More Headlines

Okay, one day soon I'll have more of a fun post (well, hopefully I will anyway) - and even the last thing on this one should be fun (at least I was amused) but anyway....here we go.

A couple of weeks ago I was waiting at the hairdresser to get my hair cut. I'd taken a magazine because I'd anticipated having to wait. It was a People Magazine. One of the stories was about two people who had fallen overboard off of a cruise ship. When the whole story was told you found out that they were in a room with a balcony and the man was out on the balcony. The woman ran out to jump on the man's back but came a little hard and had more of the "leap frog" (magazine's wording) effect and went right over his head. The man tried to grab her, to stop her from going overboard and got pulled out and down with her. Which is how they both ended up overboard. Completely unintentional. Fortunately there were others in their room who made the ship's personnel aware of the situation. Markers were immediately thrown out and the boat stopped and turned around to find the people. The whole process took a couple of hours, if I remember right. Announcements were made and people were asked to be quiet so they could hear any screams for help. Both people were rescued with minimal injuries. A miracle really. But here's the deal...there were people who actually complained that the rescue was an "inconvenience" and "annoyance" to their cruise! Yes, I realize it wasn't on the ship's original itinerary but give me a break! If the shoe were on the other foot, would they want the ship to forget them and carry on according to schedule? NO! This was brought to my mind again, as I read this week's people and someone had commented (in the letters to the editor section) that those people who went overboard owed apologies. Yes, their actions may have been less that "mature-based" but for crying outloud, no one intended to go overboard! People amaze me.

But on to something else that makes my blood boil even more. The now imfamous Alec Baldwin voicemail message. I know I don't have kids (but I've always wanted them), so my reaction may not be the same as someone who has kids. I think it's AWFUL! You just don't talk to your kids like that! Yes, I understand people get mad and say things they don't mean - I get that...I've DONE that. But all that because his daughter didn't answer the phone? And his response? He's really pissed at his ex but took it out on his daughter, who, by the way, is in violation of a gag order in releasing the tape. Apparently, his responses - including going on The View to discuss the tape - doesn't fall under the same gag order. Personally, I think Alec has issues and needs serious help. The message I heard didn't indicate that he was pissed at Kim Basinger - if he had've been, I think it would have been more of a "you tell your mother...." sort of talk, rather than telling his daughter that she "didn't have the brains or consideration to be a human being" and that she was "a thoughtless pig" or that he was going to come to LA to "straighten out her ass". No, those were directly straight at his daughter. And he wonders why she doesn't want to take his calls.

Okay, now for the one I think is fun. :~) This woman was on Ellen this week. She works at a convenience store and someone (a woman) had come in to buy lottery tickets. The customer told her what she wanted but there was a misunderstanding and the convenience store clerk was stuck with a ticket that was not paid for. So, at the end of her shift she felt she had to purchase the ticket herself (even though she didn't really want to, and suggested that it was more than she could afford - even at only $2). She WON! It wasn't the big winning but she did win $200,000. How cool is that?

Anyway, those are my "ripped from the headlines" for the day. We'll soon return to our light, fluff pieces (or at least that's the plan!).

~L

Job Security

Recently there have been a couple of stories in the local news (one, at least, made national news) where someone thought their job was in jeopardy so they took, what they thought, was appropriate measures to "keep" their job?

One is the NASA, hostage/murder/suicide situation from last week. Some man thought he was about to be fired because he'd gotten negative performance feedback. His solution was to take someone hostage - kill them, then kill himself. He took a second hostage, as backup, but just "tied" her up with duct tape. As far as career planning, not his best move. And committing suicide gives new meaning to "dead-end job", don't you think?

Then, a few weeks ago, there was a major story about an office building fire. Someone from the freeway saw flames INSIDE the building, through the windows. They pulled over to check it out and sounded the alarms (which hadn't gone off - it was an old building) and called 9-1-1. Three people (possibly more...they were having difficulty going back into the building because the structure was so badly damaged in the fire...and I never heard if there was a change in the death count) died. A firefighter was injured and hospitalized. They covered the story for days because the investigators were having problems (the structure damage thing) determining the cause of the fire. Finally someone came forward saying that she was expected to turn in a report that she hadn't prepared yet so she thought if she caused a fire in her office (guess she didn't know it would spread?), it would buy her some time. She's since been arrested on murder charges. Murder charges! But hey, at least she'll have plenty of free time to work on that report now. And who knows, maybe they'll hold her job until she's released. (yeah right!)

So I'm wondering, how far would you go to to keep your job? Inquiring minds want to know.

Television Reception

Remember when you had to get your television antenna just right so that you'd have decent reception? You know, before cable.

Or how about skits about how families had to stand in a particular formation, each holding something related to the antenna to get a sharper image?

Yeah, well, that was me tonight. Seems the cable line that the cable company failed to bury when they replaced it a few years ago (lightening strike) was ripped out of place by the newest addition to my family...Harley.

