357. I've been frogged

Saturday, July 29, 2006

So I decided to submit my blog for review somewhere. I usually don't because its pretty subjective and one person's opinion. I decided to give it a shot, and my blog has been frogged. Although I disagree with some of the review, I think they made some good suggestions about the visual look of my blog, so I worked on that this morning. I finally figured out how to do an expandable header to pull up some of my blog links, deleted some stuff on my sidebar and I moved things around a bit. I think it helped improve things.

356. A Short Post Today

Friday, July 28, 2006

I spent a good portion of my afternoon at the movie theater watching Miami Vice. My short review - good movie, but not a great movie. I'll have a full review up on my review site at some point this weekend. Once I arrived home, I had to play a bit of catch-up, and now I'm waiting on dinner to be ready. It's been cloudy here all day, and there have been some wicked storms up north of here that haven't made it down here yet. Here's hoping it stays that way.

The storm I wrote about in my blog here the other night is said to have been the worst summer storm to hit our area in five years. People in the surrounding area were powerless until some time the next day. Things are back to normal now, but it hasn't hit above a hundred since that night. I know the lower temps won't last for long, so I am enjoying them while I can.

Tomorrow morning starts the blogathon, and Laci, my Blog of the Week, is taking part. So make sure you stop by and support her in her quest to stay up twenty-four hours and blog every half hour. She reached her goal of $500 it appears, but now she needs some cheerleaders to help her stay up.

Don't only support her though. If you see a blog participating in the blogathon tomorrow, stop and let them know you care too. Just one simple comment can help make it a bit easier to make it through the twenty-four hours. I'm not taking part this year myself, but I'm supporting those that are. So make sure to stop by and say hi to Laci tonight or tomorrow during Blogathon '06!

355. The Pain Still Grows

Thursday, July 27, 2006

I posted this to my personal journal the other night, and I debated posting it here until now. It's a bit more personal and raw than most of my entries, but it is me. I posted it publicly there, so why not post it here too. So there might be one or two who have already seen this before. That is what scroll is for. I picked up the Miami Vice soundtrack, and I seem to be stuck on the first track, In The Air Tonight. I don't know. I think it just fit things. I'm looking forward to seeing the movie tomorrow too.

Originally posted: July 26th, 2006 @ 12:49 am

Do you ever notice how people don't really change, even when they say that they do? Day in and day out. Month in and month out they are still bitching and moaning about the same shit they were bitching about last week, month, year etc. There comes a point when you get tired of listening to it or reading it, depending on where the interaction is taking place. You watch as life goes on, and it ends up being the same shit on a different day, and you have to wonder if things will ever change or if they will ever change?

Change is inevitable. It happens no matter you do to stop it. Day in and day out things change, even the smallest of things change. However some people really don't change. They keep wallowing in whatever shit they got going on, and you're just left their to stand in wonder. You may not talk to them for months, and that doesn't matter because the same shit is there.Maybe I'm bitter. Maybe I'm jaded. Maybe I've lost one too many friends. Maybe I've stopped giving a fuck. I come online, and I work. I come online and I role play. That's about it.

I talk to no one except for one or two people, and it has gotten to the point where my own friends feel like strangers. This place doesn't feel right anymore. The people around me don't feel right anymore. I let one in, and they left. It's happened before, and I know it will happen again. Someone blind sides you, and you're not sure where to go next. This happened months ago, and it really just hit that this person I totally trusted just vanished. Oh well. Boo hoo. Sob Sob. Get the fuck over it right?

Maybe it was the straw that broke the camels back. Maybe it had to happen for some unknown God forsaken reason. Who knows? I'm at the point where I've stopped caring. I'm tired of putting in my all to just watch people walk away. At least give me some warning before you up and vanish. It would be very much appreciated you know. Usually there is some kind of argument before things go to shit. Its when there is nothing that you're left to wonder. Oh well. Then again, the next one to vanish might just be me.

Back to change. Do people ever truly change? Or is that same person you've always been still there, lurking beneath the surface. We're all a million and one things. We're all unique. We have our good moments and our bad ones. All those little moments together is what makes life. It's what makes us who we are, but do we ever really change? Or are we just fooling ourselves. Maybe I'm expecting too much of people. Maybe I'm expecting them to change when in the end they really won't change. Maybe I'm the one that needs to change.

I've always believed you're the only one in charge of you, your own happiness lies in your hands, and no one elses. If something is making you unhappy, then you are the only one that can fix it. Yet, what if the solution to fix it is something you don't totally want to do. On the other hand, doing it is the only way things will be right. You're caught between a rock and a hard place. Nowhere to turn. No where to go. Not too fun is it?

354. Lance Bass Comes Out

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

As I mentioned the other day when I talked about Justin Timberlake, I was and am a huge *Nsync fan. The group is no longer together, but I still support them in what they do as individuals, and as with most *Nsync hope for some type of reunion. Although that is getting less likely as time passes on. Since I like to keep up on things, I'm on a couple of loops for the group to follow news and such.

Well, this morning my inbox was flooded, and all the loops were buzzing with the news that Lance Bass, one of the five in *Nsync, finally came out as gay. I say finally because as much as he tried to keep it under wraps, a lot of fans suspected it. In fact, a lot of fans just didn't care. The only ones that did were the ones dreaming of sleeping with him one day. I always suspected, and there were always rumors about it, but he kept it to himself, and I respected that. The rumors have only been getting worse lately though. Perez Hilton has no problems throwing out pictures and other items to bring out Lance's gayness.

