Delayed – Thursday Thirteen #20

13 Things About Being Stuck in Chicago O’Hare

When I flew up to Chicago for a quick business meeting on Thursday, I didn’t realize that getting home from the meeting would be such a problem. But Thursday afternoon my flight was delayed and then cancelled and I was stuck in Chicago for at least another day.

#1 The thrill of rushing back to the airport and thinking that I could possibility get standby on an earlier flight quickly faded.

#2 Beer costs too much at the airport. Three bottles of beer cost me about $16. The buzz didn’t last long enough.

#3 Not many restaurants in O’Hare. Actual RESTaurants, where you can sit down and have a comfortable meal.

#4 Because of the uncertainty of whether or not you’re staying or going, you can’t go back into town and see some cool things.

#5 We waited hours to find out that our delayed flight was cancelled. So much for getting to the airport early!

#6 We waited for 1 ½ hours in line and still didn’t speak with a customer service agent. We used cell phones to get a discounted hotel room and seats on the next flight. It was hard to leave the line.

#7 Our next fight wasn’t until Saturday night at 10 pm. Mind you, this was Thursday.

#8 They couldn’t/wouldn’t get our checked luggage. I had only what I was carrying.

#9 Being stuck with my co-worker, Aimee the Red, was great. Misery loves company.

#10 We met lots of interesting people who were in the same situation as us. “Hello” to the mother and two teen-age sons trying to get to Virginia. “Hello” to the guy trying to get to Salt Lake City. I’m glad you got a direct flight instead of having to go through Fargo, ND.

#11 The Exel Inn wasn’t as bad as it initially sounded. Our first thought was that we hoped it was better then a cot in the baggage. It was nice, even though we had to wait another hour or so to get checked in.

#12 Thank goodness there was a Family Dollar near our hotel. Even though they didn’t open until an HOUR after their posted opening time, we were able to get cheap clothes and underwear. Yep—we couldn’t even go to a store without having to wait.

#13 Getting patted down in security was actually a highlight. After all the waiting and standing and stress, a little massage was nice!

PS: We eventually got a flight out on Friday afternoon. It felt like getting called down on the Price is Right or winning the lottery. The flight was delayed, but we still got home Friday night.

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Bee Gone!

Looks like the Bees in The Bee House are moving into their new home. We had a beekeeper come out to take the bees. It was a very interesting project. My husband actually got to put on a complete bee suit and help.

They tore up the floorboards and found a large hive. They cut sections of the honeycomb and placed them into the box--their new home. Then they grabbed handfuls of bees and put them into the box as well. The whole time they hoped that they got the queen. She is the key to moving the hive.

Seems that they did get the queen and the new hive is getting settled. Soon, the beekeeper will retrieve the box and take them to their new location. I hope they like the ride!

No, we won't be getting any honey. I'm not taking any chances with questionable honey made in an old, abandoned house.

Yet Another Reason I Left The City

I just checked the news in the city I lived in just a year ago. Directly across the street from my old apartment there was a mysterious double homicide. They were found in their apartment, shot dead.

When I lived there, that apartment building was always suspect. The people who lived there usually seemed iffy. We used to sit on our front porch and talk with our upstairs neighbor. We'd watch the activity across the street and make up stories about what they were doing. Mostly they were dealing drugs, having affairs, and getting really drunk.

But to hear about something like a double homicide, makes me feel a lot better about our move to Creekistan. The most tragic thing that's happened in Creekistan is that a dog died after being bitten by a copperhead snake.

No place is 100% safe. But it's nice to know that my children will be safer where we are.

Thursday Thirteen #19

13 Monty Python Quotes that Me and My Family Use

1. It’s . . .



2. And now for something completely different.



3. I wave my private parts at your aunties.



4. It’s only a flesh wound.



5. I didn't know we had a king. I thought we were an autonomous collective.



6. Ni!



7. The messiah can’t come out today, so Piss Off!



8. The only reason that it had been sitting on its perch in the first place was that it had been nailed there.



9. I didn't expect a kind of Spanish Inquisition



10. Spam, spam, spam, spam, eggs and spam.



11. “She turned me into a newt!” “A newt?” “I got better. . .”



