocked up on cheap shampoo, and then I had to switch to dandruff shampoo. So now I have 2 huge bottles of cheap shampoo that I’m not sure what to do with. I’ll have to try some of these. (I already use shampoo to wash my bras…)
LINK URL: http://hafapea.typepad.com/blog/2011/01/41-uses-for-shampoo.html
April 19, 2012
Chile Rellenos Casserole Recipe
I love the Better Homes cookbook my mom gave me years ago. Chili Rellenos are delicious!
LINK URL: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/casseroles/chile-rellenos-casserole
April 12, 2012
http://www.ghostofthedoll.co.uk/Toys_MLP_Year1.htm
My mom bought Butterscotch for my sister one day when she was sick and didn’t go to school. No fair. Vicky got to stay home from school AND get a new toy.
I forget which ones we actually had after that. Our neighbor had a lot more than we did. I think I had BowTie, but I’m not positive. I *think* Jay had Bubbles….
March 30, 2012
http://www.parrforthecourse.com/2012/03/tale-of-moldy-tampon.html?m=1
Umm, holy crap! I am glad I use O.B. tampons that don’t have an applicator! Wow…. Watch out for Kotex tampons.
March 9, 2012
I have a bad habit of pointing out when I notice a left-hander. If I notice someone (waiters/cashiers/etc.) is left-handed, I usually point out that I’m left-handed, too. I’ll point it out when we are watching TV or movies. I have noticed that it seems like cartoons portray left-handers a lot. But, it’s been really starting to annoy Clint. He rolls his eyes whenever I point it out. He likes to say, “Left-handers have a shorter life-expectancy.” The first time he said it, I got all defensive and blurted out, “YOU’RE gonna die!” So, that’s my response now whenever he says that. 
So, anyway, I like being left-handed, and I like noticing when other people are left-handed, too.
Random trivia: Clint married a left-hander, his dad married a left-hander, and his sister married a left-hander… So his family must like left-handers!
October 16, 2011
Since nobody wanted to go camping with us last weekend, Matthew invited us to go camping with him and some of his friends this weekend. I got to off-roading, fishing, and then shooting at a firing range.
I shot my first gun today! It was fun and not as scary as I anticipated… though now I know that my gun SUCKS, and I’m spoiled by the nice guns Matthew has. I could barely pull the trigger on my gun. By the time I finally squeeze it in a way that it shoots, there was no way I was aiming it at anything, except out into the range.
The only time I actually shot what I was aiming for was when I shot the gun with the scope on it.
Anyway, good times! Camping was kind of cold at night, and we had a hard time getting the fire started, and it was pretty windy, but all-in-all, it was a successful trip!
August 5, 2011
I was reading the Crazy Things Parents Say website, and I thought to myself how my parents never seem to say anything funny like on that website… then a memory popped into my head….
I guess I was like… maybe 11 or 12 or 10… I’m not sure… But, my cousin, Louise, was around 8 years old at the time. We were on our family beach trip to Bethany Beach, and we had just come back from the waterslides. Dad had us kids waiting in the car while he stopped at a convenience store. It was me, my sister, my brother, and our cousins Adam, Louise, and Jordan. To pass the time while we waited, we were conversing and goofing around, and the subject of “Maxi-pads” came up. I forget what was said, but we were laughing, and then poor Louise had to ask, “What’s a maxi-pad?” I think it was Adam who told poor unsuspecting Louise to ask Uncle Lowell. The second Dad got back to the car, Louise ambushed him. “Uncle Lowell, what’s a maxi-pad?” Dad didn’t miss a beat. He explained to Louise that a maxi-pad was the pad you rode down on at the waterslides. And he said “And those little ones for kids are called mini-pads!” The rest of us were cracking up, but we didn’t correct him.
I checked with Louise a few days later, and she said she got the scoop from her mom. Hahaha. Poor Louise!
April 9, 2011
After over a year of not knowing what to do with my hair, I finally decided to dye it with henna. I blogged about my decision here.
I had blonde hair with 4" gray roots
Around 7 or 8pm the night before, I boiled 2 mugs of water in the microwave. I put 3 teabags of chai tea in one, and 2 teabags of chamomile in the other. I was using the rest of the chai, & wasn’t sure if one mug would be enough water, so I brewed the chamomile to have on hand just in case. The chamomile was years old.