Looks like Lance finally had enough, and he took it upon himself to come out. He did it on his terms and went to People magazine. I'm actually glad he came out. One shouldn't have to hide who they are from the world just to keep up some image for their fans. True fans will love Lance whether he is gay or straight. All that matters is his happiness, and it appears from this article he is.

353. Major Weather Happening

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

I usually don't post when there is a storm because they seem to be a daily occurrence here, but there is a major storm. Probably the worst storm we've had in a year or two. Power is out just a few miles away from where I live. The first leg of the storm came through about two hours ago, and then according to the weather man at KTVK the storm back builded and started up again. That usually doesn't happen. I went out in the storm before it started raining and the light show was just amazing. Dangerous but beautiful. The above pic is from KTVK and it is the current radar here. I'm in the middle of all that red! Everyone here in the Phoenix area I hope you're safe out there. This one is a bad one.

352. Sexyback Video

I know a few days ago I mentioned Justin Timberlake and his new video for Sexyback. Well, it premiered today on MTV with the video appearing both on TRL and a Making the Video as well. If you want to see the video on television, it will air later tonight at 11pm on MTV. For now, here is the video! You think its hot outside. This video is just as hot.

351. Blog business

First off, I have selected a new blog of the week this morning. It was a real tough decision because I had twelve blogs bid on the spot, and it took me to the very last minute to pick one. The person sharing the wildness here this week is Laci with Long, Slow, Beautiful Dance. She's been my Blog of the Week before, but on my other blog, One Couch Critic. Now it is her turn here. She's one of the newer blogs I've begun reading on a regular basis, and she's great. She speaks her mind. Plus she works in television.

This weekend, she is participating in Blogathon '06 and staying up for 24 hours to blog for charity. 48 posts, one for each half hour, and her charity is the WHAS Crusade For Children. She's looking to raise $500 hundred dollars, so either help by donating or by supporting her on Saturday while she blogs. I know I'll be stopping by and checking in this weekend. She isn't the only one participating in the Blogathon though. I'll see if I can find links to a few others and give them shoutouts Saturday morning. If you're participating, let me know and I'll include you this weekend. Don't forget to check Laci out this week though. Not just on Saturday!

Thanks to everyone else that bid this week: Chelle-Belle.com, Chocablog, Full Metal Photographer, Jellybean's View, New Century Notebook, RECOMMENDED, The Grocery List From Hell, The Pink Diary, The Plumbutt Chronicles, Things that i see and hear... and Whatchu Tawkin Bout.

In other blog business, I just updated and cleaned out all my blogrolls. I checked for dead links or blogs that were no longer updated or for blogs that took down their link to my blog. I also added a few new blogs to my daily blog reads because I had been meaning to for awhile now. i might go through again in a week or two because I know I probably missed some links somewhere.

350. Storms, printers and headaches

Monday, July 24, 2006

Well, late last night we had a storm blow through town here, and it was pretty bad for about ten minutes. The power kept flickiering in and out, and we hadit go out for a few seconds. This caused my computer to go down, and since last night it was acting funny. It did one of those "We can't start windows" messages, but I got it start up in its last known good configuration. My printer was acting the weirdest, and this morning when I came on it only continued to get worse. I tried everything I knew how to do, and it wouldn't let me do much.

Then all of a sudden it reinstalled the printer on its own, and I had a good set of drivers and the bad set. Well, once I got the bad set deleted, everything worked great. It wasn't even letting me print one damn thing. Problem is it took me over two hours to get it working, and now I have a headache. I am so behind on everything today. Good news is everything looks to be working better now. I even fixed some of the old pre-storm problems my printer was having. I also re-installed my mouse because it has been acting weird the last few days too.

My computer is my life line to the world, and I can't have it go down. That would just screw up a lot of things for me. I know it would get fixed because I have it under warranty, but the time needed to get it fixed is something I can't afford. Life Romanticized has left my sidebar, and this means I'll be selecting an all new blog of the week later tonight or tomorrow to take up the spot. Check for my blog over at Blogexplosion if you're there!

349. Oh How I Hate Allergies

Saturday, July 22, 2006

My allergies have been acting up since late last night. I just finally gave in and took my allergy meds in the last hour, and it is helping some. When I was younger, I used to have real bad allergies. I would have to take meds every morning, and even I would end up sneezing or coughing like nobody's business. Chalk used to make it worse, and back then chalkboards were still used in schools. Now you see dry erase boards popping up. Well, I would have to sit up front because I had vision problems, and by the time I was in high school teachers used to actually ask me not to sit up front.

Well, today my eyes are itchy, and I keep sneezing. Its horrible. I would almost think I had a cold, but with it hitting up to 120 in parts around here, there is no way I've caught a cold. When I moved out here to Arizona, my allergies eased up a lot, but every spring and summer they seem to randomly pop up. Might be cause of all the dust that gets stirred up with the summer storms. We had a couple of storms yesterday. One in the early evening and a second late last night. That might have kicked things up enough for me to be allergy bugged.

