So, I've got a blog . . . Now what?

Everyone seems to be jumping on the blog bandwagon so I thought I'd give it a go as well. Haven't really got a clue what I'm going to talk about, but that's never really stopped me from saying something, so . . .

My Photo
Name: Seitherin
Location: Lake Jackson, Texas, United States

Check out our Frappr!

Recent Posts:

Blogging Buddies:

Links:

Blog Rings:

Archives:

Atom Feed

Powered by Blogger

Subscribe with Bloglines

Blog Explosion

Blogroll Me!



moon phases
 

The WeatherPixie

Goran Visnjic
Adopt a Celebrity

Marton Csokas
Adopt a Celebrity

Friday, December 31, 2004

St. Serge & St. Bacchus: When Marriage Between Gays Was a Rite

The very idea of a Christian homosexual marriage seems incredible. Yet after a twelve year search of Catholic and Orthodox church archives Yale history professor John Boswell has discovered that a type of Christian homosexual “marriage” did exist as late as the 18th century.

Contrary to myth, Christianity’s concept of marriage has not been set in stone since the days of Christ, but has evolved as a concept and as a ritual.

Professor Boswell discovered that in addition to heterosexual marriage ceremonies in ancient church liturgical documents (and clearly separate from other types of non-marital blessings of adopted children or land) were ceremonies called, among other titles, the “Office of Same Sex Union” (10th and 11th century Greek) or the “Order for Uniting Two Men” (11th and 12th century).

These ceremonies had all the contemporary symbols of a marriage: a community gathered in a church, a blessing of the couple before the altar, their right hands joined as at heterosexual marriages, the participation of a priest, the taking of the Eucharist, a wedding banquet afterwards. All of which are shown in contemporary drawings of the same sex union of Byzantine Emperor Basil I (867-886) and his companion John. Such homosexual unions also took place in Ireland in the late 12th / early 13th century, as the chronicler Gerald of Wales (Geraldus Cambrensis) has recorded.

Speechless

I was reading Wonkette when I spotted an article entitled Tsunami Relief and the Homosexual Agenda. I was . . . too outraged to be outraged? . . . horrified? . . . I'm not sure what I was but speechless is definitely part of it. I don't know why I'm always so surprised by hatred, but I am. The relevant part of my horrified speechless outrage is this flyer (from The Raw Story) put out by the Westboro Baptist Church.

I feel . . . unclean, as if I've been submerged in raw sewage.

Thursday, December 30, 2004

A new menu option

I've added a new menu option - Disaster Relief. It takes you to a page which lists various organizations that are accepting donations for the relief / recovery effort in South & Southeast Asia. It is a work in progress.

FoxTrot by Bill Amend

Boys will be boys!

(If the title link has gone out of date, click here for the saved image.)

Urban Legends Reference Pages: Holidays (New Year's superstitious)

Until I married, I'd never practiced any sort of New Year related superstitious act, but my ex's family were of the 'eat black-eyed peas on New Year's Day' variety. Even after 10 years of divorce, I still eat black-eyed peas on New Year's Day.

Wednesday, December 29, 2004

Donation

I made a donation to the Red Cross this morning to help with the diaster relief.

I still cannot comprehend the magnitude of the diaster. The number of deaths in Indonesia alone are more than the total population of the town in which I live.

Update: You can donate to the Red Cross through Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/paypage/PX3BEL97U9A4I.

Hey, audience!

Guess what I found? Ded Bob's Web Paj! Sometimes I'm just unbelievably dimwitted, and no, I do not need you to make a crack about that, oh Best Friend of mine. It only occurred to me today to google Ded Bob to see if he had a site. He does and he also has the lyrics for . . .

Rudolph the Road-kill Reindeer

Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Used to have a shiny nose
Now if you were to see it
You would say it's stiff and froze

All of the other reindeer
Look before they cross the lane
They saw the snowplow coming
At least there wasn't any pain

On that foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say
Even thoough we'll miss our friend
Tonight we're eating venisen

Then how the reindeer loved him
As they ate their christmas deer
Rudolf the Road-kill Reindeer
Not a bit of gristle here!