I bought 500g of celebration, but when I found each 100g were separate packs, I decided to freeze one pk of powder & whatever paste I had leftover. My hair was to my bra strap in the back so I figured 300g would be enough but would rather have too much than too little.
8:15 jumped out of bed like xmas morning
By 8:55, the henna was mixed. I didn’t have enough tea brewed, but I didn’t have any more chamomile, so I used pomegranate blueberry. I also brewed more pomergranate blueberry tea so it’d be ready to mix in after the dye release, but I didn’t end up needing it. It was cold in my house, so I turned up the heat, & put the bag in the bathroom & closed the door.
Around 10:55, I checked but no dye release yet. I realized the bathroom was still pretty cold, so I took it to my computer & turned on my monitor & put it on top. After piddling around on my computer for a bit, I noticed the monitor wasn’t getting that warm, so I put the bag against my body under my shirt. By noon, the dye was released and I started putting it into my hair. I was done by 1:00pm. I put the rest of the paste in the freezer, and relaxed in bed under the electric blanket & 4 other blankets.
When I sat in the bathtub to rinse it out, the water looked like I had had a massive case of diarreah! It was hilarious. I rinsed the henna out, and used cheap VO5 conditioner.
The end result is a bright orangy red. It’s definitely more orange than I wanted, but it is a deep red-orange, so I can live with it. But, I have never been good at dying my hair myself, and I missed a lot of spots on my scalp, and my roots didn’t seem to take it up as much, so they seem somewhat yellow. I’ll probably do it again soon so I can get what I missed, and also add more applications to get to a deeper red instead of so orange. It’s mostly blended between the gray roots and the bleached blonde, so that’s awesome.
After the first henna application
All in all, I’m really happy with it!
Yay!
UPDATE: Here’s a picture of me in the sun.
Vicky & Carolyn at Pizza MaGills for National Sibling's Day
January 2, 2011
The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:
The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Wow.
Crunchy numbers
A helper monkey made this abstract painting, inspired by your stats.
A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 8,200 times in 2010. That’s about 20 full 747s.
In 2010, there were 35 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 212 posts.
The busiest day of the year was July 24th with 128 views. The most popular post that day was The Social Persona Test (What kind of man/woman are you?).
Where did they come from?
The top referring sites in 2010 were flickr.com, en.wordpress.com, clintjcl.wordpress.com, facebook.com, and Google Reader.
Some visitors came searching, mostly for silent sinus syndrome, tagcow, black light food, the social persona test, and la de da.
Attractions in 2010
These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.
1
The Social Persona Test (What kind of man/woman are you?) May 2009
4 comments
2
Silent Sinus Syndrome – My journey July 2007
126 comments
3
Blacklight in the kitchen September 2007
28 comments
4
Peapod sucks – first complaining post. December 2007
56 comments
5
2nd Opinion for Silent Sinus Syndrome. October 2006
31 comments
January 1, 2011
Goodbye, Twenty-Ten, Here Comes Twenty-Eleven
Posted by Carolyn under Fun, memories, Pointlessness[2] Comments
Welp, the New Year approaches..
The hugest thing that happened in 2010 was Dirk’s death. That was a terrible blow back in February…
X-day this year was epically fun, as usual. It marks the last X-day at Brushwood though. Next year will be at Wisteria in Ohio. The change doesn’t bother me as much as other people. Maybe because we’ve only been 3 times so we aren’t invested in the place as much as the feel. Breaking a 15-year tradition is tough stuff for veterans, but I think it’ll be a good change in the long run. From what I gather, there were some real nasty behind-the-scenes drama and politics, so I’m sure a change of pace will be refreshing for those involved in that. We’ll see how the new place fares when July comes..
We didn’t go to Assateague or Bethany this year. We’re a bit “Ass-fatigued” out after going for 5 years straight. My family decided to go to Cape Cod instead of Bethany. I am thankful to my uncle for allowing me to get to live the “rich life” for a week. Cape Cod was awesome!
We only got to go to Elizabeth Furnace twice. I would have liked to go there more often, but things are hard to plan. Maybe this coming summer we’ll be able to make more time for Elizabeth Furnace camping. The rolling/backpack cat carriers are very helpful. Though the first trip, I threatened to myself not to bring the cats next time because it’s a pain in the ass to keep track of them when the sun goes down. And that is when they stop cowering in the tents and come out to play. But I brought them the second time anyway. The second time, Erin had a glowstick that we were able to attach to Oranjello’s collar. The glow-stick made me realize Oranjello had escaped his leash, but I suspect it was because the glowstick was attached to the leash that enabled Oranjello to escape, so next time I’m going to find a better way to attach it.