12. Oh! Come and see the violence inherent in the system! Help, help! I'm being repressed!



13. “An argument is an intellectual process. Contradiction is just the automatic gainsaying of any statement the other person makes.” “No it isn't.”

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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Thursday Thirteen #18: 13 Things that I Do Not Apologize For

This is one of the topics that I’ve been wanting to do for a while . So I’m sorry if it seems a little bitchy. Really, I apologize! Oh wait, I’m not supposed to apologize. Sorry!

1. I will not go to any Tupperware-type parties. Especially when the purpose is less in trying to sell you a product and more in trying to sell you a distributorship into their pyramid scheme. Or at the very least, they pressure the attendees to have their own party. But, if you leave me a catalog, I just might buy a product!
2. Yes, my car is a mess. I can’t seem to spend as much time in my car as I do and be able to keep it clean. Especially with two kids who drag in toys, etc. On the flip side, if you need anything, it just may be in my car! Besides, with a 40 minute trip from/to home one-way, I don’t want to forget anything.
3. Oh, and yes, I have a car and not an SUV or mini-van. So it may be a little cramped. I don’t normally take extra passengers. But it saves on gas, and that’s good for my pocketbook and, in the long-run, good for the world.
4. Sometimes I put off housework in order to pay attention to my family. Since I work full time, my evenings with the children are precious. I don’t really care to spend it doing dishes. I’ll try to do it after they go to bed, but then my husband likes to take over!
5. I like good beer, not American beer. That means I drink the dark stuff. Give me a Becks Dark or a Warsteiner Dunkel! But given the choice between a Budweiser and water, I may choose water.
6. Jello is a dessert and not a salad. It should never be used as a salad, and I won’t eat it if it is.
7. Coffee is best when it’s strong. I make strong coffee. If you don’t like your coffee strong, add water to it.
8. I don’t send out Christmas cards. I send out cards that wish people Happy Holidays. That is because I don’t like it when people assume that everyone believes in the same thing that they do. I’m always trying to remind people that not everyone celebrates Christmas.
9. I don’t really like professional sports, and I think it’s a waste of time. I don’t follow what’s going on in the sports world. I’ll watch the Superbowl for the commercials and I’ll cheer for the team with the best colors or mascot if I have to. Leave the playing of games to kids and stop taking it so seriously!
10. When going to the symphony or opera, I don’t get completely formally dressed. I mean, I won’t look like I’m going to the prom. If you go often enough, you’ll notice that the people who really enjoy classical music are there for the music and not just to be seen.
11. I will not say Grace or pray out loud. I don’t like the pressure.
12. We can't get any TV stations and we don’t have cable or satellite. If you come to our house, we won’t sit around and watch it. We can only watch DVDs.
13. I don’t answer the phone every time it rings. I stopped killing myself to get to the phone a long time ago—about the same time that we got voice mail and caller ID. People forget that answering the phone is not mandatory.

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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One Red Paperclip = One House

Congratulations to Kyle MacDonald for realizing his dream of trading his red paperclip for items that eventually included a house. Exactly one year ago today he posted his intension to trade his red paperclip to try and get a house.

I would have offered him the Bee House, but I don't think it's worth one red paperclip. Besides, I'm not sure I'd like this weirdo as a neighbor. ;-)

Check it out!

One Year Down. The rest of my life to go!

We’ve hit the One Year mark. On July 8th, we closed on the Creekistan home and property. I remember, because it was the day after the 7/7 London Train bombings. Not a good way to remember the anniversary, but effective nonetheless.

The day also makes one year ago that I was offered my current job. Yep, I got a new home and a new job on the same day. I guess it was meant to be.

I remember, on the two-hour drive home after signing the papers and reading the e-mail that gave me the perfect job offer, that I was anxious and excited. I’ll have to get ready to move. I’ll have to get my son signed up for Kindergarten. I’ll have to find daycare. I’ll have to resign from my current job. We’ll have to figure out where to live until we can get the house habitable. But I’ll be leaving the city and starting a new life in the beautiful country.