I've been pondering my fiction since last night, and I feel I could get something going. Thing is I have no idea what. My past works in progress aren't really grabbing me any right now. I decided to take a look around and see if there were any current submission calls that interested me. Nothing really jumped out write something for me right now. One sort of raised it hand shyly, and I looked at it. Deadline is August 4th. With the way I write, there is no way for me to write and polish up a five thousand minimum manuscript, especially without some solid idea jumping out at me.

The submission call was for a story with a witch as a main character or about witchcraft in some shape or form. The only idea I vaguely came up with was an idea of a woman researching witchcraft. Yes, that is all I came up with. Isn't it screaming to be written? Yes, sense the sarcasm there folks. I'll keep pondering it. The fan fiction idea is still spinning in my head, but I think if I start with it the story will end up long and detailed, but maybe I need to jump in with something I know. I haven't written anything new since March sometime. Maybe I need to dive in with characters I know? I just know I need to do something.

348. Scam of Love?

Earlier this week I read about actress Diane Lane having her long hair cut and donating it to charity. It might been aired on one of the morning news shows, but I didn't watch it. She donated her hair to a non-profit organization called Locks of Love. We've all probably heard of them. If you have long hair and go in for a trim, the person cutting your hair will mention donating your hair to this charity. They will take your hair to make a wig for a child or someone else suffering from cancer. I've even donated my own hair to the organization the three times I went to drastic and cut off my own long hair.

Well, today I read an update on the story. Someone heard about Diane and went to look for more information on the organization, and as it turns out it isn't as non-profit as it states. They receive about 104,000 ponytails a year, and a very small fraction of those ponytails are used to make wigs for the sick. What happens to the rest of the hair not used? Apparently, it is sold to commercial wig makers. Do you want to know how much this non-profit organization made from selling hair in 2005? Over $350,000. This is according to Bad Hair Day.

This is just disturbing to me. I know they can't use everything they get, but to sell it off? That just seems very wrong to me. I know I'll be thinking twice the next time I go to have my hair cut off and I'm asked to donate my hair. I know I won't bother. Have you checked out my Blog of the Week yet? Today you can find out more about roleplaying, books and Sarah's thoughts on the wrestler Shawn Michaels.

347. 117 and stormy!

Friday, July 21, 2006

At least that is what it was two hours ago. If you stopped by a couple of hours ago, that is the temperature that would have shown up on my sidebar. I changed to a new weather program for the site here and also added a tiny clock. That way you'll know just what the time and temp is here for me. I'm about to make dinner. Dad brought these frozen taquitos home from the store a few days ago, and he isn't sure how to make them. This is a job for Super Gina that only has to read the side of the box to learn you bake them for 8 minutes at 400 degrees. Oh so tough. He's a man. He can make chili and bake chickens, turkeys and hams, but a box of frozen taquitos and I'm called in. Not that I mind. With the summer, cooking whole meals seems to be a luxury with the heat. We're learning the power of quick meals that don't heat up the house or cooking later in the day.

I slept in a bit today, and I had the weirdest dream. All I know that JC Chasez was in it, and we were in a place getting bombed and under attack. This is the second time I've dreamed the man, and the first time I won't tell you what we were doing! Ahem! It was a weird dream though. There I am standing there asking for his autograph, and we're getting bombed. I woke up not long after asking him that. It was just too weird a dream to keep sleeping. What was even more odd is later on in the morning when I was looking for news items to write about my other blog, there was a story and pictures of him. He's still looking good, but I think Justin is a bit hotter right now. I know he's had his share of problems in the past. No one is perfect, and I think he has admitted he isn't either.

I just posted my tentative fall schedule for my review site a bit ago, and I am going to be busy. I think for the second year I might have a bit of a better method in place for reviewing shows. I put it in place near the end of last season, and it seems to be working through the summer. I'm getting better at it, and it makes things move a bit faster. It is still going to be a busy season for me though. I've taken it easy this summer. I've only reviewed two shows, and I know once the fall picks up I'll be brain dead for a bit. I'm already preparing myself for it. I know its reviewing television, but you still have to think to put out decent detailed reviews like I do.

I've been giving thoughts to my fiction again the last day or so. I think my mind is getting ready to go back into fiction mode, but I'm not sure. I guess I'll have to wait and see. Right now, I need to go and fix dinner up. Don't forget to check out my Blog of the Week!

346. Justin Bringing Sexy Back

Take a look at the man above. It is Justin Timberlake. I think I've had some kind of crush on him since he was back in *Nsync and just sixteen. It was more of a he is so cute kind of crush back then though. He is now a man of twenty five and looking hotter than ever. He has a new album coming out in September, and the first single Sexyback is out now. He's been kind of missing in action the last few years, but the last two days I've seen some new pictures of him, and he made sure to remind me just how hot he is. The above picture is from the video for his new song, and I can't wait to see the video come out.

345. A first F.O.A.D Thursday

Thursday, July 20, 2006

Around the blogosphere Thursday is the day reserved for a meme called F.O.A.D. The O.A.D stands for Off And Die. You can figure out what the F stands for! Never thought I'd see my doing this, but I just finished watching So You Think You Can Dance. My recap is up on my review site now, and I am in complete and total shock that Dimitry was eliminated! What was America thinking? Nigel told Ryan last night he didn't think this competiton was for him, and he stays. Dimitry was a great dancer. Sure, he used his sex appeal a bit, but who doesn't in this competition? I'm sad to see him go.