We went to a camping rave that turned out to be pretty fun, even though I forgot to bring any sort of alcohol and they wouldn’t let us leave to get some. I won’t make that mistake again.
I passed the CBF exam, so I am now a Credit Business Fellow.
Clint’s car had a rough year after it was totalled when I hit that deer last December. He had a broken tie rod, and several other problems. But now his parents gave him one of their old cars for Christmas! Yay Parents! Yay three cars!
I only got to go skiing for 1 day at Roundtop. I’m going to Snowshoe in 2011, though, so I’m looking forward to that! More breaking in of my new skis that I got in 2009.
There were two weddings: Vicky & Ryan’s and Gigglepuss & 808′s!
I got to go to New York City for the first time for the SubGenius Devival. It was awesome!
As always, there were plenty of parties and concerts. I don’t feel like breaking them all out. They were all fun.
Well, anyway, last year was awesome overall. I’m looking forward to 2011. Time still flies!!!
The Chili Cookoff last night was awesome. There were many different chilis, and they were all delicious. I especially liked Eli’s venison chili with mushrooms, and Jason’s tomatilla chili. Parthena made a delicious Veg-ocalypse chili that had like 4 different types of beans, including chick peas.
I lost my voice shortly after midnight. That’s what I get for screaming “HAPPY NEW YEAR!” over and over the top of my lungs. Good times. I did successfully pace myself so I didn’t get inebriated and I did not have a hangover. Way to start the New Year out right!
November 29, 2010
I’m so glad I got to go to New York City for my first time, and for a great cause! We were only there 24 hours, but they were the most awesome 24 hours!
And we were blessed with slack constantly through the weekend. We started off with a little snag. We were supposed to go to see Triptykon in Baltimore on the Friday beforehand. Several weeks before the Devival, we were trying to figure out how to pull this off. Do we go to the show in Baltimore on Friday, and then go up to New York on Saturday? Do we skip the show in Baltimore? So many choices, none of them ideal. Until out of curiosity, I checked the bus schedule, and there was a bus leaving Baltimore at 1 in the morning on Friday night….. for $1. In the time it took me to email my posse to find out if our show was going to be done by 1am and if we’d be able to catch that bus, the price went up to $3. No biggie though. We determined the show would be done in plenty of time and so we booked our tickets.
Welp, needless to say, we called the venue of the show on Friday night, and discovered a big glitch in our plan. The band we were supposed to see, Triptykon, was going on at 12:45 am. There were 4 or 5 other bands going on before them. Ottobar had totally overbooked the bands. D’oh! Well, we still went so our friend can see the band he wanted to see (1349), and then we headed to catch our bus.
When we got to the busstop, we found a bunch of people were there waiting for the bus. We asked if it was Megabus, and a guy said, “Yes, but it’s late. My bus was the 9pm bus, and I’ve been here since 7, and no buses have come to take us to New York. Only DC-bound buses have been coming”. Sure enough, the next 40 minutes, several buses went by, but they were all headed to DC. There were two chicks that had a close call when they boarded the DC bus, and the driver had to loop around and drop them back off. Finally, one of the bus drivers stepped up to the plate and called some people and walkie-talkied some people to let them know that about 30 people were waiting here to go to NYC. Then he told us that “It should be here any minute”. As he drove away, I figured he just fed us lies to placate us. But 20 minutes later, a bus showed up that was going to New York! Yay! Second snag smoothed out!
The bus ride was interesting. 30 minutes into it, the bus stopped at a rest station and the driver got out to buy himself some food. I figured that was allowed, but it was annoying when it started to get stuffy inside the bus because he had turned the bus off so there was no air blowing. But he finally came back and we were on our way again. Clint took advantage of the free wi-fi on the phone. It was weird being so high up off the ground. A lot of the time, it just seemed like the driver was all over the road… I was slightly scared.
We made it to New York at like 6:30 am or so. We caught a cab who asked where we were going, and our friend Persie said, “Sheraton LaGuardia”. The driver asked for the address and Persie was silent. Luckily, I had written down the address because I had anticipated that it’d be an important detail. And then we were on our way.