This past year had speed by. But this blog has helped chronicle the time, and for that I am grateful.

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why do you have a broken gerbil cage under your desk?
A: At one time I did, but I recently threw it away in order to present a more tidy workplace environment. The cage had once held two gerbils that I acquired for my son’s kindergarten class. The gerbils were doing fine, until around Halloween when they both died under mysterious circumstances. I expect foul play. But until they come up with CSI: Elementary School or Cold Case: K-12, we won’t know what really happened.

Q: What have you planted in your “Spring” garden?
A: We are keeping the garden basic this year, just to see how things go. Right now I have a lot of green beans, some Jalapeño peppers, sweet bell peppers, squash, cucumbers, and tomatoes. I’ve also planted herb seeds, and some are sprouting. Those include parsley and cilantro.
PS: Deer are trying to eat the bean plants. We’ve instructed the dog, as best we can, to keep an eye on the garden. But I’ve also put some fencing to deter pests.

Q: Why do you write on your walls?
A: We are only writing on the walls that will soon be removed or re-covered. We also have written things on exposed boards and old wallpaper. All of which will eventually be removed or covered. Once the construction is done, we will not allow writing on the walls, unless it’s the Hand of God.

Q: Do you have a washing machine and dryer?
A: Not right now. I’m having to go to Laundromats to get clean clothes. This is due to the fact that we do not have city or county water and rely on filling our own cistern with water. We get water from a well across the street. Until we have the water tested and get a better idea about the reliability of the well, we don’t want to hook up a washer. But I’m very hopeful that this fall I will get a new, stackable, washer and dryer. I will probably continue to use the Laundromats because it’s nice to get 10 loads done in under 2 hours.

Any other questions about my life in Creekistan? Just let me know!

Thursday 13: 13 Things Written On The Walls In My Creekistan Home.

1. It’s an ant – your dream doll. The origin of this phrase has dubious beginnings that I no longer remember, but we continue to use it on occasions.
2. Where’s Gesualdo? Gesualdo is a long-dead composer. We thought it was a funny parody of the Where’s Waldo craze.
3. Eat at Ron’s – buy one squirrel git one free. Ron is helping with the construction. He actually eats squirrel, freshly killed.
4. 4 rounds of 5 throws Before the floor was installed, we created a game in the living room we called Rat Tail. It was a tennis ball with a rope stuck into it. We tried to throw it into a box. We had drawn boundaries and points on the floor and the rules on the wall.
5. 3 of 5 for extra throw
6. String worth ½ For times when the ball missed but the string got into the box.
7. Cat worth 100 Nicky didn’t like this game, so it was very difficult to score on this.
8. Divide your flatulence into two partials and you will find great satisfaction Perhaps in the future I will finish this line of “Fortune Cookie Messages You Will Never Receive.”
9. An electric jolt ripped through my whole clavicle I said that and my husband wrote it down.
10. For a good time call Amy at 765-4567. $0.99 per minute. Ron said that it should only take a couple of minutes anyway.
11. What’s under here? Written on a wall with questionable durability. We are almost afraid to look because we may not like what we find. Termites?
12. Carolina’s Room One of the former residents had marked her territory.
13. Wow! A quote from my daughter that we wrote on the wall.

NOTE: These are walls that are unfinished, have old wallpaper, or otherwise will be replaced. We don't normally go around writing on our GOOD walls.

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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Thursday Thirteen: Excuses, Excuses!

Everyone, once in a while, seems to post a Thursday Thirteen with excuses why they think their list this week is lame. Now it's my turn!

1. My eyes hurt. Blame it on allergies or that my contacts are getting old. I could also blame it on the pink-eye infected eye juice, but since I don't use it, I can't.
2. I am not feeling particularly creative this morning. Perhaps some of the other excuses could explain.
3. My Mother has been visiting from out-of-town.
4. We've been staying at hotels for the past three days.
5. I haven't had access to a computer and the Internet for a few days.
6. I just got back to work and I have a lot of things to catch up on.
7. I have so many good topic ideas that I can't pick just one!
8. I need a vacation from the vacation.
9. I haven't slept very good lately.
10. I'm supposed to be doing work right now!
11. My kids have been spoiled so they've been very difficult to deal with.
12. Did I mention my Mother is in town? This is her first visit to Creekistan. According to her, "It's not as bad as I thought it would be."
13. Who can top getting to meet C-3PO? It's been a downer ever since last Wednesday.
    