344. If there is one thing I hate ...

It is anything creepy and crawly ad bug like.Well, last night we had a cricket get into our apartment. Not sure ho, but we knew it was in here because our youngest cat, Mikey, found it and tackled it. He then picked it up and brought it into my room to show me. He dropped the offending creature right in my room. I looked away, and it was gone. I thought it was either dead somewhere in my room or one of the cats had a late night snack.

Well, it just made its presence known when I was sitting talking to my brother in my room. Joe is sitting on the bed, and here comes this huge thing jumping next to him onto the bed. Maybe it wanted to join in the conversation?I screamed so loud. My brother jumped and then he killed the thing and it is now a resident of the Arizona sewer system. My cats did a lousy job killing the creature! No treats for them.

343. I believe ...

Wednesday, July 19, 2006

Three posts in one day. Since when has that ever happened? I've had a bit of mind shift the last day or so. This week I wasn't feeling my best, and I was grouchy. Not in a good place, but hey it always passes. Sometimes you're not going to be in the best of moods. I've been listening to a lot of different music lately. If the television isn't on, my headphones usually are. At this rate, I'll probably go deaf by the time I reach sixty. The mood shift has been good though. I'm constantly changing and making changes in my life. Some don't always notice it though because I'm quiet about it. Sometimes the change is already done, and no one had any idea it was even about to happen. Maybe this makes me a confusing person to know. I prefer complicated though.

I don't have many friends now. At least not the type I come online and talk to every day. I keep to myself a lot. I'm always busy. If not writing, I'm working on promotion for my sites. Honestly, more about writing is promotion than actual writing. I've learned this with my nonfiction in recent months, but I have a system in place, and it seems to be working pretty well for me. I may not have many friends around me online, but that doesn't mean I'm out looking for them either. I'm one of those weird folks that prefers my own company rather than the company of others. I've always been that way though. Too many people around me, and I find myself getting uncomfortable.

It reminds of this lyric from this song off a CD I just popped in a few moments ago, Savage Garden's Affirmation. Actually there is two lyrics that jump out at me in this song.

"I believe I'm loved when I'm completely by myself alone."

"I believe we place our happiness in other people's hands"

When it is just me and my wild mind running, I sometimes find myself the happiest ever. I don't need to look for someone else to make me happy because I'm already there in that feeling. I don't need huge declarations of love and affection because those are just pretty words, and I think actions speak much louder than those pretty words that fall so easily from someone's lips or their fingertips. When someone is always saying how much they love you, you start to wonder how true the words are. Is there true emotion behind those words being said? Sometimes you don't want to hear the words, but you want to see just a little bit of action.

I've had many friends come and go in my life. Sometimes they keep going and sometimes they come back. You never really know just what is going to happen between you and another person. Sometimes they are put in your life for a reason, and then removed from your life once that reason is no longer viable. Things change, and life is in constant motion. I have a couple of friends that have been in my life for years now. I don't call them just friends. They are family.

One I talk to almost every day, and if we don't somehow connect one day I notice it. She doesn't live in the same country as I do, but she's family, and I think she is one of those people that saved me in my life. She didn't do it with pretty words and declarations of love. That isn't her style. She did it by being there, and she's one of my best friends.

The other I haven't talked as much lately, but I think she understands me better than most people true. She's the yin to my yang. We're opposites, and sometimes she pisses me off to no ends, but in the end she's my twin and my best friend. I kind of miss her, but I know she gets how I am sometimes. Sometimes you need just yourself and your own thoughts and then you can find a little help from your friends.

342. Star Wars Funny

A small Star Wars related funny video I found via Cinematical this morning.

341. We'll get to you Thursday ...

Just as I am getting ready to go to bed, my connection goes out. I wait the usual minute it takes to come back on. Nothing. Five minutes later. Still nothing. Ten. Same. Twenty. I'm getting mad. Television is still working. Checked all the wires and their connections. Reset the modem like suggested. Finally call Cox, my cable company. Everything looks fine.

Did you reset the modem?
Yes.
Let's do it again.
Okay.
Did you check all the wires?
Yes.
Well, there is no outage or work being done, so we can set up an appointment for Thursday, which is tomorrow really when you think of it.
Yes, but that is still almost 36 hours, and I work from home.
Oh, well we have a great business program ...

You have to love the sales pitch. Set the appointment. Then went to check all the wires again. He said to check the splitter, so I took all the wires off and then put them back on. Came back into my bedroom where the computer is, and it was working again. Let's cross our fingers it keeps working. If it does, I'll cancel the appointment tomorrow afternoon, well according to Cox man, really its later today. At least its working. The flashing light was bugging me!

340. It's all about time

Tuesday, July 18, 2006

Earlier my brother went out to buy a new watch because his died a quick and painless death, and he figured instead of putting the money out for a new battery, he might as well just spend a few more dollars and buy a new watch. Thing is the one he bought wouldn't let either of us to set the time. We both tried. So he took he back already, and he exchanged it for another one. We had a minor disagreement that could have turned ugly a few moments after the exchange with the watch, and the incidents combined really made me start thinking.