And it was Dancing with the Stars night so I was not a happy camper. Tonight is the first night in the history of the show that I did not vote - because I couldn't see enough to give a fair judgment. I tried really hard to get a decent picture but it wasn't working - or when it did, it was fleeting.

The cable company won't come out until Wednesday (some time between 8:00 am and 8:00 pm - so glad they could narrow the time down) so until then, I'm basically without television. Oh, I know I could be doing something productive, like working on my wip, but whining feels so much better.

Pass the cheese and crackers please~

Lunch

I had lunch again today with the girl I made cry yesterday (I really think we're okay now LOL).

Anyway there were some things that happened that seemed kind of strange but were oddly amusing to me. So I thought I'd share...

The restaurant we went to is relatively new. It's not convenient (from my perspective) so I've only been twice since it opened (including today, that is) but I'm pretty sure it's been in the last year that it opened. But it's what we decided on, so there we went.

When we pull up into the parking lot there is a traffic jam of a gazillion cars (give or take) and we have to drive to the very back to find a spot. I did mention that it was for LUNCH, right? Not date night at prime time, but anyway... We get into the lobby and it's packed - again like date night at dinner time. I hear the hostess tell the guy in front of us (who said he needed a table for two - same as we would) that it would be 10 to 15 minutes for a table. Again - at LUNCH!

I stepped up to the hostess's table and said, "are those tables available?" pointing to the cocktail tables. She said they were and we didn't have to have our name written down - we were immediately seated (if only we were served as quickly but I digress). I felt the glares and stares from all the people who were (im)patiently waiting to be seated. But what did I care? I was getting seated immediately!

Now, the person who seated us (in chairs so high I had to ask for a leg-up but then again, I didn't have to wait so I shouldn't complain) kept going by our table (and staring at us when they weren't passing us). Let me tell you about this person. Buzz cut. Gorgeous eyes, which looked like they might have make up on them. And a little boy chest. A lot of conflicts so I wasn't sure what gender this person was. And I mention this to my friend, who is wondering the same thing. We talk about it a little and then drop the subject.

Finally our food is brought to us (I ordered the nachos supreme) and we're diving in. Well, let me tell you about my nachos. They were made like individual little tacos but caked with cheese. Lots of cheese. So I'm eating and I realize that there is no way I can get this huge glom of cheese in my mouth - it's not gonna fit, which is hard to believe because I have a big mouth - ask anyone! So I try to "carve" off a bit of the cheese to make it bite size and I'm having to get out my knife because it's glommed together like industrial glommed cheese or something. Anyway, I'm making one last little "cut" to it when it goes FLYING across the room before it lands on the floor. My friend only saw the look on my face but when it hit the floor I burst out laughing. Loudly. And I tell her what happened. But we decide we need to have someone clean it up so that no one slips and falls on it so we wave over a waitress (not ours - ours was the elusive waitress but again, I digress). She asked us if everything was okay and I have her lean in, conspiratorily, and tell her the gentlemen (who were dressed in suits and ties, mind you) behind us were throwing food about. She knew I was kidding (my friend's - on the other hand - jaw dropped...she doesn't know me well enough to know I'm rarely serious), said they were bad boys and cleaned it up with a smile on her face.

Then, we saw a working dog come into the restaurant. It looked like my Max but I thought of Maisy and was thinking about them both as it and its owner were taken to a table in another part of the restaurant. As they were walking out of sight, my friend is looking over her shoulder where they are and says, "It's a girl."

I was impressed. I was thinking about Maisy and my friend has picked up on enough / seen enough to know the dog was female. Wow! Then she says, "And she's confused."

Huh? The dog is confused? How can she tell? And I'm saying this when it dawns on me... she's talking about the waitstaff person whose gender we couldn't determine. Didn't we drop that subject? In the end, I still was unsure but what I am sure is that person had some of the most gorgeous eyes I've ever seen and male or female, the buzz cut worked for them. That's all I'm saying.

So not your typical lunch but entertaining, to say the least. LOL

Because I made someone cry today...

Someone at work did something today that ticked me off and I let them know it ticked me off. Now, I thought I was being diplomatic in my wording but considering she burst out crying, I'm thinking I might have been able to handle it better so...

I thought I'd share something that might put a smile on some faces. I'm totally stealing it from the Jaunty Quills so if you frequent over there, you may have already seen it.

Okay, here goes...

Go to Google
click on "Maps"
type in "New York to London"
and then scroll down to direction 23 (or may be 24)

Enjoy! :~)

Little Treat

I mentioned in my last post that I do my grocery shopping for the week at Walmart. Every week I stop by the book aisle and see what they have out - not that I need any more books but I like to check it out. Plus, I have a $5 gift card for use at Walmart and a book would be perfect. Well, this week I found a nice little surprise.

I found a new release of an author I love but whose name I can never remember. Nancy Taylor Rosenberg. For some reason when I go to look for her books I always (and I do mean always) think her name is Rosemary some middle name (I remember she has three names, just not what they are) and a last name like McMillan or something. Could I be any further off? Seriously.