When we got to the hotel, the question became, “Do we eat?” We had stopped at Taco Bell on the way to the bus station in Baltimore, so we had been held over. Clint was hungry though, and so Carolyn & Clint decided to ask the concierge where a McDonald’s was. Persie went to bed. He told us to bring him some random food. We ended up at Burger King, which was right around the corner from our hotel. We were surprised they didn’t have free courtesy water. WTF?
We went to bed at like 7:30ish and woke up by 11. We realized we weren’t going to be able to fall asleep again so we decided to go ahead and get up. We decided to go get some actual New York food, instead of fast food which we can get anytime. We took advantage of my phone, and I tried to look up local restaurants. I said “What kind of food do we want?” It didn’t take long for us to decide on Italian, so I put that into the phone and the first one to pop up was “Magna”. We looked up, and there was a Mango right next to us, but that wasn’t it. I put the walking navigation on, and we were on our way. It wasn’t too far, and soon we were sitting at a restaurant all ready to order Calamari and spaghetti noodles. Clint & I also split a meatball sandwich thing. Both were delicious. Persie had the fettucine.
After we ate, we had to decide what to do. I think someone had mentioned to Clint about a sex museum so we decided to check it out. We went to the subway, (which just happened to be by our hotel). After some confusion about how the subway works (we rarely even use the DC metro), we decided we can take the purple line all the way to 5th Ave and then walk from there. It turned out to be a longish walk, but it wasn’t too bad. I should mention that even though I call it the purple line, it was really called “F” or something. The subway lines were either numbered or lettered, and so I think if I lived there, I would have a better idea of what’s going on, but the colors served me better.
On the subway, a guy started breakdancing. Complete with a boombox that he’d turn on! Surreal! He made people move away from the standing pole that he was going to flip over. While he was setting up his stuff, my mom called. While she was talking, his music suddenly started blaring. She was like “Can you hear me?” and I said, “I’m on the subway… in New York!!! That’s a guy break-dancing”.
As we were walking to the sex museum, we passed by the Empire State Building. The sidewalk was a bit more crowded right next to it, and to make matters more confusing, there were ticket officials asking everyone on the street if they wanted a ticket. Clint asked, “For what?” and the guy was like “To go up into the Empire State Building”. Clint was like, “What, I can’t even walk on the sidewalk without being spammed?” It was the weirdest thing ever.
We finally arrived at the sex museum. It starts out with a store that sells dildos and books and artsy things. We saw on the website that they had $3 off the admission price if you print out a coupon. When we were buying our tickets, I showed her my phone and asked if we can still get $3 off even though we don’t have a printer. She gave it to us, along with 2 coupons for $2 off of a speciality drink from their aphrodisiac bar.
The museum was interesting. They had different floors dedicated to different things about sex. From movies and film to condoms and birth control, to STD’s, which I didn’t realize are called STI’s now, to art sculptures.. The last floor was dedicated to the animal kingdom.
After we finished all the floors, we decided to check out the bar. I wasn’t disappointed that they weren’t alcoholic drinks, but I had expected them to be because it was called a bar.. heheh.. The drinks were interesting. My drink was supposed to bring out sensuality and passion or something like that. Persie’s was longetivy, and I forget what Clint’s was. Mine was rose and rosemary, Persie’s was ginger and orange, and Clint’s was cinnamon and saffron. I liked Clint’s better than mine. Mine tasted like roses. Clint’s also came with a stick of rock candy, so I was disappointed that mine wasn’t as special.
After we got out of the sex museum, we looked around at the store a bit more, and thumbed through some of the sample books. Then we decided to mosey on out. We started walking back to the subway, but Clint realized it was a looong way, and he wondered if there was a closer subway. There was a random couple on the street that just happened to be looking at a map of the city, so we asked them. The guy said, “There’s one a half-mile that way” and Clint was like “A half mile! Nevermind!” and the guy quickly said, “No, no, that’s not what I mean. I’m French… I mean… 100 meters”. Clint was like “oh, only a hundred meters? Ok!” So we started walking, and cut through Madison Square Park. Once we found the subway, which wasn’t far at all, we walked down the stairs, and there was a train waiting right there that said “Astoria”. Lo and behold, this train was *THE EXACT TRAIN WE WANTED* going the EXACT DIRECTION we wanted! Praise “Bob”! What Slack!