Life is all about time. Finding time to do all the things you want to do in life. Sometimes it is hard to find the time to do everything though. Sometimes people are always on the go, and they don't stop to appreciate life. They are so focused on things that the rest of the world be damned. I'm a very big homebody. I spend hours of my day here in my room and online. It's part of what I do. I work using the Internet and my computer. It's part of being a writer. I do leave the house more than I used to, but I don't get out a whole lot.

My brother made a point of mentioning this today, and it sort of angered me a bit because I do try to get out of the house more than I actually end up getting out. I just am not fortunate to have a driver's license. I just don't like driving. In 100+ degree heat, walking isn't an option. I ask my brother and my father for rides when I need to get something done. I ask my father, and I know whatever I need to get done will get done within a day or two. Sometimes within a few hours or less. Ask my brother? He pulls out the calendar, and he says well I can do it next Wednesday. It may be Monday now, and yes that means I'd have to wait over a week.

I know that he has his things to do, but most of the things I need to do are quick items. Maybe thirty minutes out and back, quick errands. So I really stopped asking my brother to do things, and my father told me to as well. So today when he brought up that I should really get out more, I brought it up, and he ended the discussion. I basically told him that I would get out more that if I asked him for the little trips out he would be better about it. He basically told me that he couldn't do my schedule around me, so we would agree to disagree.

I'm not sure when I asked him to do his schedule around me! I understand he is busy with his life and all I ask is something a little better than penciling me in a week from Wednesday. Last week, I asked for a trip to go pick up new rechargeable batteries for my wireless mouse. He said if dad couldn't do it, he would. The next day he asked me what batteries I needed and then he went out to get them himself. I didn't even leave the house. I appreciated the batteries, but I would have liked getting out of the house for a little bit too.

So how hard is it to find the time? We all have busy lives to lead, but if you can't find the time for the little things then maybe you're focusing too hard. At least that's what I think. Have a great night everyone and while you're here don't forget to check my Blog of the Week!

339. Things that make you go hmm!

Monday, July 17, 2006

Just a quick post because I'm in the middle of my Monday morning work session. Monday's are a bit on the crazy side. I guess because I try to take as much as the weekend off as possible, and Monday throws water on all of that. It's a new week. Back to work! I just checked my email though, and I saw this for my horoscope today from Keen. I also get it emailed from Tarot.com. I love horoscopes. Anyway, this is mine for today.

Regina, Quit That Clique

Regina, the light of reality contrasts with the petty bickering you have been forced to endure. There are people you are involved with that you have very little respect for. Stand your ground and prepare to move on.

Isn't it weird when your horoscope kind of mirrors your own thoughts? I've made some changes again. That's all I'll say because you never really know who is reading your blog!

While I'm here I have an all new Blog of the Week! I had so many to choose from this morning, and I think I wanted to select all of them, but I had to pick one. Everyone that placed a bid please try again. The Chocoblog was so making me hungry. So please try again! This week's pick is Life Romanticized. This is a blog of Sarah from Cleveland. She's a single mother who loves television and she has also roleplayed in the past. There is a roleplay post she just posted to her blog just today. Plus, anyone that seems to love Queer as Folk as much as I do is a-okay in my book. So why don't you go check her blog out and tell her I sent you!

338. It's A Small World After All

Sunday, July 16, 2006

It's been a couple of days since my last entry. I've been feeling a bit under the weather, so i haven't been doing much of anything since Friday. Good thing it is the weekend, so I have the luxury of not really doing a whole lot. Back on Friday night, I stayed up the latest I've had in weeks. I was turning in as the sun was rising outside, and it was one of those strange nights. Strange but good. I learned once again just how small the online world can be. As I've mentioned, I roleplay a little, and I had joined a new place earlier this week. Well, I was talking to someone there at 3am in the morning, and suddenly it hit me that I knew this person outside of this little roleplay world.

It was someone I used to be friends with and at one point we were quite close. It's been just about a year since we spoke and things fell apart in this friendship of ours. I probably even entries back around that time period in here talking about it. I'd always wondered if there were some kind of hostility there, even after all this time. At the time, it was some huge misunderstand, but things just ended really badly. After talking to this person, we found out it really had been some huge misunderstanding, and there was never any real hate there on either side.

I'm not sure what this means now. Perhaps, it doesn't mean anything. People can come and go in your life all the time. Perhaps there was some reason why I'm meeting up with old friends I had long lost because I not only met up with this one person, but I learned there was also another just as close. Right now, I'm just enjoying things. Other than feeling a bit crappy the last couple of days, things are going really well. Things are starting to click into gear a bit writing wise.

At least my roleplaying has picked up, and I'm still pondering the whole fiction thing. I have one idea I threw out to a friend of mine the other day, and they thought it would really work. It's for a fan fiction story - a cross over of Dark Angel and X-men. I think if done well, the two worlds can be brought together. There are similarities in both that would just make things easier to mesh. So I guess I'll have to see if I'm able to put something together. First order of business though is to stop feeling crappy! Stellar Wind's time here is up this week! Time for me to select a new Blog of the Week! I'll be doing that later tonight or tomorrow.

Have a great Sunday everyone!

337. Late Night T.V. Viewing

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Ever have one of those nights just doesn't want to quit? Last night, I went to bed around 2am, but I didn't fall asleep until after five. I kept turning on the television instead of just laying there because laying there with your eyes closed and not actually asleep gets boring after about thirty minutes. If you can't sleep, you might as well be up. Well, one of the last times I turned on the television, I put on Fox & Friends, which I used to watch a lot more when I stayed up later than 2am.