Anyway, Nancy used to work in law enforcement and brings that experience to her stories. It sometimes gets graphic but it's always realistic. And it's always good. She's an author where I don't have to read the back blurb to be convinced to buy her book. If I read the back blurb, it's only to make sure I haven't read it before.

So, of course I bought a copy and can't wait to read it. I forgot to cash in my gift card but all that means is, I'll have to stop by the book section on my next visit. LOL

In the meantime, here's a book that's high in TBR pile.

Customer Service

Is it just me or is customer service just falling by the wayside? I do early morning, weekend shopping at WalMart to get my weekly groceries. When I'm there, there are usually few shoppers but lots of stockers. Boxes, crates and baskets full of stock clutter the aisles. And I'm okay with this because I don't like to shop when the store is crowded with shoppers. What I have a problem with though, is when you're trying to get down an aisle that has a product you want or need and the stocker has you completely blocked. Their boxes, crates, basket or whatever are blocking at least half of the aisle and they are standing in the lone pathway through. And they don't move. Now I realize they're doing their job but do they realize they're keeping me from buying stuff and that my buying stuff helps pay their salaries? Seriously people, when a customer wants to get through - LET THEM PASS.

But that's not my only example. Contractors are the worst. They don't bother to show up and offer no explanation. A few years ago I had tile laid throughout my house. It was almost like moving because you had to move EVERYTHING from the room they were going laying tile in and put it somewhere else. And it would cause at least one room to be functionless so when they would disappear for a few days, it was really annoying.

Then there was the guy who redid my fence gate last year. I took off of work to meet him - and he knew I was doing so - and he didn't bother to show up. When I finally reached him (hours later) he said, "oh, I wasn't feeling well today". Gee, thanks for letting me know. I had (and still have) a lot of work I need done around the house. If he'd been a little more responsible, he could have had all of it. But I need someone who will do what they promise so he did the fence (he was the only one that showed up when I called around looking for someone to do my fence) and I tossed out his number.

But what I really want to talk about is my latest customer service nightmare....lawn care services. My homeowner's association is giving me grief because I have grass in the cracks in my driveway. I have weed eater issues (I can do it but it's not easy for me) so I do it as infrequently as I can get by with. However, since my HOA is hounding me, I thought I'd call in a "professional". So last Thursday I placed a call to someone who had left their business card on my door. I reached his wife who told me he'd stop by that evening. He finally showed up after dark. Now here's the deal: I only wanted him to weed eat and edge my front yard. I didn't need it mowed and I didn't need my backyard done at all. His business card says "average yard $20". That covers all mowing, weed eating and edging - $20. All I want is weed eating and edging - and only in my front yard...and I have a small front yard (backyard is huge but front yard is small) - and he tells me it will be $20. I point out what it says on his business card and that I'm not asking for even half that work but he insists it will cost $20 to do what I need. Mind you, if he were doing everything to my whole yard, $40 would be reasonable - even cheap. But that's not what I'm asking him to do. So I told him we were done and headed back into my house. He stopped me and after some discussion we agreed on $10 and that he'd do it the next night. He never showed. Even after I spoke with his wife, who assured me he would be there or that she'd call and let me know why. Not only did he never show, she never called. And they weren't answering their phone. Okay, I figure it's a right-off.

I decided to do the work myself. I did a lot of the weed eating, until I ran out of the string/rope stuff. Then I did most of the edging. Then I decided to call someone to finish the job and ask that they do my front yard the whole season. I reached someone last night who said he'd do it today. Well, we were supposed to have really nasty weather starting this afternoon so when I came home at lunch and he hadn't been here, I called him (it was already drizzly - not raining hard and certainly no storms (which still haven't materialized) but I wanted to confirm if and when he was coming). He said he still planned on coming, storms didn't bother him or his work. He went so far as insisting he'd be here at 3:00 to 3:30. I got home at 5:00 and he hadn't been here. So I called. "I'll come out tomorrow," he said. Okay, so I should believe him why? He'd said he'd be here TODAY. I basically said that to him, but nicer because I did want him to come out and he got all ugly on me. Finally I said something like I was needing someone for the season and I needed to know I could rely on them to show up when they said they would and would he or did I need to call someone else? He told me to call someone else!

So I called back the guy from last week. The one that never showed and never called. The work is 90% done, I'm still willing to pay $10 and his wife insists he'll be here tomorrow morning (and she did actually call me back later this evening to confirm) but I'm doubtful.

When did people decide it was okay to screw over their customers and get pissy and demanding with them? That's so not my idea of customer service - not when I'm getting it and not when I'm providing it. But that's just me. Maybe it falls under the umbrella of "progress" but I'm just not buying it.

Book Review

This past weekend the weather was predicted to be really nasty so I planned on staying inside, curled up with a good book and/or watching movies. Well, it was drizzly Saturday afternoon, rained hard in the middle of the night and then was nice on Sunday. Seriously, I could have given a better prediction, but that's not the point. The point is, I decided to stick with my weekend plan and read a book.



