Movin' on down the roooooad.

For the 2 blog viewers that I have out there, I want to apologize for the lack of entries.  During the past week I have quit my job and had to find a new place to live.  I think all is in order...sort of.

Either way, I have a new entry cooking up that will be titled Zoo Kidz.  This is going to be a collaboration, so stay tuned.  After the next week or so, I'll be making regular entries once again.

Stephanie

For all my corporate friends...

http://www.uglydoggy.com/2008/07/its-friday-just-stop.html

Things That Make Me Happy

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1. The trip to NYC next September to celebrate Cole's marriage and Russ's 30th birthday!
   
2. Products by Apple - spanning even beyond my treasured iPod and MacBook Pro
   
3. The movie Tommy Boy
4. Finishing a race (1/2 marathons mostly)
5. Playing Scrabble
6. Sitting outside at Starbucks with good friends.
7. Getting cards in the mail
8. Going to hockey games
9. Good comedy
10. Having adventures
11. Eating sushi
12. Seeing my parents
13. Random things from the 80's (Gizmo the Gremlin, Glow Worms, the Labyrinth, etc)
14. Well designed graphic tees
15. Designing
16. Re-hashing old stories with Meagan (because she can remember EVERYTHING)
17. Creating lame drawings for my blog
18. People telling me they like my blog
19. Eric Bana
20. Nashville/Franklin

LOL...aka...Laugh Out Loud.: The most abused acronym in the universe.

I do believe it was invented with good intentions.  Someone was so stricken with humor while communicating with another person (that is not in the same room) that they laughed audibly.  This actually does happen, in which case, makes it acceptable to insert the infamous lol.  However, over time this has transcended into a phrase that is used at the beginning, middle, and end of sentences that aren't even remotely funny.  "I don't want to go to school today...lol."  "LOL, I wonder if it's going to rain today...LOL."  You get the idea.  Can you imagine what it would sound like if someone really did laugh aloud each time they wrote lol?  An evil scientist--someone with a personality disorder at the least.  So, I pose a question to you.  What happens if something really is funny enough to merit a genuine lol?  What do we say then?  IRALOL (I really am laughing out loud), or LOLFR (laughing out loud for real)?  

IDK, TTYL.

Things I love and don't love

Since it's always best to end on a happy note, let's begin with things I don't love.

Things I don't love...in no particular order:

1. People who have purchased over-sized SUVs (Tahoes, Hummers, Expeditions, Dump Trucks) in the past year but still complain non-stop about gas prices. You could have bought the Honda Civic or Scooter that gets 70 mpg, but you didn't. If you like your big chevy with the lift kit and muffler enhancement, then pump with a smile the next time you fill up at the station! It's the price you chose to pay.
2. People who make bad decisions, but never have to pay the consequences. Examples? "I decided to punch my boss in the face today for scolding me about my consistent tardiness. Strangely enough, she was fired 5 minutes later for embezzlement so I was promoted to her position!". "I met this really awesome guy in drug rehab. We got married on a whim. Neither of us had jobs and were about to be evicted, but the next day we won 25 million in the lottery. We used our last dollar on that ticket. Who'da thought! I've already bought 15 ponies and painted the winning lotto numbers on the roof of our mansion for everyone to see!"
3. Onions. Of any fashion. Please don't tell me "you can't even taste them". They are more powerful than superman himself. And if they couldn't be tasted then the culinary expert wouldn't have even bothered putting them in the recipe to begin with. Sick. Gross.

Things I LOVE:

1. Seeing people happy. I love watching someone enjoy what they are doing or having a good time. Maybe that's why I like having parties so much.
2. Well behaved dogs. There is nothing more refreshing than going to someone's house and being able to play with their dog without it jumping all over you. I mean really--what does that even accomplish anyhow? If your dog is good, then by all means, cue up the Lassie theme song, and send Fido my way!
3. Live music. If you can hit a pitch, and play at a beginner level on guitar then you have my attention.
4. Target. This store is so magical and wonderful that it needs no explanation.
5. Making mixed playlists. The term "playlist" is certainly a metamorphosis of the mixed tape, then mixed CD, don't you agree? Now we have digital media and our playlists aren't limited to 18-20 songs anymore. It's fantastic! I just load that bad boy into my iPod. And--if I realize that one song I use to love and covet has become particularly annoying, then I delete it. I don't have to burn a new CD and can modify my mix as much as I want to. Modification has got to be the best feature of digital media. You never know when you might have a Fresh Prince emergency and need to add some flava to your party mix.

