Wife. Mommy. Lover of cookies.
RT @HonestToddler: Toddler Tip: She has a bounty of nerves underneath that "last" one. Don't worry :)
It seems that we may have overestimated our trick-or-treater population. Apparently, since the houses on either side of us decided to forego Halloween, our house became, by default, undesireable. Therefore, we have a surplus of candy. If anyone would like some, feel free to stop by……
We had yet another Girl’s Night last night. Well, actually, it was more of a Girls Night-let, since we were all pretty worn out, and a couple of us had to work today. My friend Jessica and I went and kidnapped my mother for dinner and girl talk. This was after I paid a quick visit to Vicki, and did a little catching up there. I think it’s safe to say that I have now refueled my depleted estrogen supply….
Soon, we’re planning on including the boys in a night out; we just have to hammer out the details. Ideas, anyone?
I don’t watch commercials anymore. I have no patience for them. I was watching 60 Minutes the other day, and they had a piece on “Undercover Marketing“. I can get on board with that. See, companies hire actors who then go out on the streets with whatever gadget needs to be promoted (say, a new video game glove), and they just start playing with it. People (targets) then come over to see, and the actors let them play a while. That’s it. You (the target) sees it as nothing more than a friendly exchange. The company who’s paying these actors sees it as an opportunity to create “buzz” about a new product. No stress, no hassle, no obligation. My kind of marketing.
That said, however, I feel I have to give props to a couple of commercials that, for some reason or another, I have actually happened to catch. Last spring, I noticed this one, and laughed my ass off for an hour afterwards. If all ads were this clever, I might be tempted to hit Play on my Tivo a little more often.
But what happens when you’re in your car? If you don’t have a CD playing (like I pretty much always do), or XM radio, then you’re forced to listen to the radio. Listening to the radio pretty much means listening to commercials (unless you’re listening to NPR, and there’s only so much Diane Rehm I can take). Fortunately, there are the California Cow commercials.
So there you have it. I guess the whole point is this: Stop trying to sell me something, unless you can do it without pressure. Or at the very least, be a little funny about it. I know ad agencies are up against the powerful wall of Tivo. Better start coming up with a plan B, fellas.
In the words of Frankenstein,
“Alone baaaaaddddd…..
Friend, goooooooood!”
It’s 2:31 in the AM, and I’m just now rolling in. It must have been a good night! In fact, it was fantastic. There’s nothing quite like old friends and good stories. I’m just really thankful that everyone is well and, more importantly, happy. Thanks Michele, Tanya, and Jessica. You guys rock my world.
I’ve been emailing an old friend this week. I’ve kept up with her through other friends, but I haven’t really talked to her in a pretty long time. I’m sure you have friends like that, right? The kind you keep tabs on, just to make sure they’re okay, and you always tell yourself you’ll get around to sending a note or picking up the phone, and before you know it, years have passed?
Anyway, so I’ve been keeping up with this person for the last 5 years or so, and you can imagine how much I was troubled to hear that she’s spent the bulk of that time in the Middle East. Iraq, to be more specific. Baghdad to be precise. I’ve known for a while that she was there, and I even knew she was there last year. So why did it take me so long just to send a little email?
The point of this is, of course, that I did send that email, and it feels wonderful to hear her “voice”. She’s the only person I know who can say this, when chastised for a delay in response:
“sorry love. was up in Kurdistan and the email is wily indeed up there…my apologies.”
Even better news is that she’ll be returning to us here in Texas, at least for a couple of days, later this week. It will be nice to know she’s completely safe, if only for a little while.
The lesson in all of this, obviously, is to stop waiting for something huge to happen before you touch base with everybody you’ve been meaning to. Now, go out there and reach out to an old friend. I’ll be here, responding to my full Inbox.
There is only one show that I choose to watch in “real time”, as opposed to Tivo. That show is The West Wing. Imagine my chagrin, when at 8:00 on Wednesday night, I tuned in, fully anticipating a new episode, only to be greeted with a re-run of Law and Order (possibly the most tired show on network television). There was no advance warning. In fact, NBC waited until 10 minutes into the show before running a crawler explaining the situation, although they did not acknowledge the reason behind the last-minute switch.
Last night, while channel surfing, I came across Will and Grace. “I’ll watch this,” I said to myself. Except is was—-you guessed it—- a re-run.