Linda Barrett is a member of my local chapter. She doesn't come to the meetings often but she came out last year and spoke about how she sold her Pilgrim Cove series (complete with the diagrams she used to pitch it). Anyway, they had her latest book as a give away at the meeting - The Daughter He Never Knew - and I really liked the cover. I didn't win a copy but when it (along with the rest of the series) was up for auction (I believe Brenda Novak's auction for Juvenile Diabetes - which is coming up again soon), I bid on it. That time I DID win. I read the series in order and just LOVED the way Linda wrote the stories (that's the series that has the Retired Old Men Eating Out, aka ROMEOs), so when her next book came out (A Man of Honor), I snatched it up. Loved it too.

So, it should be no surprise that I tell you, when her latest book (Houseful of Strangers) came out, I went right out and bought it. And that's what I read this weekend.

I absolutely loved it. It's a story about people who are trying to pick up the pieces of their lives. Allison Truesdale is a veterinarian whose son died about two years earlier. A month later her husband, unable to cope with it all drank himself silly and got behind the wheel of the car and killed himself (no one else was involved). Allison really hasn't recovered from all of that and accepts a temporary job with a large animal veterinarian who needs help with his practice because he's broken his arm and can't do the job. Allison will be living with Eric Mitchell (the vet with the broken arm) while she works for/with him. Allison knows his mother, Ruth (who I loved in this story), lives with Eric. But she didnt know Eric had a son - not to mention that he's about the age her son was when he died.

Eric, on the other hand, went through a very bitter divorce. His wife was from the city and couldn't handle life in the country as a country vet's wife and ripped his heart out when she left, so he's not issueless himself and has a preconceived idea about Allison because she happens to live in the city herself.

Meanwhile, there's Danielle (Dani). Dani ran away from home when she was 13 and has been living on the street for two years now. She keeps a journal (that was given to her by a runaway counselor)...well actually she keeps several and one is labeled RIP where she keeps a log of all the runaways she's known who have died (she does this because she believes they matter and she doesn't want to forget them - but the list is getting pretty long and she hates that). She's at the train station one day when she sees her father (who abused her, both physically and sexually), flashing her picture around so she buys a ticket on the first train out of there. Of course it takes her to the same country town our other characters are in and of course they find her and invite her to stay with them and of course they become "family". In that respect it was predictable but, it was so wonderfully told. I was crying as I read the story. It wasn't the sobbing kind of crying but the kind of crying you can't stop, where the tears are just flowing, but it's a good cry...you feel good about what is happening.

And then I started to ask myself why it affected me that way and this is what I came up with. All these people were broken in some way (well, except for Ruth and Eric's son) and they couldn't seem to fix themselves but coming together, they each gave each other what they needed. They completed each other (all of them, not just the hero and heroine) and made each other whole. They were a family. And I guess that just touched me in some way. I don't know what that says about me (okay, I guess I do but if I haven't already revealed that in what I've said...) but it did touch me.

So, on a scale of one to five, I'd give it an eight and a half.

What have you read recently (or at any point) that touched you deeply on an emotional level? Or, if you don't want to answer that, what are you reading now? :~)

~L

For the easily amused

I've blogged before about my two favorite DJs, Roula and Ryan. They're on the air every morning from 6:00 - 10:00 and they do some amusing things - which is one of the reasons I listen to them.

Well, this morning they sent someone (I assume their intern) out to conduct an "experiment" at a local fast food restaurant. The premise was, drive-thru restaurants waste a lot of your time so they wanted to give some payback, right?

So they send out Kevin (aka Special K) to a local drive-thru restaurant for breakfast.

We first join Special K as he's one car back from placing his order. He acknowledges that there are cars behind him in line (which was the first time they considered that this would inconvenience customers probably more than the restaurant's staff but they decided to plow on anyway).

He pulls up to the thing (what do you call it?) you place your order at and orders a breakfast taco - that's it. We hear the lady tell him it will be $1.18. He pulls up.

When he gets to the window the lady says something we can't hear but Special K says, "You said it'd be $1.18."

(unintelligible talk from the lady)

Special K: "Can I borrow a quarter?"

Anyway, there was some more talk and he offered to buy her something (the DJs commented that it sounded bad that he couldn't afford his own breakfast but he's offering to buy her something...he said "she looks hungry!"). He paid for his food and they brought it out to him.

At which time he cut his engine and proceeded to eat his breakfast while still at the window. The DJs were expecting the staff to get ugly about it but they said nothing.

Meanwhile, the car behind him honks his horn at him. The DJs tell Special K that if they come to the window to investigate the honk to ask for more salsa. They did. He did. They brought him more salsa.

The car behind him honks again. The DJs tell Special K to prop his feet on the dashboard and get all comfortable while he's eating. He does.