There you are, oh Best Friend of mine. Just for you and just because you asked. (Please note the spelling mistakes in the lyrics are not mine but come directly from Ded Bob's lyric paj.)

Yahoo! News - Court Backs Firing of Waitress Without Makeup

In a 2-1 decision, a three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling in favor of Harrah's. All three judges are males appointed by Democratic presidents.

"We have previously held that grooming and appearance standards that apply differently to women and men do not constitute discrimination on the basis of sex," Judge Wallace Tashima wrote for the majority.


Don't you just love the justification for gender discrimination posited by the judge?

BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | Wave toll 'could exceed 100,000'

CONFIRMED DEATH TOLL
Indonesia: 36,268
Sri Lanka: 21,715
India: 6,974
Thailand: 1,516
Somalia: 100
Tanzania: 10
Maldives: 52
Malaysia: 44
Burma: 30
Seychelles: 3
Bangladesh: 2
Kenya: 1

Millions long for immortality

"Millions long for immortality who don't know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon." -- Susan Ertz

He who will not reason

"He who will not reason is a bigot; he who cannot is a fool; and he who dares not is a slave." -- Sir William Drummond

A bore is

"A bore is a man who deprives you of solitude without providing you with company." -- Gian Vincenzo Gravina

Monday, December 27, 2004

Turn the Other Chick

edited by Esther Friesner.

Turn the Other ChickI just finished the book. If you've read any of the other "Chicks" books, you'll know the kind of humorous stories included in this volume. There isn't any story that really stands out as exceptional, but there was one that I did enjoy more than any of the others. It was Jody Lynn Nye's Defender of the Small. It's a story of a mercenary hired by some cats to protect them from some abusive townsfolk who do not appreciate the worth of a cat.

Can I recommend this book? Not really unless you are already familiar with the other "Chicks" books. If you're not, start with Chicks in Chainmail. That one is the best for getting your feet wet.

Orion

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Camera scoops amazing Orion snaps

BBC NEWS | In Depth | At-a-glance: Countries hit

There's really not much one can say about the death and devastation wrought by the tsumanis.

Sunday, December 26, 2004

Green St. Stephen's Day: the view from the front yard

The view from my front door

My poor palmetto

Looking down my street

Looking up my street

My house

Isn't the grass a lovely green?

Green St. Stephen's Day: the backyard

The sun has been out all day and it is just cool enough to need a sweater to go out. Only the tiniest fragments of snow remain.

A view of my backyard

A view of my backyard

A view of my backyard

Saturday, December 25, 2004

Sun's out

And the snow is starting to melt.

The front of my house

Looking up my street.

Looing up my street

Looking down my street.

Looking down my street

This is the pattern the melting snow falling out of my magnolia tree made under the tree. Everywhere else the snow is flat and smooth and under the tree it is pocked and pitted. It looks like hundreds of little feet went walking across the snow.

Melt pattern in the snow under my magnolia tree

White Christmas: footprints

And last, but not least, my footprints leading down the driveway so you can see how deep the snow was.

My footprints in the snow

White Christmas: my neighborhood

My neighborhood

Standing in the road and looking down the street.



Standing in the road and looking up the street.



Snow covered trees down the street from me.

Snow covered trees

Snow covered trees

The view looking toward the new bank.



The view in the other direction.



The slush in the intersection of my street and another.

White Christmas: the view from my front yard

This is what I see when I look out my front door.

The view of the neighbor's house from my front door

And this is the poor palmetto complete with raccoon tracks next to it.

The palmetto in my front yard with raccoon tracks beside it

The raccoon tracks leading off to the shrubbery separating my yard from the right hand neighbor's yard.

Moor raccoon tracks going off into some shrubbery

Looing down the street while standing in the middle of my driveway.

Looking down the street

My snow covered house and front yard.

Snow covered house and yard

The walk leading to my front door.

The walk leading to my front door

White Christmas: the view in my backyard

These are all snaps I took standing just outside my back door on the stoop under the eaves. The snow on the roof is already starting to melt as are patches on the ground. I don't know how much longer we will have a White Christmas.