We got to Astoria around 7pm, and walked the 6 blocks to the Devival. Carolyn had the address and so she knew when the building was approaching, and so she saw the building first, and then saw Princess Wei. Clint saw Princess Wei first and was like “Oh, we’re here!”
We hung around chatting with everyone, watching the live bands and the preaching, and good times were had. At first, I was feeling shy and awkward, but I loosened up later on. Suzie The Floozy and Bunny Day both came up and told me I looked cute. I was disappointed I didn’t wear the skirt I brought, but after I realized I didn’t shave my legs, I stuck to my jeans.
Our downfall was when Clint refilled the flask at midnight right before the wedding. Apparently, we killed most of that flask between midnight and 2am. I don’t think I drank as much after the wedding, and I had taken a break from drinking before the wedding. So it could have been worse. We headed to a bar with Bunny Day and Anna Dynamite and someone else.. They eventually called us a cab and we went back to the hotel. Clint said something about scheduling a wake up call, and John said he took care of it.
The next morning was a blur. The wake up call came, and we started rushing around packing up our stuff. We left and got into our cab. Halfway to the airport, I realized I had forgotten to get my keys and stuff out of the drawer at the hotel. A sense of dread overcame me. The cab turned around, but told us he didn’t think we’d make the bus by 8am with this detour. But we needed the keys… The entire way back, I prayed and prayed. And I imagined the worse case scenario of missing that 8am bus. It would be miserable!!! I was like going over alternatives… Including imagining calling Two Beans to see if he still had his roundtrip ticket… but then I rememebered that would be only for 1 person. So that wouldn’t solve our problem either. Then…. the amazing happened. The cab driver drove up, and there were 2 buses there, and he said “There’s the bus!” We didn’t miss it!! In my relief, I jumped out of the car and ran towards the buses. The first one said Boston. The second one said… Washington DC, via Baltimore! We were saved! I ran to the driver and knocked on the window, and then got yelled by the other driver who said, “The line is there.” So I got into line. Once we got onto the bus and got situated… I realized I totally did not thank the cab driver! I’m horribly rude! John said he thanked him. I hope that cab driver knows how much I appreciate him.
Clint, meanwhile, was absolutely miserable, and he was still miserable that night. I was miraculously not even hung over. I guess I’m getting slightly more responsible even though I was still irresponsible with my intake.
On the bus, I found three seats, none of them were together, but they were close to each other. I put myself next to this lady, and Clint behind me. Then I realized the chair I was in was reclined, so I traded with Clint. When I got situated next to the guy, I realized this chair was reclined too. Oh well. Later, I figured out how to put it up and so that was fine.
Meanwhile, the second the bus started, I regretted trading seats. The guy next to me immediately started gagging the second the bus started moving. Gagging like every few minutes.. We talked a bit, but not much. He seemed nice enough, but the gagging… dude! He fell asleep for like 5 minutes and it stopped, but then he woke up and immediately started up again. I’m sure it was psychological. I was scared the entire way that I was going to be puked on. Halfway through I took my seatbelt off, and put the arm rest up so I’d have an easier time making a getaway if it came to that. It never did, but it was annoying. Clint heard it too, and I’m sure the lady in front of him heard it too. She may have been worried about being puked on as well because she was definitely in range. I considered moving, but when I looked around, people were making good use of their empty seats next to them. some had their bags in it, some were slumped over sleeping.. so there wasn’t really anywhere I could have gone.
Finally, we made it to Baltimore. Our car was still there, there weren’t any tickets or anything. Nothing was broken into. As we were getting ready to go, this other guy was like “Are you leaving? I’m totally going to take your spot. You just made my day.” When we pulled out, I realized there were two cars vulturing me, but it wasn’t my problem anymore. I stopped at Burger King so Persie can refuel. Clint and I weren’t hungry though, so we skipped the meal, but we did use the restroom.
The ride back was uneventful. We got home and Clint went directly to bed, so Persie chilled for a few minutes before heading out. Good times!
November 12, 2010
Back in college, Clint & I got into reading comic books, specifically X-Men-related comics.
It all started because we got into the X-Men from the 1990′s cartoon on Fox. So after that ended, we started reading the comic books. Our roommate (and future brother-in-law!), Ryan, had a bunch of comic books that he let us borrow.