The lady comes over to the window and politely asks him if he would go park "over there" to finish eating his meal. Special K says, "You want me to park over there to finish eating?"

"Yes."

"It's okay, I'm almost done. Can I buy you anything while I'm here?" He continues to eat, at the window.

The person in the car behind him lays on the horn.

Special K finishes up and drives off - the staff of the restaurant never getting ugly or rude. The guy in the car behind him though....

I was LMAO when this was going on. What can I say? I'm easily amused. LOL

Writing

Last October, during the KIA, I wrote like a bandit but I haven't written a word since. It makes me nuts. I think part of my problem is, I tend to get caught up in "the rules".

What "rules" you ask? Well, that can vary, depending on who you're asking.

Anyway, I've been wanting to get back to writing. A number of years ago I met someone who told me a bit about herself. Considering what she told me, I thought it was a bit "odd". I also thought "it" would make a GREAT character in a romance novel.

I wrote a little on it and then abandoned it - as I do much of what I start. Well, the last couple of days it's been pushing to the forefront again. I want to tell that story again. Screw the rules! LOL

So...I started thinking. Jessica Trapp is hosting a yahoo e-loop 100 words or something like that. You have to write 100 words a day for 100 days and report (for accountability purposes) on the loop. If you miss a day, you have to start back over at day one. I haven't joined it yet but it sounds like a good idea.

My other option is to follow Jes' advice on How to Stay Unpublished Forever - Ten Easy Steps.

Tough call. ;~)

Suzy Homemaker, I'm not

Larry, the Lawnboy, I'm not either.

I have this friend from work. I've been to her house a couple of times. The first time she had what she calls a "dog-hair tumbleweed" rolling across her floor. I didn't say anything but it made me feel that she'd probably cleaned her house for my visit and had just missed that. Which was a good thing - well, from my perspective.

Anyway, after I'd been to her house those couple of times, she was talking about her weekend and how she was housecleaning. She'd vacuumed the carpet and the vacuum bag was full so she vacuumed again. And again, until the bag came out empty when she ran it over the carpet.

Same for mopping the floor. She mopped over and over and over until the water in the bucket was clear when she finished. Maybe I'm way less of a Suzy Homemaker than I think but that just seems like overkill to me.

It also made me think she hadn't just cleaned for my visit and would have been mortified if I'd pointed out the "dog-hair tumbleweed" I'd seen in her entryway, which I still haven't mentioned to her.

As a result, I've been intimidated to invite her into my house - and haven't to date. However, we did once attend a training together and she came to my house to pick me up. It so happened that my yard was as bad as it gets the day she came by. All the way to (and back from) the training class, all she could talk about was my lawn and what needed to be done. (I told her it bothered me but she kept on.) After that I noticed comments she would make about things and realized that she's pretty judgmental about things. And putting everything together, I don't even want her outside my house. Doesn't mean we're not friends, just means I don't want her at or in my house.

Well, I'm home sick today (actually I'm doing a LOT better...was really sick over the weekend). I called her to ask her to take care of a couple of things for me at the office. I told her that I'd called another friend of mine on Saturday to bring me Sprite and said I would have called her but I knew her husband was in town (which was true. I was sick enough I would have happily had her come over and bring me something and not cared what she thought or said about my house - inside or out. I was that sick!).

So, she decides that she wants to bring me 7-Up and crackers during her lunch break. I told her it wasn't necessary because I still had Sprite and toast. She did it anyway. She did, however, only ring the bell, leave the goodies and leave (and I'm thankful - for the crackers that is...at least crackers have a salty taste to them...bread is so bland!). But when I called her to thank her she said, "I couldn't remember exactly where you lived so I just drove around until I found the worst lawn in the neighborhood and figured that was your house."

And she wonders why I don't invite her in! (or want her at my house)

Dancing With the Stars

Dancing With the Stars starts back up tomorrow night (conflicts Ellen? ;~) ) and I'm really excited about it.

I have to confess that until this minute, I still had episodes of last seasons DWTS on my DVR. I had watched and erased the elimination rounds (up to when Joey got eliminated) around Christmas time but I still had all the dance rounds on DVR until last weekend. I figured since it started a new season tomorrow, I needed to watch and erase everything. *sigh*

Watching all of the old shows, knowing how it turned out, was interesting. I was able to be a bit more objective about the dancing - at least I think I was.

I would have to say that Mario truly was the best dancer of the bunch. He really looked like a professional, not an amateur, when he was on the dance floor. I think what did him in was that he didn't really seem to enjoy what he was doing. He was good but it seemed like it was just a job. Whereas, on the other hand, Emmitt (as well as Joey - who placed third) seemed to really enjoy it. They both went out and gave it their all - and were good - but they weren't as technically good as Mario was. But because they went out and had a good time, they drew in the audience more, and therefore drew in the audience support more than maybe Mario did. And I'll be honest, that's why at times Emmitt got my vote when Mario didn't. Emmitt involved the audience more than Mario did.