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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My Robot Week

Several people have asked how I happened to meet C-3PO, aka Anthony Daniels. I work for a company that makes robots and robot kits for beginners. I am not an engineer, but I work with them. But I had the opportunity to attend the RoboBusiness conference in Pittsburgh this week. It was really interesting—-the robots, machines, and computer systems that are state-of-the-art.

As part of the RoboBusiness conference, Carnegie Mellon had their induction ceremony for their Robot Hall of Fame Anthony Daniels emceed the event, and was available during the conference to sign autographs.

I did not know that they would have C-3PO there. Imagine my surprise when I came down to the conference after breakfast and saw the actual size C-3PO statue, R2-D2, Gort (from “The Day the Earth Stood Still”) as well as Maria, the art deco robot from the 1927 film “Metropolis”. I was thrilled—I’m a huge Star Wars fan. But I was even more excited when I noticed Anthony Daniels there. So I had him sign a hat for my son.

He was very nice, and his handwriting was excellent. He wrote my son’s name, and “May the force be with you” along with his signature. We will all treasure it and put it in a place of honor, once our home is finished.

Thursday Thirteen (13): My Favorite Robots

In honor of my meeting Anthony Daniels this week (the guy who plays C-3PO in Star Wars), I would like to list my favorite robots:

1. R2D2 from Star Wars – I have a theory that all six movies are actually about him, that he is the catalyst that makes everything happen. I think he knew a lot more than he said.

2. C-3PO from Star Wars – He is the most polite and annoying, but great nonetheless.

3. Twiki from Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. Always interested in what was going on in the 20th century. Frankly, so am I.

4. Data from Star Trek the Next Generation – He was striving to be more human, not knowing that he was more human than human.

5. Terminator – It was scary how he couldn’t be stopped.

6. Bubo - The Owl from Clash of the Titans. I’d love to have him flying around and helping me out. Besides, if money got tight, I could sell him for the gold.

7. HAL2000 from 2001—A Space Odyssey. What are you doing, Dave?

8. NS-5 from iRobot – Where can I get one of those robots? Cook, clean, carry your purse. Perfect! Except for the whole rounding up humans and trying to protect us from ourselves thing that they did.

9. Bender Bending Rodriguez – from Futurama. I’d love to have a few drinks with him.

10. Mars Pathfinder Sojourner Rover – How cool is it to have a real robot on Mars?

11. The Cylons of Battlestar Galactica – Very cool. Some are even sexy! Some don’t even know they are robots.

12. Bishop from Aliens. He could get chopped in half and still save a human.

13. The giant flying robots in “Sky Caption And The World Of Tomorrow”. They were just cool. I mean, 1940’s Art Deco cool.

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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Thursday 13: My Favorite Hoaxes

Snopes is one of my favorite websites, and I’m always referring people to the site. Especially after I receive an e-mail with a photo or story that seems too good to be true. I love to debunk hoaxes and let the truth be known.

1. The 9/11 Tourist Guy – This photo made the e-mail rounds right after 9/11 and fooled a lot of people.

2. The Well to Hell - Scientists drilling in Siberia went too far and ended up punching a hole through to Hell, where the screams of the damned drifted up to them.

3. Gas Pump Prick –Gas station customers are getting stuck by HIV-loaded syringes affixed to gas pump handles.

4. Frank Zappa once won a gross-out contest by eating excrement on stage. "For the record, folks: I never took a shit on stage, and the closest I ever came to eating shit anywhere was at a Holiday Inn buffet in Fayetteville, North Carolina, in 1973."