Well, we started noticing a pattern with one particular series, X-Factor.
We started noticing stuff like THIS.
The art work was very dramatic, and whenever someone was yelling something, they’d ALWAYS have a line of spit connecting the teeth or roof of the mouth to the tongue.
Dramatic lines-of-spit!
But we noticed it happened a LOT!
I started calling that line of spit an “X-Factor”. And I call the act “X-Factoring”
Rrrrawwwrrrg!
We can expect it with Wolfbane, since she was a wolf and all…
Wolfbane had it a lot... cuz she's a slobbery wolf.
And we did see it happen a lot with Wolfbane..
Wolfbane wants to drool all over you.
Cuz you know… dogs slobber a lot.
Look, in the upper-left corner, she's even talking about X-factoring while she's x-factoring!
But happened to other people, too.
X-factoring... Not just for wolves...
Sometimes, it was REALLY dramatic!
I'm X-factoring so hard, I'm crying about it!
Other times, not so much drama..
Not as dramatic, but still an X-factor!
Basically, it boils down to if you are a mutant and you are fighting, you are X-factoring!
So, if you ever hear me say “He X-factored!”, that means he had a line of spit in his mouth. Loogies and spit disgust me, so this is my way to add humor to the situation so it’s not so gross.
June 23, 2010
When I was a kid, our neighbors used to have a record with a funny song that we loved. I wish I remember what it was so I can acquire the mp3 and enjoy it forever and ever..
It went something like this:
[tune - lullaby]
Go to bed
Go to sleep
I’ve had enough of your bull-shit
Close your eyes,
You little monster
Or I’ll blister your behind
As I explained,
You’re a pain
When you’re tired and cranky
I get cranky,
sometimes too,
like when I’m sick and tired..
of you!
No you can’t have a drink,
no I won’t read you one more story.
I’ve had it up to here.
I could use a drink myself.
[tune These are a few of my favorite things]
Pampers and potty and runny red noses
Babies are seldom a bed full of roses
Whining and crying and carrying on.
This is what sucks about being a mom.
Babies are cute,
but it’s just when they’re sleeping
New moms don’t realize what soon they’ll be keeping
Late hours that Dracula cannot live on..
This is what sucks about being a mom.
When a toy breaks,
When your back aches,
When you’re feeling down…
Real moms aren’t depressed when they see a big mess…
They just know that a child’s around.
[tune somewhere over the rainbow]
Let me go to the bathroom,
all alone
Let me watch some tv,
or talk on the telephone.
I hate Ernie and Bert
and Rainbow Brite,
I’m sick to death of the Smurfs,
So give me a break tonight.
Please my darling daughter won’t you go and bug your father,
I don’t want you near me.
……
[and then I forget the rest... I can't remember any other lyrics, nor how the song ends.... doh!]
My parents were pretty grumpy when we’d go around singing “bullshit” and so we would substitute bullcrap… but then later, when my sister went into the 8th grade, she started complaining about her Civics teacher. My dad jumped at that and said “You can use his name for that bad word”. So we would sing, “Go to bed, go to sleep…I’ve had enough of your Bullock.”
Anyway, I wish I remember how it ended. Or at least the song name or the artist name. Since it was my neighbor’s record, I have no idea.
I just think it’s funny that between the time I was in the 6-7th grade, I already knew kids were trouble. Maybe this song has something to do with me never wanting kids. Or did I like this song because I agreed that kids were trouble.
May 21, 2010
1. When I was a little kid, I loved Disney movies. I’d watch our vhs of Lady and the Tramp, and then rewind the tape and watch it again. For days on end. When The Little Mermaid came out, I was in the 7th or 8th grade, and if I had had the time to kill, I’d probably have done the same thing, because I was similarly obsessed with it.
2. I have weak fingernails that tear and cause hang nails if they get too long, so I keep them very short.
3. I very rarely wear makeup. I may put some on if I’m going out to a club, but even that is rare. 99 times out of 100, I am all natural.
4. I really hate shopping, including grocery, and especially for clothes. A lot of my wardrobe is made up by hand-me-down from friends. They did my shopping for me. I don’t care much about fashion either. And I get my groceries delivered so I don’t have to go shopping.