Snow covered shrubbery along by back fence

Snow covered shrubbery along my back fence

Snow covered shrubbery along my back fence

Snow piled at the base of some trees in my backyard

Snow covered shrubbery

Friday, December 24, 2004

The Really Great Blizzard of '04

And the snow just keeps falling. Everything is covered in white.

The snow out my front door.
The snow out my front door

The poor palmetto in my front yard.


My front lawn.
My front lawn

Looking down the street.
Looking at the snow falling in the street

Footprints in the snow.
Footprints in the snow

The feet that made the footprints.
My feet and footprints in the snow

My front walk and the shrub next to it.
Snow covered front walk and the shrub next to it

The Great Blizzard of '04

Looking down the street while it is illuminated by headlights coming towards me.

Looking at the snow covered street

Looking at the snow covered street

And an artistic photo of two cars passing in the snow in the night.

Two cars passing in the snow in the night

And another shot of the poor palmetto covered in snow.

Plametto covered in snow

There was a raccoon watching me take these pictures. Unfortunately, he surprised me as much as I surprised him when I turned around and saw him so I didn't get a snap of him. I suspect he's one of the family of 'coons that lives in my attic.

Footprints in the snow

Footprints in the snow by my front door

Footprints in the snow looking up my driveway

Footprints in the snow looking down my driveway

Apple cheeked wonder

Yes, folks, the apple cheeked wonder is me.

Me in the snow

Me in the snow

I rather like the first picture. The Prodigal Son had the camera very close to his face so it picked up the fog from his breath and I look like I'm shrouded in something nebulous.

It's a snow storm

OK, maybe not for some of you, but for those of us on the Texas Gulf Coast, it's a blizzard!

Snow falling

Snow covering part of my garden

Snow starting to cover my bougainvillea

The Prodigal Son and his girlfriend snuggling in the snow

Looking down the street in the snow storm

The palmetto in the snow

Not just the next best thing

But real honest to goodness snow! That hasn't happened here since 1989.

My snow covered car

Snow trying to build up in my yard

Woohoo!

The closest thing to snow

My roof isn't normally white.
Frozen rain on my roof top

And neither is my car.

Thursday, December 23, 2004

Christmas without family

It looks like I get to spend Christmas by myself. My folks are not coming up as planned and the Prodigal Son wants to spend Christmas with the girlfriend and her family. I intend to stock up on things to nasch and plug myself into movies and maybe even a book. I'm looking forward to enjoying quiet.

And what will I have for Christmas dinner? I'm seriously thinking about enchiladas or maybe chili dogs. I've already got my tamales for tomorrow night. I just need to make sure I have cheese and milk and I will be all set.

Wednesday, December 22, 2004

LotR comes to Houston

The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy Exhibition is coming to the Houston Museum of Natural Science. It will be here from June 5 through August 28, 2005.

No Christmas

That sounds a bit melodramatic, doesn't it? Oh, well. The Folks called last night to say they aren't coming for Christmas after all. Mum isn't feeling well and Dad doesn't think it would do her any good to travel in the cold. We're due for a really cold spell starting today and lasting at least through the weekend with the coldest temperatures due Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and with the possibility of frozen slush dripping on us from the skies on Christmas Eve.

The Prodigal Son informed me he did not want to go to see them. I'm torn between ignoring him and evicting him.

Tuesday, December 21, 2004

Something accomplished

I actually managed to get something totally done at work today. Given the limited number of staff we have, it's almost a luxury to complete a project. Everything I work on always seems to be a work in progress and never a done deal. So, not only did I get the project done, but I got it done a week and a half ahead of scheduled due date. I am filled with pleasantly warm fuzzies of contentment even though no one will ever acknowledge I done good.

Ein kleines Weihnachtsgedicht

Or as I would say, "A Little Christmas Poem". Karen posted the poem at Tati's Weblog and it was just too good not to pass along. Unfortunately, my German is almost non-existent so some of it is just Greek to me (insert silly smiley face here), but what I can't infer I will look up later when I have time.

Too bad the Best Friend and her husband are in Las Vegas. The Best Friend's Husband and I met an obscene number of years ago while taking German in college. It was he, in fact, who introduced me to my Best Friend. Anyway, I thought he might enjoy the poem to see how much of his German he's retained.