They were talking about a professor from Wisconsin that said that 9/11 was an "inside job." This means that somehow the United Stated government was behind the attack, so that we can go to war in the Middle East. As soon as I heard what he was saying, I was stunned. I usually don't talk much about politics on my blog, but this isn't so much about politics, but one man's belief about the world we live in. A belief he believes is reality, and I'd be frightened if in some way it was in fact true. I may not totally agree with the war in the Middle East, but I wholeheartedly support our troops.

Some have died. No, wait, many have died in the fighting overseas, and to think that somehow our own government somehow orchestrated the events that sent our troops over there is scary. Not only that, but so many died in the events of 9/11. American's died that day. Thousands of lives were lost in the tragedy. To think that somewhere out there a man believes our government is responsible for all those deaths, and they even mention names in our government connected to those tragic events - I just can't comprehend it.

The thing of it is this man, a professor is now teaching his beliefs to those in his classes at the University of Wisconsin. He is still teaching, and in fact he was just rehired. The story lasted only a few moments on the news this morning, but it stuck with me all day. I just had to mention it here. I'm still tired. Not sleeping well always makes me tired and cranky. Tonight is the results show for So You Think You Can Dance. My recap of last night's show is on my review site. My prediction? I think Ashlee and Dimitry are being sent home tonight. We'll see if I'm right tonight.

336. Online gaming coming to a halt?

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Earlier today while I was surfing around and gathering news to write about for my entertainment blog, I saw a story that caught my eye. Apparently, the US House has voted on a law that will make online gambling illegal. First, I started wondering about just how they would even be able to enforce such a law if it did in fact get through all the steps needed to become a law. If passed, ISPS and banks that allowed people to gamble online would become the target. I've seen stories on the news shows about what a problem online gambling has become. College students especially are putting themselves into huge amounts of debts.

After seeing first hand what gambling of the not online variety has done to those in my own family, I think some regulation would be a good idea. I just don't know if it would actually work. It would take a lot of work to get it under control. Every day, I see gambling sites popping up online. I don't play at them. I keep my gambling online to poker at Games.com, where no money is involved. Just some fun and laughs with a few friends. I also have a PC casino game. When I do gamble, I go to one of the local area casinos or take a trip to Vegas or Laughling, which are only a matter of hours away by car.

I don't see gambling as a problem, as long as it is controlled and it doesn't become some sort of addiction. As I mentioned I have seen that happen, and it isn't a pretty sight at all by any means. It'll be interesting to see if this law is passed, but that might not be for a bit yet.

In other news, So You Think You Can Dance is on tonight, and we've finally come down to the one hour format. I love the show, but they were trying to stretch it to two hours every week, an that in my opinion is too long. Good news is the show has jumped into the top five in the ratings, so things are heating up more than just in the competition itself. I'll have a review of tonight's performances on my review site sometime after 9pm PST. Have you checked out my Blog of the Week yet?

335. In My Own Backyard

Tuesday, July 11, 2006

Well, not literally because I happen to live in an apartment building, but in the last week or so some scary things have been happening. Last week, the police found a Meth lab in one of our apartments, and then over the weekend a 38 year old man almost drowned in our building pool. Word is he couldn't swim. How did I find out about these two incidents? By stories in my local paper. It's kind of weird seeing the name of your building splashed across some article. This property has had its share of problems in the almost eleven years I've lived here, but every place has its own share of problems. It just brings you down to earth when you see your building and you know these things are happening so damn close. Bad things can happen anywhere.

EDIT: I think some are taking this entry as me being upset or freaking out. I didn't mean it to sound that way. I'm just taking notice of some things happening around me and commenting on them.

334. Thinking ahead and looking back

It seems things are finally settling in. I have my schedule more under control, and my days aren't as stressful as they used to be. Firefox has been a big help on that front. It makes my traffic surfing run a bit smoother than it does in Internet Explorer. Not as many virus pop-ups and the like, which in my book is always a good thing. I'm able to get more done in the morning and afternoon hours, and this is freeing my evenings up a little bit. Not a lot, but some. This will help some when the television season returns in the fall. I'm already dreading Thursday nights with three shows to review, and when The O.C. returns that will be a fourth to add into the mix. However, ER is only airing through December, so maybe things won't be as crazed. It'll just be November really. Can't worry too much about something that is still months away. I'll have to wait and see what happens.

As I'd mentioned the other day, my older cat is having a bit of control problem. It is only getting worse in the last couple of days. It is horrid to walk into a room and smell that smell, and know your cat has done something. Well, yesterday he did it right in front of my brother all over his clothes, and today it was my turn. We definitely need to go and have him fixed and soon. As much as I love my cats, having JJ doing this in the house is really getting tiring. It's not like we don't have two litter boxes in the house, cleaned daily or every other day at the most. There is no reason for him to be having this problem really. We'll just have to deal with it until we can get him to the vet and have it taken care of. He is going to hate us. I know that for sure.