5. I got my first gray hair when I was 15. Premature gray came from both sides of my family. My sister and brother didn’t get those genes, though. When I was a kid, I asked my dad, “What color is my hair going to be when I grow up?” and my dad said, “You’re hair is going to be like mom’s hair… DYED!” I told him he was crazy and I’d never do that. But, alas, my dad knew me better than I did myself. I’ve been dying my hair since I was 17.
6. Also, I have allergic reactions to hair dye, so I try to wait as long as possible. I have to go to my certain hairstylist who understands my predicament and won’t complain about my “major roots”.
7. Clint taught me how to drive. I met him when I was 15 and had just gotten my learner’s permit around that time.
8. Clint & I have been married longer than we were together before (which was 8 years) – time seems to be passing really fast since I’ve gotten out of college. (Our 9 year wedding anniversary was on 2/10/09) — You can see how long this has been in my drafts! See #23
9. I get to be a bridesmaid in a real wedding for the first time (not counting maid of honor for sister), and I am excited about it. I remember being jealous of my older cousin for getting to be a bridesmaid at my aunt’s wedding, and I have been waiting ever since for my turn. *** edit 5/21/10 – I have now been a bridesmaid in 2 weddings! Clint’s sister and my own sister! Congrats, everyone!
10. I haven’t traveled much lately. When I was younger, I’d travel with my family, so I’ve been around. I haven’t been further west than Las Vegas (for my honeymoon in 2000 – before that, it was Chicago), and I haven’t been out of the country. Someday, I want to visit Europe and Canada, and somewhere where the water is blue. I do go camping and small road trips several times a year (skiing, Elizabeth Furance, Assateague, Cambridge/X-Day)
11. I am constantly whistling, humming, or singing. Even if I’m not doing it out loud, I usually have some song stuck in my head, or I am listening to music.
12. I’m not especially good at games, but I like to play. But I have to be in the right mood.
13. I love cartoons and TV, and movies.
14. I love skiing, and I try to go at least once a year. I learned in the third grade when my parents put me and my siblings into a ski wee class.. I couldn’t imagine trying to learn as an adult. I bought a pair of skis for $10 at a yardsale several years ago that just happened to be my size. I knew they were really old, because they were similar to the kind I learned on. Last year, they broke, and so I splurged on some new ones. Awesome! Now I need to make sure I get good use out of them.
15. I can’t have caffeine, since 11th grade.. I do love decaf coffee as long as it has cream & sugar. I sometimes treat myself to soda, but only if it is Dr. Pepper. For awhile, they had caffeine-free diet dr. pepper available at the Giant down the street, and on Peapod. I ended up getting sick of it, so I didn’t buy it for awhile. Then when I went back to get some a couple of months later, it was gone. )~: Safeway delivery has Caffeine Free Diet Dr. Pepper in 12-pack cans. Win!
16. I don’t want kids. I just don’t see myself in that role.
17. I have never lived alone by myself. I think if it was ever forced on me, then I’d want to get a dog, because I don’t think the cats would be very good warning systems that something’s up.
18. I was pretty shy as a kid. I still am when I’m first meeting people. I have to meet someone several times before I start to feel comfortable. I also am not good at remembering faces or names when I first meet someone. If I meet someone at a party, I look at what clothes they are wearing in order to remember them. If they are wearing a jacket when I first meet them, I get confused later when they take it off.
19. I have never broken or sprained any bones. I had my appendix out in 2000, and sinus surgery in 2007.
20. I used to get bloody noses a LOT as a kid. One time when I was really young (like age 5 or so), I burst a blood vessel. It was the worst nosebleed I ever had, and it was gushing out of both my nose and my mouth. My mom had to rush me to the E.R.
21. I used to daydream a lot as a kid. Still do, but not as much.
22. I have nervous habits of laughing, grabbing my hair, and touching my nose.
23. Sometimes I am not good at finishing what I start – This meme has been in my drafts folder ever since Vicky filled hers out – which was January 29th! Whoops. – It is now 5/21, and I am posting it!
24. I get Spring Fever really bad around March. If there’s a hint of warmness, I start getting antsy for summer to come and I start daydreaming a lot more. It’s been like that since I was a kid.