5. The Dihydrogen Monoxide Scare. Dihydrogen Monoxide is a colorless and odorless chemical compound, also referred to by some as Dihydrogen Oxide, Hydrogen Hydroxide, Hydronium Hydroxide, or simply Hydric acid. Its basis is the unstable radical Hydroxide, the components of which are found in a number of caustic, explosive and poisonous compounds such as Sulfuric Acid, Nitroglycerine and Ethyl Alcohol. (Note: Dihydrogen Monoxide is H2O, aka Water.) http://www.dhmo.org/

6. Nigerian E-Mail Scam Help a wealthy Nigerian move millions of dollars and you will get a percentage. - A fraud that has actually cost people thousands of dollars.

7. Y2K – We all remember sitting around in our living rooms, with stockpiles of water and food, generators at the ready, waiting for all the lights to go off, the cars to not work, and even our microwaves to stop working. Nothing happened except that I had to buy new checks because the 19__ part of the date was no longer valid.

8. Bert is Evil - Bert, the Sesame Street muppet, appears on posters carried by supporters of Osama bin Laden. Actually, the joke was on someone in Bangladesh who was looking for pictures of Osama and found this one with Bert. He actually USED this image on thousands of posters that were used in demonstrations. Pictures of the demonstrations were carried by credible news agencies. You go Bert!

9. BBC Interview Guy - A guy that was at the BBC for a job interview, was mistaken as an expert and actually got put live, on camera, in an interview about the Apple computers versus Apple music legal case.

10. Celebrity Mediums – Famous psychics such as John Edwards are using an age-old technique called cold reading where they obtain information by asking questions and guessing rather than "talking to the dead".

11. Movie Ghost #1 – I love to pause movies that are supposed to have dead people or ghosts in them. The Wizard of Oz supposedly captured a munchkin hanging himself and his death was captured on-camera.

12. Movie Ghost #2 - The Three Men and a Baby scene in question really does creep me out. A boy is rumored to have committed suicide a room where they filed the movie and his ghost is supposedly captured on film.

13. Music Hoaxs - such as the woman being murdered during the recording of the Ohio Player’s Love Rollercoaster, and the whole Paul is Dead thing in the Beatles recording.

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The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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“Spring” Garden, aka Hillbilly Archeology

I know, I know. It’s a little late to plant a garden. But it’s not TOO late. There are some things that I can get into the ground that may sprout just fine, like beans, and tomato plants. I recently sustained a knee injury that made walking, let alone planting, painful. But that is getting better.

So we selected a spot across from the Bee House that looked like it would be great for a small garden. In fact, there used to be a chicken house in that location. We can only guess this because of the wood pieces that where piled there from a structure that had fallen a long time ago.

While carefully removing the wood—we had to be careful of any exposed nails and potential snakes—we discovered that the former residents used the structure for storage. Presumably after the chickens had left. We had to perform some Hillbilly Archeology. We removed various old planters, long dried out pieces of plastic, and an old tin wall-hanging of a fiddle (this I kept, once it’s cleaned up and painted, it may be pretty cool!). But striking of all of our finds was about 50 springs. The more we excavated, the more we found.

“Why springs?” you may wonder. Well, we asked our neighbors this very question. Seems that years ago, the grandchildren of the people living in the Bee House had a trampoline. Of course, once that trampoline is broken or the kids get too old, the thing you want to do is bury the springs in your front yard where the chicken house used to be. Then, throw the rest under the house along with the old car parts, satellite dish, and sewing machine.

Needless to say, now that the springs are gone, we should have a nice garden. At least I hope so.

Thursday 13: Phrases That I Find Irritating

Okay, you asked for it!

1. “Have a blessed day.” –Many things that people do are well intentioned, yet assumes that their audience shares their exact belief. That’s where this phrase comes in. It’s sneaking in a Christian blessing! What if I don’t want me or my day to be blessed? What if I’d rather have a Birkat ha-Hammah (a Jewish blessing) (I am not Jewish). What if I’m just hoping for a good day, let alone a blessed day.
   
   
2. “Enclosed, please find . . . .” (as seen in business letters). What, did you hide something? You mean I have to search for your enclosure?
   
