SAX APPEAL!!!

This is a bit belated, b/c I've been busy.

My sister is an amazingly talented artist. And yes, I am a bit prejudiced. But obviously others feel a bit the same way because whenever she enters anything into a competition...SHE WINS!!!

This year she entered an acrylic painting (the photo above) of a saxophone into a local art show. It got her a first place in the category as well as a BEST IN SHOW. This is a repeat performance of last year when she got BEST IN SHOW for another painting she did.

MI HERMANA IS MUY AWESOME!!!!

THINGS THAT IRRITATE THE CRAP OUT OF ME!!!

WARNING...this post is full of anger, ranting, and swearing!!!!

It's PMS FROM HELL week, so I figured that I'd make a list of things that would irritate me normally but this week, make me want to rip people's heads off and shove them up their asses!!!!





-- People who don't knock before jiggling the door handle on a public restroom. Also, people who are using the restroom but don't yell out when I give a courtesy knock before trying the handle.





-- People who, at a 4 way intersection, either go when it's not their turn (which I guess is kind of an obvious one). ALSO....people at the same intersection who tell you to go when it's actually THEIR turn (which is probably less obvious....but no less irritating to me).





-- People who order the most expensive thing on the menu at a group lunch. Then divide the check up by the total number of people there. And then act like I'M the one being unreasonable when I refuse to pay $15 for my $4 lunch special.





-- People who blare their horns at you as you are sitting in the exit of a parking lot.....even though you are not moving forward or blocking lanes, therefore not causing any potential traffic accidents. And, of course, they are always on their cell phones. Meaning that they didn't see me sitting there the entire time b/c they were focused on their call rather than the road, so when they finally DID see me, their reaction was "what the fuck is she doing?!?!?!" even though I hadn't moved in at least 2 min. If you're going to talk on the phone while driving, at least take the responsibility for your own stupidity!!!





-- People who borrow money for sodas, snacks from the vending machine, or lunch on a regular basis......yet the ONE TIME you do it, they make fun of you....for the next 2-3 months.





-- People who routinely check out EBAY and Craig's List while at work, but make fun of you for checking your personal email during your lunch break.





-- People who move to the US from another country, open a business, and can't speak a word of English. No, I'm not a total bigotted bitch. The US is basically a land of immigrants. I am all for people coming here and having a better life than they could have had in their motherland. I don't care about people continuing to embrace their culture once they are here. I don't even care if they don't choose to learn English (after all, it's their own neck on the line if they need help but don't know how to ask for it). But if you are going to open a business where you deal with customers.....shouldn't you be able to at least communicate with them? As a consumer, do I not have the right to HAVE YOU UNDERSTAND ME?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!





-- People who move here from another country and then CONTINUOUSLY BITCH ABOUT THE UNITED STATES!!! If you hate it so much, then GO THE FUCK BACK HOME!!!!



-- People who constantly interrupt me. This is ironic , since I am notorious for doing it myself. But, to give myself credit, I realize it's annoying and am trying to cut back on doing it (and I apologize when I catch myself doing it).

Midnight Sun

Midnight Sun is a phenomenon occurring in latitudes north and nearby to the south of the Arctic Circle and south and nearby to the north of the Antarctic Circle where the sun remains visible at the local midnight. Given fair weather, the sun is visible for a continuous 24 hours, mostly north of the Arctic Circle and south of the Antarctic Circle.

It's also the working title of a book by author, Stephanie Meyer. For those who do not know, she is the author of the Twilight series of books about Bella (a mortal) who falls in love with Edward (a vampire. A nice vampire. A very, very, VERY nice vampire!).

Basically, the Twilight series is written from Bella's perspective. Ms Meyer thought that it would be great to have a book from Edward's perspective. And from what we could see (she gave as an "appetizer" by allowing us to read the first chapter on her website), she was right. I was very excited for the book to be published.

Then, some idiot decided WHAT FUN it would be to post a copy of the draft on the internet. Ms Meyer got all kinds of pissed off and decided that there was no point to finish the book.

Hello...WHAT?!?!?!?!

I understand that someone betrayed her trust. I understand her going after that person like a vampire goes after blood (well, the UN-nice vampires anyway). But how does punishing her fans right the wrong?

I'm sure there were plenty of people who looked at the leaked draft. I'm sure that there were many MORE (such as myself) who did NOT.