On another note, I believe today ended the Jennifer story line on my soap opera, As The World Turns. I've talked about this story line before on my blog. I have never been so engrossed in a soap opera story line before. Today was Jennifer's memorial service on the series, and I have to commend the writers on the series for making a wonderful story for us viewers. It wasn't just Jennifer's story they told, but they have also shown how her death has effected the entire family and those that knew her. Everyone is effected when someone dies. From the very young to the very old, and As The World Turns showed that. From her husband not wanting to leave her bedside even though she had in fact been dead for hours to her little step-brother being angry with God for having taken her away even though he had prayed to him for her survival. I kept finding myself tearing up at the different points, and I really do think the writers did a wonderful job here.

Last but not least, I'd like to thank my Blog of the Week for allowing me to be their Blog of the Week. They have allowed me to live on their sidebar for the next week, so why don't you head on over and check out Stellar Winds. Today you can read about her having to completely restore her computer and losing her MS Office discs. I'm sure we've all been there.

332. An Amused Moment

Monday, July 10, 2006

I was just checking my statcounter to see how people come to my site, and I saw one from a directory for someone looking for a Gina Wild. My new blogname and my first name somehow directed them here and it is fairly high up on their search rankings. Just who is Gina Wild? A porn star. Hah! Well, I'm sorry they won't find any porn here. Just the ramblings from my wild mind.

EDIT 3:07pm: Since I have a bit of extra time on my hands I'll be taking part in Click and Comment Monday! It's a great way to find new blogs to read and stop in and say hello.

331. Sunday Rambles

Sunday, July 09, 2006

I don't know what it is about Sunday's, but my body clock just seems to let me sleep a little bit longer. I'm usually up around ten each morning, ready to start my day. However, on Sunday morning that is all out the door. I sleep in to at least eleven. Yes, I know oh so much later, but its better than nothing right. I love the weekend's, even though they aren't much different than the rest of the week for me. I guess that's because I work from home. Many go out to work at some office or another locale for five days a week, and here I am day in and day out working from home. Now, I don't make as much as I would if I found a job outside the home, but I make more all the time. I just need to find more writing work. A year ago, I wasn't even making what I am now.

Things keep changing, and like I said yesterday sometimes change is a good thing. Change is a natural part of life, and you can't just stop change. Speaking of change, I have an all new Blog of the Week ! This week the honor living on my sidebar for a week goes to Undercover Angel with her blog, Stellar Winds. She's a published author from reading her profile, and I keep seeing her blog up over on BlogExplosion's Battle of the Blogs. She seems to talk about a variety of topics from Star Jones to embarassing moments and pick-up lines. That's just from her front page. Why don't you head on over and take a look? She'll be staying around here until next Sunday.

This weekend I've spent watching movies. I've watched The Pelican Brief and The Exorcism of Emily Rose yesterday, and today I'm watching Must Love Dogs. All three were good. I'm watching Must Love Dogs right now actually, and I've always been a huge fan of Diane Lane. Unfaithful is one of my favorites movies, and although she's aged just a bit she is still good looking. I've been meaning to see this movie for awhile now, but I never caught the beginning. Today I caught it just before it came on HBO, so here I am watching it.

It is a perfect lazy Sunday to end the week with, and tomorrow is Monday. Another crazy week begins. Have a great Sunday night everyone!

330. Yes, another new look

Saturday, July 08, 2006

For those that have stopped by in the last 24 hours, you might have noticed that once again I have a new look. The other layout wasn't all that old, but I'd noticed a few small problems with it in the last week, so yesterday when I was surfing I found a new site with free templates and I one caught my eye almost immediately, so I changed. The switch was actually one of the easiest layout changes I'd made to this site in a long time. There was a few minor bugs, but it was quite painless, and I think it improves the look and feel of the site. I loved the cat especially.

Speaking of cats, Mikey decided he wanted to lay on my desk earlier this morning, so I took the opportunity to snap a new shot of him with my web cam. He's just about six months now, and he's growing everyday. He still has the occasional sniffle, but we think that might be some allergy he picked up or possibly because he is a pound kitty. I'm sure he's glad to be living here with us than where he was when he was a youngster. In the next couple of weeks, my brother and I finally have decided to go and have our older cat fixed. He's had a few problems with doing things around the house that he shouldn't, so we think it is time to do it. He'll hate us, but it'll be over with, and he'll just have to get over with. I'll have to see if I can get him to pose for the web cam some day, or perhaps just develop the shots I already took. I haven't posted a picture of him since he was a kitten, and let me tell you now he is a huge one and a half year old cat.

On another note, I've started using Fire fox more this week. I've had it installed on my system for awhile because I noticed a few sites seem to cooperate better with it, and today I'm using it to do some things I do everyday on IE, and that is surf my traffic exchanges. On IE, I can do nothing else for the hour or so everyday it takes to do it because every time a new page loads my entire browser would jump. Well, I decided to let my cycle go today using fire fox, and it is going while I write this and while I've done a few other things this morning. No browser jumping to retain focus, so I might see myself using Fire fox a lot more in the future, but I don't see me giving up on IE entirely. Some sites just work best for me there. I just won't be afraid to use Firebox as much. Sometimes change is good.