Procrastinator's motto

"There is no pleasure in having nothing to do; the fun is in having lots to do and not doing it." -- Mary Wilson Little

Monday, December 20, 2004

Oh, my

I just did a quick browse of who's been visiting seitherin.com and how they got there. Some mysterious someone did a Yahoo search for "RANCH Saltine CRACKERS", and the top two sites it returned are the recipe for ranch crackers I put up back in July. The first link is to the old seitherin.blogspot.com page and the second is to the same page at seitherin.com. That is just too funny.

Adeste Fideles

1. Adeste Fideles laeti triumphantes,
Veníte, veníte in Bethlehem.
Natum vidéte, Regem Angelorum:

Veníte adoremus,
Veníte adoremus
Veníte adoremus Dóminum


(I've always liked the first verse in Latin better than in English. I don't know why. Anyway, this site not only gives you the original Latin verses, but several English translations as well as a history of the song. Enjoy!)

I was reminded of D&D this morning

Yes, I was. By a piece of spam in my inbox at work. The email was from Garth and offered advice on how to keep your marriage safe.

And what is it that Garth thinks will keep your marriage safe? A masturbatory device, shaped like a flashlight, for men.

It's one of those 'you had to be there' kind of things, but I found it incredibly amusing. If Raelerin reads this, she might find it amusing as well.

Philip Pullman responds

Chris Weitz, New Line, 'The Times', and how to read

'Tis the Season

A Christmas story by China Miéville in the Socialist Review.

Sunday, December 19, 2004

Hrodulf the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

The history according to Snopes.com.

And they lyrics, just in case you've forgotten them:

Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer

Johnny Marks (c) 1949

You know Dasher and Dancer
And Prancer and Vixen,
Comet and Cupid
And Donner and Blitzen.
But do you recall
The most famous reindeer of all?

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer
(reindeer)
Had a very shiny nose
(like a light bulb)
And if you ever saw it
(saw it)
You would even say it glows
(like a flash light)
All of the other reindeer
(reindeer)
Used to laugh and call him names
(like Pinochio)
They never let poor Rudolph
(Rudolph)
Play in any reindeer games
(like Monopoly)

Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say
(Ho Ho Ho)
Rudolph with your nose so bright
Won't you guide my sleigh tonight?
Then all the reindeer loved him
(loved him)
And they shouted out with glee
(yippee)
"Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer
(reindeer)
You'll go down in history!"
(like Columbus)

Friday, December 17, 2004

Yahoo! News - Cuba Erects Sign Linking U.S. and Nazis

Tit for tat, I say. If you're going to make a political comment about the host country in which you are staying in the host county in which your are staying, you have no right to complain if they make a political comment about you.

BBC NEWS | Technology | Gamer buys $26,500 virtual land

I wonder if said gamer has a significant other and what said significant other thinks of spending that kind of money on game play.

Space News | Major Climate Change Occurred 5,200 Years Ago: Evidence Suggests That History Could Repeat Itself

BBC NEWS | Health | Boys 'cured' with gene therapy

Thursday, December 16, 2004

I watched it

The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition), that is. OK, I've only watched the actual movie and one of the Easter egg things and I've got to say the movie is lovely. Nothing earth shattering added, but what has been added does improve the flow of some parts that needed something extra to explain what people who've read the books knew, and other parts are just neat to have. I give it two thumbs up.

I actually bought the gift set with Minas Tirith included. I bought the other two sets so I have the Argonath on my bookcase and Gollum nestled between my cable box and VCR so I definitely had to have Minas Tirith to round out the set. Right now it's still sitting on my nightstand in the bedroom. Of the three "gifts", it is the shortest of the lot but it has a nice weight to it. I'm not sure yet where its permanent home will be.

I really like my Christmas present to myself! I especially like it 'cause I've got it already!

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Scientists find new Indian monkey

Yahoo! News - Wal-Mart Sued Over Evanescence Lyrics

If I were a judge, this is one of those lawsuits that I would throw out of court as being spurious and a waste of time and money.

FoxTrot by Bill Amend

Thumbs up for creative baking!

(If the title link has gone out of date, click here for the saved image.)

