Friday, February 27, 2009

What Will They Think of Next???

This story fascinates me.
These people are tapping out novels on their cell phones! Isn't that amazing? I would, of course, lose my mind. But I'm impressed that these young people are taking that ambition and channeling into a worthwhile creative endeavor.
Cell phones are pretty amazing things. You can do so many tasks on them now. I suppose this is just one more thing that they're capable of doing.
But I can't imagine tap tap tapping away on a screen so minimal or a keyboard that is smaller than my palm.
Apparently there is a "mode" on my phone that allows for keyboard shortcutting. The "T9" mode or some such nonsense.
pft
Drives me crazy. It doesn't take away my time to tap something out. It lengthens it. Um...considerably. The girls are constantly telling me to leap into the 21st century. Smart butts that they are.
But I resist.
Writing stories on cell phones.
What a novel idea.
Grins*

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Twisters

You know you grew up in tornado alley if...

The first thing you do if you hear tornado sirens during the day is check your watch to see if it's noon...or run outside to look.
You don't get worried unless the sky looks "green".
You use the word "tornado" as a verb.
You chuckle at all the facebook groups called "I survived the ___ tornado."
You might go indoors when there's a tornado, but you won't "seek shelter" for anything less than an F3.
You know what Doppler radar, Hook echo, wall cloud, and rain-wrapped all mean.
You've never exactly memorized the tornado precautions, but you've heard them enough times that you know them by heart anyway.
Watching the weather is entertaining. And red on the Doppler radar is exciting.
The phrase "Tornado on the ground, take your immediate tornado precautions" sends exciting shivers up your spine.
You've seen photos/videos of tornados and said, "Wow, that's a nice one!"
You can feel/smell tornado weather brewing a few hours before the storm actually begins.
There's an odd feeling as though you've misplaced something if you make it all the way to June without a tornado warning near you.
You think people that live in earthquake and/or hurricane prone areas are crazy.
You know what people are talking about when they mention the "May 3rd/Moore" tornado and the "Greensburg/May4th" tornado.
You watch the movie "Twister" just so you can point out all the inaccuracies in it.
You know your weathermen by their first names. i.e. Gary.
When you hear the tornado sirens go off, you go outside to watch the storm and take pictures.
Most of the tornado video footage comes from everyday people with camcorders instead of from actual news/weathermen.
You're sure there's a giant tornado magnet hidden somewhere in Moore. And that there are smaller ones distributed throughout trailer parks.
You know that the four seasons are actually: summer, late summer, winter (if you're lucky), and tornado.
You don't consider it windy until the windspeed is faster than 30mph.
You are highly entertained by people from outside tornado alley when there is a tornado watch.
You learned that some other states don't have tornado drills from this list.
There's enough random stuff in your tornado shelter that you could live there for a year.
You stand under your carport or open your front door to watch hail and/or thunderstorms.
You know the difference between a basement, a cellar, and a storm shelter.
The weather is a completely acceptable subject for conversation, at any time, for any occasion.
Your local mall has "tornado shelter" signs posted.
It doesn't bother you the next day to find out that your area was under a tornado watch the night before and you had no idea. Unless, of course, it caused you to miss some interesting cloud formations.
Getting to "play" in the basement/cellar/storm shelter numbers among your favorite childhood memories.
You keep matches, candles, and candleholders in more than one place in your house.
Your town will never get hit by a tornado because you're between two rivers or because an old Indian legend says so.
You complain about severe weather reports that interrupt the TV show you're watching.
You can get together all your most important possessions in 2 minutes flat.
When tornado sirens woke you up in the middle of the night...you rolled over and went back to sleep.
You've ever tried to reassure someone by saying that "if anything forms it will only be a little tornado"...and couldn't understand why this didn't calm them down any.
It's normal for your area to be under a tornado watch for multiple days in a row.
When looking at houses/buildings you give them a "tornado survival ranking". i.e., how big of a tornado it would take to destroy it. Also, if you are in a new building or house, you evaluate in your mind the best place to take shelter.
You've ever asked (probably w/ disdain) "Don't they know the difference between a warning and a watch?"
You know what towns/cities a tornado normally passes through before coming your way.
From watching radar maps, you've heard of almost every small town in your state. And you know what towns are around them, but you have no idea where in the state they are.
****

