oh yeah!

the girlfriend and i are heading off on our annual get-away today. we're heading over to a beach house and will spend four days talking, reading, eating, shopping, talking, exploring, walking on the beach, and talking. it will be fun!

i need an avatar

i went to see Avatar again this afternoon. this is only my second time. it was in 3-d like the first time and it was just as fabulous. there was sooooo much i'd forgotten, and the visuals were just as stunning as the first time. i want to go there and ride on one of those flying bird/dragon things.

i was looking at some of the trivia on imdb and it mentioned the huangshan mountain inspired some of the 'scapes. go to google images and type that in -- the pix are truly beautiful. except for the graffiti.

where's the ladder...

i forgot to mention this article i saw about the coolest way we can all help to fight global warming -- just paint your roof white. it's really interesting reading, and i can't understand why anyone would be against it. i mean, such a small thing could make a big difference.

soaring ever upward... for a little bit

MYS put this video on his blog and it is definitely good enough to repeat! enjoy!!  oh yes, and the music is good, too!

deadly quiet

if you were asked where the most toxic place in america was, what would you say? i would probably decide it was somewhere around niagra falls. or anyplace two or more republicans were meeting.

it appears the most toxic place is the state of my birth -- oklahoma! picher, oklahoma to be exact, way up in the northeastrn corner. and the toxicity is from mining lead and zinc, and the chat piles and dust that was left behind.

i went to google maps and was surprised to see white globs all around the town when i looked at the satellite version. and i was amazed to see that i could get right down on the streets with the little man. i mean ... picher. there are some bigger places that i can't use the little man on. wonders will never cease.

the article is an interesting mix of nostalgia, rebellion, and gumption. the bit about the BIA is disgusting, but that's par for the course. at any rate, i invite you to sit a spell and read.

oh yes!

i just saw a couple of interesting things.

1) if you're in san francisco, you really need to go to the california academy of sciences building. this video will tell you about the construction of the place, and this very-well-done web site is theirs. i would love to visit! and their wine-and-dine tour must be great!

2) i can't wait to see this movie . i mean, i know johnny depp can be really funny, but with angelina jolie? the trailer makes me want to see it!

where are those instruction?!

i remember several years back that i bought a walkman so i could listen to music while i walked.  when i took it out of its packaging, however, it seemed to be configured a little weird. i mean, i could get the whole thing put together, but when i put it on there was absolutely NO slack! it felt weird and i couldn't figure out what the deal was so i just said oh well and headed out for my walk. i began to feel really conspicuous though because the short lead meant i had to scrunch my shoulders and keep my head down. the walk definitely didn't last very long and i didn't use it again.

quite some time later the husband borrowed it. i didn't think he'd do well with it, but he got along fine. when i asked him about it and mentioned the problem i'd had, he couldn't help but laugh as he showed me the extra adjustment i had to make to lengthen the cord.  *sigh*

get your shots

there appear to be a number of young parents who do not belive in vaccinations. that's unfortunate. i've been vaccinated for just about everything i should be and it hasn't proven to be harmful. it looks like whooping cough (pertussis) is making a comeback in the number of victims it acquires. vaccinate your kids.

pahtooey

ahhhhh, facebook's revenge.

i have disliked facebook since the beginning, really, and once i found out they didn't care one single bit about privacy, i really disliked it. everytime i would read about changes being made and what a person should do to try to keep their stuff private, i would make those changes. the last changes i made must have pissed them off seeing as how there's no account for me on facebook anymore. at least not one i can access which is the same thing.

it just underscores how i feel about facebook -- immature, inconsiderate, greedy, disrespectful, and undoubtedly republican.

excellent music

i like a number of things Zero Cult has done and when i saw this video of theirs this morning, i just had to share it with you.  beautiful images, although there's no way i understood the math.  thank you low mercury on facebook (as much as i hate facebook).

old-fashioned values

MYS is going off to los alamos national lab, and there is so much secret stuff there the potential for abuse is large. i recently saw, in fact, where an ex-employee has been charged with narious deeds. i grew up believing in integrity and i've seen during my many years that a certain portion of the population does not. that is truly unfortunate. i feel blessed that our kids adhere to our values and believe in honor, integrity, kindness, and doing your best.

foot comfort

i love haflinger's shoes. they fit my foot perfectly, i can wear them all day, and they're beyond comfortable. the only drawback is that they're so hard to find online. zappos doesn't carry them and neither does planet shoes, both sites of which do carry brands i consider. the one fairly reliable source i've found is dodds shoe company in laramie wyoming. yeah, i know, who'd have thought. but they carry a number of sought-after brands and if you're searching through zappos and planet shoes, remember to also check out www.doddsshoe.com. especially if you're looking for haflinger!

a good example

MYS posted a video which is think is pretty great, especially since it's for a city government. it's for the city of toronto and whoever decided to do it like this, made an excellent decision! do any of our cities have something this entertaining and effective? probably not -- too afraid of some kind of lawsuit maybe. either that or absolutely no imagination.

oh yummy!

do you like peppermint candy? i prefer the kind which is soft and just sorta melts in your mouth. you can get a big jar of it here. it's actually the perfect peppermint stick and a jar of it can last you a long while if you can control your rapaciousness. not an easy task, especially with this stuff, but you can either have it all now or have a little bit for a loooooong while.

on schedule

the girlfriend and i are planning another get-away this year. in fact, we'll be getting away at the end of this month. we'll do a little shopping, a little exploring, a little walking along the beach, a little reading, and plenty of talking. it'll be fun!

be prepared

i bring you a public service message:  September is National Preparedness Month. go to Ready.gov  to see how to put together a plan in case of disaster.

glad i'm not rich

i occasionally get some catalogs which are for the upper crust. by that i mean the clothes are fairly expensive. i recently got a new catalog which i've never heard of -- maus&hoffman.

while i looked through the women's section (8 pages as opposed to 52 for the men), i saw some of the ugliest fashions i've ever seen. and they weren't cheap. there were some god-awful blouses for $150, other blouses for $298, a belt for $425, an ugly blazer for $528, a god-awful business jacket for $1,448, a short coat for $898, and a mini-scarf for $75. finally -- something i could afford. although, who'd want to?  ugly, ugly, ugly!

undecided

i just read where a woman had twin boys at age 60. i'm not sure how i feel about that.