Wednesday, December 15, 2004

It's here

The Lord of the Rings - The Return of the King (Platinum Series Special Extended Edition) ! Woohoo! Guess what I'm going to be doing tonight and tomorrow night and the night after and so on and so on . . . You've been warned!



Only a mother

can appreciate what it feels like to be awakened at six a.m. by the phone ringing when her son has spent the night at a friend's house and should be on the way home to take said mother to work.

Yep, happened to me this morning. I leapt out of bed like some startled super hero attempting to leap a tall building in a single bound without taking a running start first. I grab the phone and what are the first words I hear out of the Prodigal Son's mouth?

"Can you name two Shakespeare plays besides A Midsummer Night's Dream, Hamlet, or Romeo and Juliet?"

~ sigh ~

I spent the next 20 minutes on the phone answering questions like "List 20 words that rhyme with plan" and "What are the last six words of the Gettysburg Address" and "Name the eight parts of speech."

~ sigh ~

I just love doing homework at six in the morning.

hoi polloi

from Dictionary.com/Word of the Day:

hoi polloi \hoi-puh-LOI\, noun:
The common people generally; the masses.

Hoi polloi is Greek for "the many."

Usage: Some argue that the definite article ("the") should not be used in front of "hoi polloi," as hoi means "the" in Greek. However, "the hoi polloi" has been used since the earliest recorded instances of the term in English and is considered correct by most authorities.

Tuesday, December 14, 2004

Dear President Bush

Thank you for doing so much to educate people regarding God's law. I have learned a great deal from you and try to share that knowledge with as many people as I can. When someone tries to defend the homosexual lifestyle, for example, I simply remind them that Leviticus 18:22 clearly states it to be an abomination.

I do need some advice from you, however, regarding some other elements of God's Laws and how to follow them:

1. Leviticus 25:44 states that I may possess slaves, both male and female, provided they are purchased from neighboring nations. A friend of mine claims that this applies to Mexicans, but not to Canadians.

Can you clarify? Why can't I own Canadians?

2. If I wanted to sell my daughter into slavery, as sanctioned in Exodus 21:7, in this day and age, what do you think would be a fair price for her?

3. I know that I am allowed no contact with a woman while she is in her period of menstrual uncleanliness (Lev. 15:19-24). The problem is, how do I tell? I have tried asking, but most women take offense.

4. When I burn a bull on the altar as a sacrifice, I know it creates a pleasing odor for the Lord (Lev. 1:9). The problem is my neighbors. They claim the odor is not pleasing to them. Should I smite them?

5. I have a neighbor who insists on working on the Sabbath. Exodus 35:2 clearly states that he should be put to death. Am I morally obligated to kill him myself, or should I ask the police to do it?

6. A friend of mine feels that, even though eating shellfish is an abomination (Lev. 11:10), it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there "degrees" of abomination?

7. Lev. 21:20 states that I may not approach the altar of God if I have a defect in my sight. I have to admit that I wear reading glasses. Does my vision have to be 20/20, or is there some wiggle-room here?

8. Most of my male friends get their hair trimmed, including the hair around their temples, even though this is expressly forbidden by Lev. 19:27. How should they die?

9. I know from Lev. 11:6-8 that touching the skin of a dead pig makes me unclean, but may I still play football if I wear gloves?

10. My uncle has a farm. He violates Lev. 19:19 by planting two different crops in the same field, as does his wife by wearing garments made of two different kinds of thread (cotton/polyester blend). He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot. Is it really necessary that we go to all the trouble of getting the whole town together to stone them (Lev. 24:10-16)? Couldn't we just burn them to death at a private family affair, like we do with people who sleep with their in-laws (Lev. 20:14)?

I know you have studied these things extensively and thus enjoy considerable expertise in such matters, so I am confident you can help.

Thank you again for reminding us that God's word is eternal and unchanging.


(This is making the rounds of blogs and newsgroups and boards I belong to. Nowhere I have found it does it give any attribution for the original author so I offer it up as uncredited as I have found it.)