I seems that as a concession to viewers watching baseball, some networks have decided to pull original progamming and replace it with re-runs. Apparently, viewers, like you and and like me, are incapable of making our own decisions. This really pisses me off since I have Tivo, and I can watch whatever I damn well please whenever I damn well want to watch it.
My next thought was that I’d send a polite, but firm, email to the folks at NBC. Except I can’t. It seems that I am more than welcome to send snail mail, but should I, or any other member of the viewing public wish to send an email about anything other than a show, we’re S.O.L. You can view the FAQ’s page and learn all about what songs are played on which shows, but you can’t send an email. You can request tickets, but you can’t provide honest feedback. At least not directly to the folks who are making your decisions for you.
I know that this is a petty thing about which to be riled up, but it’s been eating at me for a few days, and when I let things stew long enough, they generally boil over. You’ll notice that CBS did not elect to show re-runs of Survivor. ABC showed a new Threat Matrix and Extreme Makeover. So, f-you, NBC, for not having enough faith in either your programming (which really is sliding) or your viewers.
Already. Every year about this time, I start to plan out Christmas gift lists. In order to stay on some kind of a budget (yes, Kevin, I do know the definition of the word), I like to buy for one person per week throughout October and November, then finish up in a frenzy of last minute gift-buying in December. Last year, I waited until December 23. The year before, however, I was 100% finished, with everything wrapped, by Thanksgiving.
The hardest part for me is figuring out what I’m going to get everybody. I am an abominable gifter (unlike my husband, who has never given a bad present in his whole life). So, if any of you have gift ideas or wish lists, now is the time to let me know…….
Here’s something fun and happy, amidst a day filled with not-so-fun-and-happy things. Frogs are cool.
I have a confession. More acurately, my dog has a confession. She suffers from halitosis. We’ve tried everything: teeth cleaning, tooth brushing, etc. Nothing helps. Until now. For I have discovered the glory that is Good Dog Breath Mints. For a few dollars, the problem has now disappeared. Good dog, indeed.
It’s been a couple of crazy busy days. I think I still have that new-job-glow, because my work days are just flying by. On the homefront, Kevin is giving Atkins another go. It worked really well for him the first time, so I’m jumping on the bandwagon as a show of support. Unfortunately, however, my carb intake has to be a little higher than what the plan allows, because of how the body breaks down carbs and converts them into electrical impulses. Since I have faulty wiring, I’m just reducing my intake, which is ridiculously high, anyway.
I know I said I would never give up my potatoes and pasta, but I want to be a supportive wife, so I’m limiting them. Yes, Josh, that means no beer, even if it is Coor’s Light. Okay, maybe just less beer.
I wish I had something more exciting to report, but there you have it. Sometimes, boring is good.
This may be the coolest scientific discovery of the year.
That I meant to complete here on the blog. I’m positive that I thought of something pithy and intelligent about which to post, but said thought seems to have flown my mind. So I offer this, instead:
Are you a fan of the haunted house?
See, I used to frequent haunted houses when I was younger, but since I’ve been with Kevin, it would appear that those days are over. I’m a big advocate of haunted houses (except the ones with Chainsaw Man at the end; I loathe the chainsaw guy. He’s scary, and one time he burned my arm because he got too close with his chainsaw of death. Bastard). Haunted housing has turned into the Autumn activity of choice, if the current selection of terror-inducing locations is any indication. You can’t listen to the radio for more than five minutes without hearing 4 commercials for Screams: The World’s Largest Halloween Theme Park (although for my money, I’ll take Dr. Blood’s Asylum of Terror. No scary, demented, burn-inflicting Chainsaw Maniac, and you don’t know what’s real and what’s made of wax. Spooky.). I pass two different haunted houses on my way to work, and it’s only a 15 minute drive. Screw Fright Fest at Six Flags, now we’ve got really scary options.
Of course, this could all be a clever (and thinly disguised) ploy to rob teenagers of their rather attractive discretionary income (read: allowances), but I think I might still enjoy an evening of horror and mayhem.
Maybe after a few beers, though.
Wait. On second thought, if I have too many beers and I get scared, I might wet my pants.
Sure, I’m aware that this entry was neither pithy nor insightful, but it was the best I could do today.