   
3. “Can I ask you a question?” - You just did, but you are more than welcome to ask another question.
   
   
4. “Let’s touch base.” – (Business jargon). Sorry, I don’t play baseball.
   
   
   
5. “Git-r-done.” – Do I even have to explain?
   
   
   
6. LOL – Caught you! A lot of people use this, but are you really Laughing Out Loud? How many times have we used this when we really didn’t LOL? Come on, admit it!
   
   
7. “Liberal Media” – I hate the fact that the word “liberal” has become, to some people, a derogative term to label people or institutions that are not conservative. Liberal, in my definition, means “free thinking” or “open minded”. The media, on the other hand, is not liberal in that definition. For the most part, they are more entertainment reporters with a little smattering of news.
   
   
8. “Support our Troops” – I preface this by saying that of course I support our troops, even if I hate the fact that they are forced to go into active duty. But I dislike the magnetic yellow ribbons that people stick to the back of their cars, SIDEWAYS. Stephen T. Banko III http://www.counterpunch.org/banko05252004.html said it better then I can: “We now live in a bumper sticker world where the only truths we accept are those simplistic enough to fit on an 18-inch adhesive placard.”
   
   
9. "Breaking news" – The news media use this too much. In recent times, I’ve noticed that they use this everyday to indicate their most exciting stories, whether or not it is actually “breaking news.” Breaking news should be the news that is happening right then—the kind of news that they don’t have all the information yet but can’t wait to tell you!
   
   
10. “Just you wait” – When strangers are talking to me about my children. I guess they are trying to warn me that things will get bad when my children turn double digits.
    
    
11. “Girlfriend” – Especially said to me by someone I don’t even know! Okay, okay, I know they are referring to the solidarity of the female gender.
    
12. “At the end of the day” – Just annoys me, I don’t know why. I am not a fan of unnecessary prepositional phrases.
    
13. “Note to self.” – What, are you so stupid that you have to write little notes to yourself? What about love notes? What about Dear John letters to yourself? Actually, I think that whoever says this out loud is actually wanting whoever listens to help them remember something. “Note to self: don’t forget to blog about this topic.”
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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13 Potential Thursday 13 Topics – Help Me Decide What’s Next!

1. 13 phrases that I find irritating – For example: “Have a blessed day.”
2. 13 of my favorite moments – For example: Having a giggle fit during childbirth class.
3. 13 things that people tell me to do that I ignore.– For example: Make your bed.
4. 13 things that chocolate is not good on. – For example: Tailpipe hitch.
5. 13 things that I do not apologize for. – For example: I will not attend a party hosted by a person who got suckered by a pyramid-type marketing scheme, like Mary Kay or Amway, especially if they are trying to get people to become distributors too.
6. 13 of my favorite hoaxes – For example: The Well to Hell - Scientists drilling in Siberia went too far and ended up punching a hole through to Hell, where the screams of the damned drifted up to them.
7. 13 strange medical conditions or terms – For example: Micropenis.
8. 13 parts of my body that have been broken, fixed, or altered: For example: Ear piercing #1.
9. 13 things about PCOS (Poly-Cystic Ovary Syndrome) bad and good: For example: Irregular periods.
10. 13 things that I miss about working for Big Corporation: For example: multiple stalls in the restroom.
11. 13 things on and under my desk at work: For example: Broken gerbil cage.
12. 13 things about the 13-year-old Amy the Black. For example: I tried to die my hair blond with hydrogen peroxide but it turned my hair orange instead.
13. 13 reasons why I should do a Thursday 13 Podcast. For example: I want to do a podcast, and my husband will be teaching about it, so we might as well do one together!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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Behind the Behind

I work at a strange and interesting company. For one of the projects, my company acquired a full-sized mannequin. (Don’t ask me why, I don’t fully understand it myself.) Needless to say, the programmers had a lot of fun dressing him in strange clothes. He is positioned strategically so that he scares unsuspecting victims as they come around the corner. We’ve already had one victim, the cleaning lady, scream and wet her pants when she arrived early one morning.

I took this while they were positing him near my desk.