To be fair, Ms Meyer did post a copy of the draft on her website so that her fans could read it and get a bit of insight into Edward's mind. As much as I appreciate that, I still am feeling a bit disappointed. My books are like friends, and I like to visit them over and over again. My Twilight collection will simply not feel complete until Midnight Sun is on the shelf.

So, Ms Meyer....have your pity party. You are entitled to it. But then, think of your fans and keep the production and release of Midnight Sun moving forward.

9-11, always remember

Today is the 7 yr anniversary of 9-11.

A moment to remember those who perished. A lifetime to honor those who willingly risk their lives to keep us safe.

When Life Hands You Lemons....

This post was originally starting out as a bitch fest, but then it ended up turning into something positive.

The bitch fest was because I was upset. Several months ago, people at work got raises. I didn't. I will not go into the details, other than to say that it was a bogus deal and total BS. Finally, yesterday, I find out that my raise got approved. And then, this morning, I receive a notice from my apartment mgmt that my rent is going up $75/month AND they are now adding a $25/month pet fee (which I haven't paid in the previous 9yrs of living there and the pets have been there the ENTIRE TIME). So I was feeling all kinds of negative about the fact that I will be able to use NONE of my raise towards actually paying off my debt.

I went online to do a Google Images search about lemons (Original theme to this post: when life hands you lemons....you throw them at idiots who piss you off). And I came across this picture of Alex....a little girl who was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 4 back in 2000. She decided to open a lemonade stand to raise money for research into childhood cancer. Her goal was to raise a million dollars....a goal which was achieved not long before her death in 2004.

Alex's determination and "make lemonade" attitude has spawned a national movement. In 2005, the owners of Kentucky Derby hopeful, Afleet Alex, not only donated a percentage of his winnings to this cause, but brought national attention to it as well. TastyKake created an Alex's Lemonade krimpet, which will raise additional money for the cause.

Since her first lemonade stand in 2000, Alex's Lemonade Stand has raised over 20 MILLION DOLLARS!

So I'm done with my pity party. Instead of looking at the rent increase as something that has negated my raise, I will look at my raise as coming at JUST THE RIGHT TIME to negate my rent increase.

Thank you, Alex, for helping me to put my priorities in order. Now I'm going to go enjoy a nice, cold glass of lemonade!!!

Rainy Day Blues

Less than 6 weeks until the Breast Cancer 3 Day walk.

I didn't do any walking this past weekend. On Saturday, I was depressed and mopey and wanted to spend the day bathing in my mopiness.

Woke up. Stayed in bed reading. Took a nap at noon. Woke up at 2. Moved to the couch to read some more!

On a good note, I actually finished the third book of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I've had the books since I was in high school (mid 80s) and have started the trilogy countless times, but have yet to finish it. Book one flies by. Book two moves a bit more slowly, but intrigues me enough to finish it. Book 3.....I don't think I've ever gotten more than halfway through it. My problem is, once I pick up a book, I can't set it down. And once I do, I'm done with it. and with the LOTR Trilogy, I feel like I need to read THEM ALL at once......which is the equivalent to having a big breakfast on Thanksgiving morning (Book One), going to a Thanksgiving dinner at lunchtime (Book Two), and then having to go to yet another Thanksgiving dinner in the evening (Book Three).

The only time I actually wasn't in bed or on the couch was the hour I spent hiding from a possible tornado in my bathroom. Tropical Storm Hannah was making it way up the east coast and we had tornado warnings in my neighborhood. To be honest, I can never remember if it's a "watch" or a "warning" that means one actually has been sighted, but when the local cable company broke into ALL of the channels saying "get yer ass to shelter, right quick", I did so (after shoving my cats into their carrier and getting them and the guinea pig situated. Gotta take care of the kids first!!!). Turned out to be nothing but better safe than sorry. I have no interest in playing Dorothy.

On Sunday, I allowed myself another sleep-in and then spent the day in a mad apartment cleaning frenzy. My housekeeping is very lax on a good day, but with all of my training, I really have let it get out of hand.

Random funny story.....my BABY sister is away at her freshman year of college. I mailed her WalMart gift card figuring that she could use it for snacks, supplies, cds...whatever. I get a text from her today, thanking me for the card. "Now I can go buy BRAS!!!" was her response. Of course, I had to ask what happened to the bras she currently owns and received the answer "I'm too lazy to do laundry and I don't have any more clean ones". AHHHH COLLEGE!!!!!

I am up to $1600 raised, which means $600 to go (in less than 6 weeks). GULP!!!