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Chaotic

We're doing a redesign at work. New carpet and a total redesign of the departments around here.
It's maddening.
We still don't entirely have our footing as to job duties, other tasks, and desk assignments. And that leaves a lot of us looking longingly at a bottle of Jack at the end of a days work. Ya know?
And instead of a large building in which to do business, we have a small room. And I mean small.
When it's complete, it's going to be utterly gorgeous. Until then? Not so very much.

Personally? I'm rocking right along. Haven't concentrated on WATS like I should. I would say that's been my biggest downfall of sorts. My bills are all paid. I have a new vehicle.
Wait.
Did I tell y'all that???
If you're a regular reader, you know I'm the poster child for fucked-up automobiles. And I swear to God I can feel my arteries try to shutdown when I have a car that will not treat me right. For example...start.
And after a three week cluster from hell, I have a new car. Well. A new USED car. *grins*
It used to be my sister's company car. But she's moved on up to an Eddie Bauer Ford Expedition vehicle with a sunroof and heated leather seats. Lord love her. LOL
So I'm bipping around in a 2006 blue Ford Escape with around 40,000 miles on it. And OMG! Am I loving the hell out of it? You bet your ass. The girls love it. We rock to the music streaming out of the speakers. It's fantastic!!!

Now. If only I don't have a nervous breakdown at work.
Grins*

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

37 Today

Hello all!

I turned 37 this morning. 8:02 am to be exact. *grins*
What a difference a decade makes. LOL
Ten years ago I turned 27. My thoughts centered around entirely different sets of problems.
For example:
A decade ago I was worried about how chickies would do for a full day in school. Now I'm worried that even when they go to school, are they going to stay?
A decade ago I was worried about my girls' friends lying. Now I'm worried about them being pissed off and bringing a gun to school.
A decade ago I worried about finding a ponytail holder to pull my hair up in. Now I'm worried about arranging my hair so the gray doesn't show.
A decade ago my Mom bought me sexy lingerie for my birthday. This year she bought me a 6 qt crock pot, and I'm just as thrilled.
A decade ago I looked forward to thirty (which, quite frankly, was a year that totally rocked for me.) Now I'm looking forward to forty.
But on the plus side...I laugh more. I think more. I dream more. I live more. So another year?
Eh. It's only a set of days. It's the set of memories that I have that more than make up for some number that doesn't even begin to tell the story of my life.
Grins*

Friday, February 13, 2009

Words of Wisdom

I love words. String them together and you can heal a heart, open a mind, and change the world.
Pretty potent stuff.
Here are a few of my latest and most favorite words of wisdom:
*I am not a Human Was or a Human Will Be. I am a Human BEING.
*You can only change yourself.
*Never measure your value in another's eyes.
And one that a former co-worker and I always used to make fun of when the employer put it on the work calendar:
*If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got.
I'm not snickering anymore. Because it makes perfect sense to me. So I'm taking each opportunity to try and get it right this time to the best of my ability. Taking steps to align my life with my dreams and hopes and desires.
Laughing, loving, and living in the moment. There is a sense of peace and rightness sometimes when there are no words at all.
Grins*