Anyway, a new crew starts tomorrow. It looks like they're changing the rules again on scoring. The way it worked the first season it was easier to tell who might be going home. What they did was give "points" based on score and votes. For example, if there were six dancers (which is what they started with the first season) the top score with the judges received 6 points. The second place dancers would get 5 points and so on to the lowest judges score receiving 1 point. The viewer votes worked the same way - top vote getter got 6 points, second place 5 and so on. Potentially you could have the top judges scorer tied with the judges lowest scorer at the end of the night (and you actually had until the end of the night to vote...and then until noon on elimination day).

I'm not sure when they changed the scoring rules but I knew something had to have changed when Willa Ford was tied for first place with the judges and still was sent home. Now it has something to do with percentages.

But anyway, no one goes home until the second week this season...there's no elimination round in week one so that changes the dynamic again. So we'll have to see how that works out.

Oh, and a funny thing I saw...Ian Ziering was on Ellen DeGeneres' show with Cheryl Burke (two time champion of DWTS) last week. He was saying that he was excited to see that Cheryl was his partner...that he'd thought they'd pair her up with a Tucker Carlson type (he went home in week one this past season and spent half his dance in a chair)...then he thought that maybe they thought he was that guy! Too funny.

But, here are the contestants for this season's competition:

Laila Ali - undefeated world boxing champion
Billy Ray Cyrus - singer and actor
Clyde Drexler - NBA Hall of Famer
Joey Fatone - NSync star
Shandi Finnessey - Miss USA 2004
Leeza Gibbons - Talk show host
Heather Mills - Charity Activist & Campaigner
Apolo Anton Ohno - Olympic speed skating Gold Medalist
Paulina Porizkova - Supermodel
John Ratzenberger - Actor and author (came into the competition late, when someone else backed out)
Ian Ziering - TV and Broadway star

Care to make any predictions on the overall outcome? :~)

The "Experts"

Well, I'm still having connectivity issues with my internet - even though I've switched providers. It started Tuesday night, I believe.

Anyway, I would be working along and suddenly I would be dead in the water, so to speak. So I called the DSL technical support.

Have you ever seen the episode of Friends where Phoebe takes a job as a telemarketer and they sit her down with a manual "for every eventuality" so that she can answer any questions the customer has? Well, I got that guy Tuesday night because every time I asked a question it would take forever for him to get back to me (and I usually had to ask the question multiple times), presumably because he was looking up the answer.

At one point our conversation went like this: (he's taken me to the command prompt)

Him: Type in "ip" (pauses)
Me: Okay.
Him: Type in "config"
Me: Is that all one word or is there a space between them?
Him: (long silence while he looks it up)
Me: Hello?
Him: Yes, I'm here. Type in "ip" (pauses again)
Me: I know what I'm supposed to type, I need to know if it's all one word or not.
Him: Just type in "ip" (pause)
Me: I know. (in an annoyed voice) One word or two?
Him: It's (then he starts spelling it out) i-p (pause) c-o-n-f
Me: (cutting him off) I know what you're saying and how to spell it. What I need to know is if there is a space between them or if it's one word!!!!!
Him: One word.
Me: Thank you!

It is at this point that I type in what he spelled.....ipconf....not what he said. So of course, I get an error message, which I read to him.

Him: Let's try this again. ip (pause) config
Me: (realizing my mistake and typing it right) Okay.
Him: What does it say?
Me: (I read it to him.)
Him: Now type (he gave me some command that I don't recall)
Me: Okay
Him: Now type a backslash.
Me: Ooohh. I'm not good with the backslashes. Which one is that?
Him: (long silence as he looks it up)
Me: Hello?
Him: I'm still here. Type a backslash.
Me: Which one is the backslash?
Him: (silence)
Me: Is it the one over the question mark?
Him: (unconvincingly) Yes.
Me: Okay
Him: Nevermind, you don't have to type the backslash.
Me: What?
Him: Type (gives me the command again)
Me: Okay
Him: Now type www.google.com
Me: Okay
Him: What's it doing?
Me: Nothing. (pause) Oh wait (then I read the error message it gave me)
Him: You must have typed it wrong.
Me: (uh, wrong answer! but I kept that to myself)
Him: (gives me the command - again - spelling it)
Me: Okay
Him: Now type www.google.com (and then spells it - as if I didn't type every single day)
Me: Uh huh. Exactly as I typed it before.
Him: Just do it.
Me: I did. Got the exact same error too.

We go through this exercise a few more times with yahoo before he realizes, there really is a problem, and puts in a ticket.

Him: We're going to send someone outside your house.
Me: You're sending someone to my house?
Him: No. I put in a ticket and someone will come outside your house.
Me: So someone is coming to my house?
Him: No. Someone will come outside your house.
Me: If someone is outside my house, they are AT my house.
Him: No, someone is not coming to your house. They are coming outside your house.

I have no idea if anyone stopped by or not but my connection seems to be working...at least for now.