What I'm Jammin To Now Days

Coldplay - Viva La Vida

This entire album is fantastic!  Favorites include: "Lost!", "Cemeteries of London".

My "Get Inspired Mix" consisting of:

Playground Love - Air

Teardrop - Massive Attack

If There's Love - Citizen Cope

Destiny - Zero 7

Good Enough - Evanescece

To Shelia - Smashing Pumpkins

Take My Hand  Dido

Swallowed In The Sea - Coldplay

A Thousand Years - Sting

Angels Over Teheran - Single Gun Theory

Almost Lover - A Fine Frenzy

Hawaii - Meiko

Colorblind - Counting Crows

Humble Me - Norah Jones

Over the Pond - The Album Leaf

All I Need - Mat Kearney

Come Pick Me Up - Ryan Adams

Easy Tonight - Five For Fighting

If God Made You - Five For Fighting

Trying - Lifehouse

9 Crimes - Damien Rice

Delicate - Damien Rice

Be Mine - David Gray

Nothing Natural - Jill Sobule

Nothing Left To Lose - Mat Kearney

What You Want - John Butler Trio

Why I Embrace My Crackberry

Until a month ago, I had never subscribed to all the Blackberry hype that had began spreading across the technophiliac nation. In fact, the first place even I heard the term "blackberry" used was in a gangsta rap song I heard on the radio. Realizing this wasn't a reference to fruit, I vaguely investigated the matter to discover it was some ubber expensive new brand of PDAs that I would "never" take any interest in. On July 19th, 2008, this all changed.

Being extremely picky when it comes to my geeky gadgets, I wasn't able to find a phone that suited me. Shocking, I know. I brought home some dreadful flip phone that required bionic fingers to text single-handed. With me and most of my generation having a slight case of ADD, if I'm texting, I'm probably flipping channels or cooking dinner with the other hand.  I need both hands free, you see?  With that in mind, I decided to commandeer my friend's blackberry because I was determined to return my phone. This friend kept going on and on about it being the greatest thing since season one of "The Office".   Anyone with common sense knows that's kind of a big deal. To my amazement, I was slightly intrigued with this squaty, awkward looking device. I could watch youtube, check my email, and make my obsession with facebook continue throughout all 24 hours of the day. The next day, I returned my phone with the 16 inch qwerty keypad for my fantastic new Blackberry. So, to explain my new obsession, I have complied a list. Why? Because I really like lists.

What Puts the Crack in Crackberry?

1. I never feel alone. No matter if I am sitting in a doctor's office, on the open road, or fishing in Alaska, I will always get my emails, know who wrote on my wall, or hear that magical, whimsical instant message "ding".
   
2. I hear & see phantom notifications.  If even the slightest reflection hits my blackberry, I immediately assume it's the happy little red light alerting me that I have a new message.  It doesn't matter if this is junk mail, or an invitation to join some lame group on facebook, I am always excited and eager to see the message that awaits on my beloved toy of imprisonment.  Since my precious freak of technology is at my side at all times, this happens often.  Additionally, if Mr. Blackberry and I are driving down the road listening to music, I always think he's talking sweet nothings to me.  If there is a sound in a song that even remotely takes resemblance of the blackberry sound, I'm there, once again checking to see if I have a message waiting on me.  Most of the time this is a false alarm, but I always check to make sure.
   
3. I break into a cold sweat if I can't find my blackberry.  On the ever so rare occasion that my blackberry is missing for more than a nano second, I freak out.  It feels like someone cut off my arms and threw me on a desert island.  I do not like this feeling--at all.

This thing really is as addictive as crack cocaine.  But then again, I wouldn't really know, I'm too busy updating my facebook status on my blackberry.