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Male Sex Survey

I can't find it now, damn it. But I read an interesting article from the homepage of AOL the other day. It was a Male Sex Survey.
It included: what they like, how they feel, and sexual preferences.
I do so love to get into a guy's head. But anyway...what really made me laugh aloud was a percentage.
The question (I'm paraphrasing) asked whether a man wanted a woman who could cook or a woman who could give him oral sex more. It was like a 49%/48% split.
And honest to God, all I could think about was...I feel the same way.
lmao
So see? We're not that different after all.
I could hem and haw and say that it's all research. But I'd be lying. And I do hate a liar. Had too many of them in my life.
The simple truth? Sex is fascinating. The chemical and physiological reaction. The sensations. All of it. Perhaps that's why I split my romance between traditional and erotic.
Now. I obviously need a literary hero who can cook and *ahem* take care of other necessary business.
Grins*

Monday, February 09, 2009

The funniest damn thing Middle Chicken has done so far

Middle Chicken was a bit hyper yesterday evening. She swears it was the chicken and rice. I'm not so sure. But I do know she bounced off the walls like she thought it was a good idea. I finally coax her into taking a shower and not waiting forever because she has to straighten her hair before she goes to bed.
So MC hops in and then tells OC she can come and visit her. They all like to party in the bathroom and talk about things I'm sure I don't want to know about. Then MC asks OC to hand her the soda she has in there. OC does.
MC lets out this growl/roar thing while in the shower and says, "That's my best impression of Tupac from Star Wars."
OC flies out of the bathroom, doubled over, looks at me and says...This is hilarious. And proceeds to tell on MC.
I fell helpless to the hilarity. I had to remove my glasses because tears streamed from my eyes. And as soon as I had myself under control, off I went again. In fact, I'm still laughing.
And now, OC is calling MC...Tupaca.
OMFG
I need a tissue.
Grins*

The Grammys Got It Right

I used to love watching award shows. The Emmys. The Oscars. Any and all music awards shows. Then that fizzled out rather quickly over a year when I think the scheduled show ran over four hours long.
I would have rather watched golf. THAT'S how bad it was.
But as much as I love music, I decided to give it another go and see what's up.
Couldn't be happier I did.
Now. I haven't watched the Grammys since Ricky Martin sang "Livin' La Vida Loca." Yeah. It's been awhile. But that was hands down one of the best performances I had ever seen him give. I think I watched Toni Braxton perform that year, also. Absolutely amazing.
But this year?
Someone finally got it right.
The performances were a mix of genres and ages. I thought putting Kanye, Jay Z, and T.I. on stage together was inspired. The same for Jamie Foxx, Smokey Robinson, and Ne-Yo. What my gag reflex had a hard time with was the Jonas Brothers and Stevie Wonder. I loathe the Jonas Brothers. They are talentless hacks that Disney has foisted on the masses to make a buck.
But enough about them. Sir Paul and Dave from the Foo Fighters rocked. Coldplay was utterly fantastic. The more I see them, the more I like them. Sugarland blew me away. Jennifer Nettles just has that VOICE. Phenomenal.
So all in all, I enjoyed the three and a half hour program. It lagged a bit in spots. But it made up for it in vitality and freshness.
MIX IT UP, people!
And maybe, just maybe, the Oscars won't tank this year like they did last year.
Ya know?
Grins*