Timing

We've been having a bit of a dry spell here...we've needed some rain. All last week they were saying that it would come this past weekend and have a little carryover into this week.

This weekend was GORGEOUS and they changed the rain chances for today to 40%.

Then this morning I get up and the news is having one of their special reports...all about the severe weather headed our way today. Not only have rain chances been upped to 100%, severe weather is expected.

People are calling into the TV station saying that the storms have ripped their roofs off. Doors have been ripped off their hinges. Hail, the size of baseballs, is crashing through windows. And it's headed my way.

Oh, did I forget to mention that today is the day that the appraiser was coming out to look at my house?

Yeah. I imagined our conversation going something like this:

Me: The decision to put a skylight in the bedroom was a rather sudden one. But I've always enjoyed looking at the stars at night.
Him: (just looks at me like I'm crazy)
Me: The waterfall in the living room is all natural. I'm an environmentalist, don't you know. I wouldn't dream of pumping water in for a manmade waterfall.
Him: (making notes but keeping an eye one me because he's not quite sure...)
Me: I felt so boxed in with walls and doors. I thought 'why not let the nature come to me'.
Him: (looks up from his notes...kinda has a scared look on his face)
Me: How do you like the self cleaning floor? Every time it rains, it cleans itself, whether it needs it or not! (gently grabbing his elbow) You'll want to be careful now, what with the floor being wet and all.

Who says I haven't upgraded anything? LOL

(By the way, we did get some thunderstorms (which Max didn't care for) but - to my knowledge - there wasn't anywhere near the damage they had to the west of us and the appraisal thing went fine...as far as I know. :~) )

Surfing the Net

I may or may not have mentioned that I'm the Newsletter Editor of my local chapter. Every month I collect articles from our members and put them into a newsletter that I just have to (or am supposed to) send out before our monthly meeting - which is the third Tuesday of the month. The software is easy enough to work with but I have found that it really is a lot more work than one (or at least I) thought. As such, I start plugging in the articles as soon as I get them (and I start asking for them as soon as the last one went out).

Anyway, I finished putting it all together late last night, sending it out just after midnight. I knew I had left one person off the mailing list (I didn't have her email address - but more on that later) and two bounced back. I also went to our e-loop to post it there (emails from the e-loop don't allow attachments but we can upload the file). What I saw was that it appeared that I had uploaded 72 articles, in addition to the one I meant to. Banging my head on the nearest hard surface, I sent an email acknowledging that I was an idiot. I also mentioned that the two email addresses bounced back and that I didn't send it to one person, a new member, Patricia Kay. I'm telling you her name because she's the reason I was surfing the net.

You see, she responded to my email and gave me her email address. And her signature line had her webpage - so I clicked on it (several people had mentioned how great it was to have her as a new member but I didn't know who she was - kind of reminding me of the Reno incident of '05 with Julia Quinn, but I digress).

She has a new book out called "Wish Come True" which sounded really cool (and which I bought this morning at Walmart while buying groceries for the week - and which I also suggested for the RWAOL book discussion for April, but again, I digress). She also had all these links at the top of her webpage, like "great reads" where fans can email her about books they enjoyed, "meet Pat" where she tells about herself, and "fun stuff" where she has links to some of her favorite pages - which is where I found "Romance Buy the Book", where a local woman reviews novels (she used to do it for a local news station but since the first of the year, she's been doing it but not associated with the news station). It looked fun so I was scrolling through her archives and reading reviews of some of the books I had read, and some I hadn't.

One I hadn't that caught my eye was "I Gave You My Heart but You Sold it Online" by Dixie Cash. The title was too cute not to check out the author's webpage, so next thing I know, I'm on Dixie Cash's webpage. She also has books called "My Heart May Be Broken but My Hair Still Looks Great" and "Since You're Leaving Anyway, Take Out the Trash". Suddenly I'm wanting to buy them.

Anyway, I came online to update my blog with the Romance Buy the Book link and decided to update a few other things as well. I've added a couple of blogs I visit but hadn't added yet and removed a couple that I never go to anymore. I updated my "Just For Fun" with new links as well. When I got to my "Favorite Authors" though, I found that I was dying to add Patricia Kay and Dixie Cash...and I may have mentioned that I've never read either of them before. Yeah, I'm that easy when it comes to books. In any event, I refrained from adding them - for now but I do see a couple of reads (at least) in the making.

And that, my friends, is how I spent my Saturday morning. What are you all doing? :~)

Wild Hogs

I went last night to see Wild Hogs with a friend of mine. I wanted to go see it because it looked funny and I like Tim Allen and John Travolta.

I was not disappointed. The sometimes annoying Martin Lawrence even had a good role and did a good job.

Tim Allen was Tim Allen but fortunately I like him (remember, he was one of the reasons I wanted to see this movie).

John Travolta was GREAT in this movie. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone else so I won't go into detail but he did more with expressions than anything. He just did a great job and was very funny in this role.