329. Sad moment

Thursday, July 06, 2006

Just the other day on my blog, I mentioned a story line on the soap opera I watched. A young woman is dying, and I spoke how it hit a bit close to home. Well, in a way it hit even closer. As time goes on, when watches a television show they become attached to the people behind the characters. Everyone has their favorites they follow. On soap operas, you'll sometimes see the same actors week after week for years. I've been watching As The World Turns and Guiding Light since I was a young child, and many of the actors have stayed the same through the year. On As The World Turns, there are a few actors that have been there since day one, and that series is celebrating their 50th anniversary this year.

Today, when I was checking through my feeds for things of interest to write about on my entertainment blog, I came across a story about a soap opera actor committing suicide over the weekend. I was getting ready to skip it because there are so many soaps on air, I didn't even think it could be someone from the ones I watch. Well, I was skipping As The World Turns caught my eye, so I stopped. As it turned out, it was someone I did know and I had watched since he started on the show twenty-one years ago.

He is part of the story line that I mentioned, playing the girls father, Hal Munson. He has been a favorite character of mine, and I was immediately saddened to hear of his death. He has scenes filmed through next week, and now it might be just a little bit odd or a little bit more sad to watch as this story line plays out because I know now that he is gone. It isn't only following the death of a character, but the death of someone I've grown to know over the last twenty years. Reality and fiction are colliding.

Good-bye Benjamin Henrickson. You'll be missed not only by your television family, but by the many fans you have collected over the years in your role as Hal, me being one of them.

328. 4th of July

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

I'm not a real huge fan of the Fourth of July. It used to be one of my favorite holidays as a child too, but now it is day I wish I could sleep away or spend in blissful ignorance. If only it were that easy. Mother's day was easier this year, but it is funny how something you watch on television can bring back sad memories. That's what happened this week. On one of the soap operas I watch there is a storyline where one of the characters is dying. She's in the hospital breathing her last breaths, she has an infant son, and she is about to be married. There is no hope for her survival, and today it was the fourth of July on the show just like it is here in our time.

It just hit a little bit too close to home because eleven years ago, my mother was the one in that bed breathing her last breaths as her family surrounding her bed, with many more waiting outside in the hall. she took that last breath at exactly 2:42pm. I checked the clock. It may sound morbid, that I know she died exactly 2:42pm on Tuesday, July 4th, 1995. I do though. I remember the last time I spoke to her too. Some day time heals all wounds, but I think there are some that just don't ever truly heal. My mother was the most important person in my life, and I still miss her.

I am trying not to dwell. I'm doing some fun things today. I went out swimming earlier, and I've been talking to people on and off throughout the day. Sometimes something reminds me of her though, and it hurts just a little. The story line on the soap opera brought it all back though. It even made me cry. Tonight, I'll be watching fireworks on television. I want to wish all those celebrating today a very happy and safe 4th.

327. Thinking back

Monday, July 03, 2006

Do you ever notice just how time seems to fly? The other night I was sitting here on the computer chatting with some people online. I had been watching a movie until about ten that might, and when I looked up at the clock it was somehow already 1:30 in the morning. I had no idea how over three hours had passed, but they had. Sometimes that happens when you get so involved in what you are doing. Time just seems to get away from you. No matter what you do. It isn't a bad thing. Losing time can be a good thing. If your mind is so focused on something that means you're not sitting around looking for something to keep your mind occupied.

I've always been a thinker, and yes I am known to think too much. Yesterday, I was thinking how I feel so disconnected from everyone I call friends. We don't really talk all that much anymore, and I've stopped talking to some altogether. Through no fault of theirs or mine really. Perhaps things are changing again. Things are always changing it seems. Once again, that isn't a bad thing. Sometimes things need to change for the good to come into your life. Sometimes you let go of something, and later on you think of it ... maybe you shouldn't have let whatever or whoever it is go.

That happened recently too. Someone brought up an old friend of mine, someone I considered a good friend, and I actually kind of missed this person. I made a choice though. I walked away from this person because having them in my life just complicated things too much. Do you ever feel like you made the wrong choice? At least you're the one that made it. You and only you were in control of the decision. At least it felt that way. You can never what is happening in the other person's mind. I hope in this case this person realizes that the person they once called their Juliet is thinking about them. Hmm. This isn't what I set out to write in here today, but it'll stand. More soon. Don't forget to check out my Blog of the Week!

326. Just another Cycle

Sunday, July 02, 2006

Do you ever notice how life seems to go in cycles? You have your good days, your bad days, the days you hate the world, the days where everything and anything just bores you to death, and those days where everything is just alright. I seem to have my life happen in cycles. This week started off good, but by the time Thursday rolled around I was a bit off. I had caught some kind of flu bug Tuesday, and by Thursday I was feeling quite horrible. It was one of those bugs that seemed to center on my stomach, so anything food like was not my friend.

I'm feeling better now, and as I mentioned in my last post I did go to see Superman Returns. My full review of that movie just went live on my review site in the last hour. Check that out if you want to see what I thought of the movie, but remember there are full spoilers for the movie too. I will say here that I really enjoyed the movie, and I'm looking forward to more in the franchise.

I decided to give the Rent My Blog program at Blog Explosion another try. My first Blog of the Week this week is Scooter McGavin's 9th Green. I've been reading his blog for the last year since I started my own review site. He covers television, music and sports. With the summer season upon us, his focus has been heavily on music, and he has some great CD reviews up. So why don't you head on over to check out what he's reviewing this week. I'm sure you'll find something that will catch your interest.

Have a great Sunday everyone!