Thursday, February 05, 2009

Ode to Mr. Reed

Mr. Reed was a modest band teacher. A man concerned more with teaching children music than most anything else.
He passed away Tuesday at the age of 81. And I can say, without hesitation, that he changed my life.
I took band in sixth grade and decided on the clarinet. And let me say that I don't remember pitching a fit to get one, but I must have been fairly persistent because I received one. And for a poor family, that's saying something.
I'm quite sure I tapdanced all over my parents' nerves with what we will loosely call "practicing." I know I did my dad's. He still mentions it at every holiday. *smile* But I stuck with it and my series of honks that could call geese to my front porch eventually actually sounded like "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."
Junior High was a different story. Let's say I literally loathed seventh and eighth grade. My body did things I really didn't like. I started wearing glasses. I gained weight. It was horrid.
And then there was band.
Band at the junior high was in the basement level. Great acoustics. But when I say you could've hid bodies down there, I'm not kidding. And I lost interest. Rapidly.
But when your parents fork out God knows how much money for a piece of plastic that you swear you will cherish forever, you're kind of screwed.
So screwed I was.
I've always loved music, but I hated pretty much everything else. Until Mr. Reed. He was a slight man. And even back twenty years ago, he had those lovely lines on his face that spoke of graceful age and dignity. And having no male of any sort in my life that was worth a damn, I have to say that Mr. Reed fascinated me. He was softspoken and intelligent. He could pick up any damn instrument and play it. He marvelled me.
That sums it up nicely. He marvelled me.
Now back in the day, we had two concerts. But the spring concert was the biggie. That's when the girls wore formals, and the boys wore suits and ties or the equivalent of such dress.
And Mr. Reed, God bless him, had us tackling Mozart. "The Marriage of Figaro" to be precise.
Now, being a fairly young band, the sight of sixteenth notes piled on top of each other intimidated a few. But not for long. Because we broke that song down until we knew every note in it. And the night of the concert?
We rocked their socks.
You better believe it.
I can't hear that song today without thinking of a band director who put his kids first and touched so many lives through his caring and dedication. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Band Directors Hall of Fame in 1979. But his real legacy lies in all the hearts of the students he taught over the decades.
God bless you, Mr. Reed.
*****

Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Wear Me Out Wednesday

And gee. That looks a lot kinkier than it actually is.
*sigh*
I'm tired. Scratch that. I'm flippin' exhausted. Didn't make it to work yesterday because honestly, I thought someone beat me with a bat while I was sleeping.
On a related note, I asked the chickens but nobody 'fessed up.
Anyway...back to this evening. Wednesday is the long night. The night that drags on forever and a day. Hard to be enthused when my peepers are tired and my bones are aching. I need a long hot bath.
Uh
Huh
But since I've had a reality check and realize that isn't going to happen...I would settle for it possibly being Friday.
*rubbing my computer screen and thinking wishful thoughts*
*opening one eye and scowling*
Well, damn it.
But the good news?
Zip over to Fictionwise.com and check out the Whiskey Creek Press page. And what will you see? Just all of my Elemental Guardian books in the Top Ten. Gotta love that.
Also...you can zip (while you're zipping) over to Whiskey Creek Press and get one of my short stories...FREE!!!
Yay!
So take care of yourself. I'm going to prop myself up over here and try not to watch the clock too closely.
*eye roll*
Yeah, right. Like that'll happen.
Grins*

Monday, February 02, 2009

Medium Well Done

I'm not a big fan of television. I prefer to receive my entertainment from books or my own head. Lots of material up there. But there are a few shows that I absolutely will toss everything else to the side for.
Medium is one. In fact, I would say that Medium is my favorite show. Period. Not only is the content fascinating, but the characters are BRILLIANT!!! Yes, caps. They are that good. The storylines hold my interest from the beginning and never taper off. The relationship between the adults, Joe and Allison, is so true to life that I absolutely laugh aloud sometimes. They become mad at one another. Joe has kept the couch company for a bit. Allison can be bitchy. It's like they're real people. So this obviously appeals to my sense of voyeurism. *grins*
But in the end, even if not wrapped up in one episode, they are really there for each other. Through the visions and job losses and children problems. And that's a show that I'll stop what I'm doing simply to watch the stories unfold.
I'm so excited that it's on this evening!
LOL
That's why I got my butt out of bed at 6:15 am and exercised. So I wouldn't have to do it when I got home.
I don't believe Mama's making dinner, either. There are, however, leftovers for the able-bodied children to warm up.
Lovely.

As for the Super Bowl, it was pretty good. The fourth quarter obviously the best quarter, but it was still a pretty good game. And the commercials???
O
M
G
I LOVED the Sobe commercial with the lizards and football players. I've already watched it on YouTube twice this morning. heh
Lizards. Dancing. With football players.
That's also good television.
Grins*