Then there was William H Macy. I really think (and maybe it's just me) that he's underestimated as an actor. His character (Dudley) was, by far, the most endearing character. I absolutely loved him and thought Macy played him perfectly. He was so funny...SO funny. It was a fun movie but it wouldn't have been as good without this character - and Macy playing it.

Anyway, bottom line, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. There were some corny and predictable moments but it was good. I recommend it.

Too good to be true

I had a board rot on the front of my house. It's been rotted for more than a year but my homeowner's association just noticed it last month and have threatened to sue me if I don't replace the rotted board immediately.

As such I went to Home Depot yesterday morning. I was proud of myself for getting up so early and taking charge. I took the offending board to the store and told the "info desk" clerk what I needed. She directed me to the lumber cashier for help. I waited in line to be told someone else would have to help me and she paged someone. This young guy comes up and says he's not sure what I need and grabs an older man and asks him. I say I wanted treated wood, if possible, because it's for outside. The older man says - and I quote - "I don't sell that here."

We start talking about what he does sell there and he offers to follow me home to see exactly what it is I need (apparently the board I brought in wasn't enough). He suggests he can install it too - which excites me because I want to be sure it's right.

I ask if he also installs baseboards (I still don't have any) and he says he does. I'm really excited at this point because I'm thinking I can charge his labor upfront and then pay when the bill comes in. So I ask if I can charge his labor. Turns out he doesn't even work for Home Depot! He's just a contractor who spends a lot of time up there - which, I decided was okay too. I still need these things done.

Anyway, we exchange numbers and I give him my address because he's going to do "one thing" and then come see what I need done. So I come home and promptly start throwing things in pantries and closets, etc. because I want to have the baseboards done and that means he'll probably come inside.

An hour passes. Then two hours. Three hours passed and I haven't heard from him.

Five hours later I called him. He'd forgotten about me, but he says he'll come right then - and then he does.

Come to find out, not only does he NOT do the work himself, minimum labor costs are $250, no matter how small the job.

I need one small board tacked up and he wants to charge me $250 in labor! That doesn't even include materials!

Needless to say, I didn't hire him to do the job. I went back to the store (Lowe's this time, so I didn't run into him again) and bought an untreated board (they won't cut treated wood and an uncut board would do me no good) and tacked it up myself - for less than $8!

So the fact that it seemed good (that I'd found someone and they seemed available to do the work) was an illusion.

I don't know though, I think I did a pretty good job with the board out front...maybe I could give installing the baseboards a try. LOL

What to say?

I've been away so long I had to brush away cobwebs to make it into my own blog.

What can I say? Things have been busy. My group is being audited (internally) at work and I found myself as the go to girl for the prep work. I'm still involved (the actual audit started this past Monday) but the workload has lessened considerably (which is good because I was putting in 11 - 12 hour days and I can only maintain that so long!). Plus, there's the new dog. He keeps life interesting with all his "antics" (although, if he hadn't chewed through my phone line, I might still be a dial up girl instead of a high-speed internet girl, but that's a whole other story).

Anyway, so I'll try to stop by more often and try to come up with fun and interesting things to blog about. If nothing else, Dancing with the Stars is starting soon and already interesting things are happening with that.....LOL

The Name Game

Well, I was tagged by the loverly Mel, so here goes...

1. YOUR REAL NAME: Lucy Sartain

2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (first three letters of your name, plus izzle) Lucizzle. Oddly enough, this is my true legal name. I don’t know all the details of its origin but I’m pretty sure alcohol was involved. (and also explains why I go by Lucy ;~) )

3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three of your last) Lsar

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (fav color and fav animal) Blue Dog

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, Street you live on): Elaine Shawnee

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name, first 3 letters of mom’s maiden name) Sarlusar

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (favorite color, favorite drink) Blue Margarita (too bad my favorite color isn’t strawberry with no salt - could save a lot of time when walking into a bar....”it’s strawberry with no salt margarita...coming right up!”

8. YOUR IRAQI NAME: (2nd letter of your first name, 3rd letter of your last name, any letter of your middle name, 2nd letter of your moms maiden name, 3rd letter of your dad’s middle name, 1st letter of a sibling’s first name, last letter of your moms middle name) Uraancn

9. YOUR STRIPPER NAME: (the name of your favorite perfume/cologne/body spray) White Linen (yeah, that fits)

10. YOUR WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother & father’s middle name) Donald (my mother didn’t have a middle name so I’ll be like Cher and Madonna, only needing one name. But then again, that’d kind of make me stand out and would defeat the whole purpose of the witness protection thing, wouldn’t it?)

Pretty much everyone I know has been tagged so if someone else wants to be tagged, have at it, otherwise, the tag stops here. Sorry. :~)

List of books

Sometimes you surf your friend's blogs and you see something you like - enough to copy. Such is the case with the list of books I've put at the bottom of my side bar. Credit should be given where credit is due and I totally stole the idea from my friend, Honey.

Good idea girl. :~)