You can check out more Behinds at http://dumbbuttblog.blogspot.com/. Thanks Angel for the "plug."

Thursday 13 (Thirteen) for May 25, 2006

13 People I Hope to Meet in the Café at the End of Time

1. Freddy Mercury– to help entertain the crowd with his singing of We Are the Champions and to sing with guest #2
   
   
2. Galileo– Wouldn’t it be fun to have Galileo sing with Freddy Mercury on “Bohemian Rhapsody”? “Galileo, Galileo, Galileo, Galileo, Galileo Figaro.” I’d also want to know how he feels about being permitted back into the Catholic Church, hundreds of years after his death. That is to say, if he would even care anymore.
   
   
3. John Cage– No, not the strange character from the Ally McBeal TV show, but the American experimental music composer. He was also a great story teller, mycologist and mushroom collector: he co-founded the New York Mycological Society. Under the direction of Yoko Ono in order to improve his health, he ate a macrobiotic diet. Therefore, I’d leave the ordering of food to him.
   
   
4. Red Foxx– He could also help entertain with his comic routine. I would also want to ask if he finally got to see his beloved Elizabeth. “This is the big one...I'm comin' to join ya, honey".
   
   
5. Fred Rogers– I would just want a big hug. Reading about him on Wikipedia, I never realized that he was an early and big supporter of VCR use in the home, even giving testimony in court that he appreciates the use of the VCR so that families can watch shows together at a later time. Besides, I’d live to visit the Neighborhood—the little model one, that is!
   
   
6. Anais Nin– We could dish about the men that she’s met, especially Henry Miller. It would be interesting to see her and the next guest flirting with all the guys!
   
   
7. Cleopatra– I just want to hear her stories about her relationships with Caesar and Mark Antony.
   
   
8. Frank Zappa– There is too much I could say about Zappa that I can’t even begin here. If you don’t know who he is, please click on the link. Needless to say, his presence in the Café would be necessary.
   
   
9. Grandpa Clark – He died when I was 7. I’d like to talk to him and find out about his past and if his family really were part of the Oklahoma Sooners as I suspect.
   
   
10. Mark Twain– Who wouldn’t want him at their party? This is a guy who wrote great books, gave wonder speeches, and hung out with the likes of Nikola Tesla.
    
    
11. Jesus of Nazareth– I know, I know. Everyone would pick this guy. But I’m doing it purely on a historical basis. I’d like to see if what we claim to know about him is correct. Besides, he seems like a really cool dude. With him around, we’d never run out of wine!
    
    
12. W. A. Mozart– Anyone who knows me, knows that I have a thing for composers. Don’t worry, hubby, I can control myself.
    
    
    
13. Leonardo da Vinci– Yeah, I know. A very timely choice, given the controversy over the movie and book, “The Da Vinci Code.” But this guy is fascinating. Besides, if I seat him and Jesus together, they would probably get along great.

Who would you invite to come crash my party? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Sirius - The Black Dog

Anyone familiar with Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban will know that Sirius Black can change into an enormous black dog. For a while, Harry thought that the black dog he kept glimpsing was a dark omen called The Grimm. Come to find out, it was his godfather who wanted to save Harry and avenge the death of Harry's parents.

We were watching the movie Saturday afternoon, while the baby was sleeping. We've seen the movie a hundred times. I decided to go downstairs. I heard, out the window, some strange noises. So I opened the front door. A big black dog greeted me. Bandit, our puppy, was playing with this dog. But I thought it was ironic that he should show up while we're watching Azkaban.

So I played a trick on my son: I called him downstairs, opened the door, and said, "It's the Grimm!"

We can't have another dog, especially an adult dog of unknown temperament.

Our friends said that people tend to dump their unwanted dogs where we live. They throw them out of the car and speed off. This dog did not have any ID, but he did have a flea collar. He was nice enough, but very submissive. Not good for a "farm" dog.

He's not around anymore. Thank goodness, because I'd hate to call the dog catcher to come get him. Or, as in Harry Potter, the dementors captured him and took him back to Azkaban. I guess Sirius is off on another great adventure.