25. I was such a slacker in school. I didn’t pay much attention, hardly did my homework and just didn’t care. I’d always end up having to buckle down in the later part of the year so I wouldn’t fail. It didn’t go well with Spring Fever. When I was a sophomore in high school, I permanently buckled down and stopped slacking so much. My main motivation was to make sure I could get into Virginia Tech so I could be with Clint. In college, there was no procrastination whatsoever. I’d come back from class and immediately do my homework to get it out of the way and not have to worry about it. And it was awesome.
26. I’ve been working since I was 11 years old. My first job was a bridge caddy. Then my junior year in high school, my information technology teacher got me involved in the Co-Op program so I got a job. It was awesome leaving school early during my senior year. Bonus!
27. Better late than never, right?
May 6, 2010
Things you have done during your lifetime:
( ) Gone on a blind date
( ) Donated Blood
(X) Had surgery
( ) Broken a bone
(X) Skipped school
(X) Watched someone die
( ) Been to Canada
( ) Been to Mexico
(X) Been to Florida
( ) Been to Hawaii
(X) Been on a plane
( ) Been on a helicopter (It wasn’t flying)
( ) Been lost
(X) Gone to Washington, DC
( ) Hugged a homeless person
(X) Swam in the ocean
( ) Swam with Stingrays
(X) Been sailing
(X) Performed in public on a musical instrument
(X) Cried yourself to sleep
(X) Played cops and robbers
(X) Recently colored with crayons
( ) Ran a marathon/or triathalon
(X) Sang Karaoke
( ) Volunteered at a soup kitchen
( ) Paid for a meal with coins only
( ) Been to the top of the St. Louis Arch,
( ) Seen the Northern Lights
( ) Been Parasailing
( ) Been on TV
( ) Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t
(X) Made prank phone calls
( ) Been down Bourbon Street in New Orleans
(X) Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose
( ) Fed an elephant
(X) Caught a snowflake on your tongue
( )Fired a gun
(X) Danced in the rain
( ) Been to the Opera
(X) Written a letter to Santa Claus
( ) Serenaded someone
( ) Seen a U.S.President in person
(X) Been kissed under the mistletoe
(X) Watched the sunrise with someone
( ) Driven a race car
(X) Been to a National Museum
(X) Been to a Wax Museum
( ) Eaten caviar
(X) Blown bubbles
(X) Gone ice-skating
(X) Gone to the movies
(X) Been deep sea fishing
( ) Driven across the United States
( ) Been in a hot air balloon
( ) Been sky diving
( ) Gone snowmobiling
( ) Lived in more than one country
(X) Lay down outside at night and admired the stars while listening to the crickets
(X) Seen a falling star and made a wish
( ) Enjoyed the beauty of Old Faithful Geyser
( ) Seen the Grand Canyon
( ) Seen the Statue of Liberty
( ) Gone to the top of Seattle Space Needle
( ) Been on a cruise
( ) Traveled by train
( ) Traveled by motorcycle
(X) Been horse back riding
( ) Ridden on a San Francisco cable car
(X) Been to Disneyland OR Disney World
( ) Truly believe in the power of prayer
( ) Been in a rain forest
( ) Seen whales in the ocean
( ) Been to Niagara Falls
(X) Ridden on an elephant
( ) Ridden on a camel
( ) Swam with dolphins
( ) Been to the Olympics
( ) Walked on the Great Wall of China
( ) Saw and heard a glacier calf
( ) Been spinnaker flying
(X) Been water-skiing
(X) Been snow-skiing
( ) Been to Westminster Abbey
( ) Been to the Louvre
( ) Been to the Taj Mahal
( ) Been to Rome, Italy
( ) Swam in the Mediterranean
(X) Been to a Major League Baseball game
( ) Been to a National Football League game
( ) Swam with sharks
( ) Been White Water Rafting
( ) Written a book or screen play
(X) Been in love
( )Put a foot in the Oval office
( ) Hitchhiked
( ) Joined the Mile High Club
( ) Snorkeled
( ) Seen a person on fire
March 25, 2010
made by the same person, IMBJR, who made Clint’s:
March 8, 2010
My sister reminded me that our grandfather would have turned 100 this year. He was born on 3/8/1910. It made it easy to calculate his age.
My Grandma & Grandpa in the 1970′s
1989 – Family photo at Vicky’s Confirmation
At Grandpa’s 90th birthday dinner
Grandpa at Dad’s birthday
Still in love, after all these years.
Grandpa is greatly missed. He died in August 2004. But his memory lives on.