BBC NEWS | Europe | France shows off tallest bridge

A photograph of the Millau Bridge in the Tarn Valley of France

BBC NEWS | Health | Parasitic worm hope for Crohn's

BBC NEWS | Technology | Google to scan famous libraries

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Spirit claims Mars water prize

Dulcet

from Dictionary.com/Word of the Day:

dulcet \DUHL-sit\, adjective:
1. Pleasing to the ear; melodious; harmonious.
2. Generally pleasing, soothing, or agreeable.
3. (Archaic) Sweet to the taste.

Dulcet comes from Old French doucet, diminutive of dous, "sweet," from Latin dulcis, "sweet."

FoxTrot by Bill Amend

Oh, the little joys that Christmas brings!

(If the title link has gone out of date, click here for the saved image.)

Monday, December 13, 2004

'Tis the season . . .

to procrastinate. Well, actually, any season is the season to procrastinate, but I seem to have been hit with it hard just now. I've found it difficult to develop any interest in anything related to turning on my computer for the last I don't know how long. This happens when I am especially busy at work as I have been the last couple of weeks. I spend all day tied to my computer there and I just don't have much interest in getting on my computer at home. I've also been fortunate in having a lovely book to read (Shadowmarch by Tad Williams) and in having a slew of DVDs to watch - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Shrek 2, Spider-Man 2, Crusade, The Complete Series. And I've also been busy getting Christmas cards in the mail and finding Christmas ornaments that have something to do with Christmas and aren't advertising for TV shows or movie studios or sports figures or toy manufacturers. I can remember when Hallmark used to make Christmas ornaments for Christmas and not promotional gewgaws for hawking whatever it is that has nothing to do with Christmas.

Anyway, I just thought I'd pop in and say something before people began to think I had really and truly fallen off the face of the earth.

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Iraqi leader attacks US 'errors'

BBC NEWS | Health | Diabetes vaccine trials to begin

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Cassini makes Titan return pass

BBC NEWS | South Asia | Arabs sent home from Afghan hunt

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Foxx bags Golden Globes hat-trick

Yahoo! News - Study links diet pills, having gay children

Tuesday, December 07, 2004

BBC NEWS | UK | Education | Finland tops global school table

Urban Legends Reference Pages: Holidays (The Red and the Mondegreen)

Misheard Christmas carol lyrics. These were a hoot. I can't think the last time I laughed this hard. Tears are streaming and it's really hard to type.

Monday, December 06, 2004

Good King Wenceslas

Cool Quiz : The Name's Famililar : King Wenceslas

Good King Wenceslas (An article for the December 1992 Deep Cove Crier)

And the lyrics to the St. Stephen's Day carol:

Good King Wenceslas looked out,
On the Feast of Stephen,
When the snow lay round about,
Deep and crisp and even;
Brightly shone the moon that night,
Tho' the frost was cruel,
When a poor man came in sight,
Gath'ring winter fuel.

"Hither, page, and stand by me,
If thou know'st it, telling,
Yonder peasant, who is he?
Where and what his dwelling?"
"Sire, he lives a good league hence,
Underneath the mountain;
Right against the forest fence,
By Saint Agnes' fountain."

"Bring me flesh, and bring me wine,
Bring me pine logs hither:
Thou and I will see him dine,
When we bear them thither."
Page and monarch, forth they went,
Forth they went together;
Thro' the rude wind's wild lament
And the bitter weather.

"Sire, the night is darker now,
And the wind blows stronger;
Fails my heart, I know not how,
I can go no longer."
Mark my footsteps, good my page;
Tread thou in them boldly:
Thou shalt find the winter's rage
Freeze thy blood less coldly."

In his master's steps he trod,
Where the snow lay dinted;
Heat was in the very sod
Which the saint had printed.
Therefore, Christian men, be sure,
Wealth or rank possessing,
Ye who now will bless the poor,
Shall yourselves find blessing.

NOBLE Web: St. Stephen's Day

And just because I had the camera out

Here's a new batch of cat pictures I just took because it seemed silly to only take pictures of my first batch of Christmas cards.

Mouse in reposeThis seems to be Mouse's favorite spot to lay and her preferred method of stretching out. The last snap of Mouse I took was very similar. I think she was mildly annoyed I turned the light on so I could take the pictures of the cards on the bookcase. She cracked her eyes open a smidge and gave me one of those looks before she went back to ignoring me completely.

Goblin in repose This is Goblin almost but not quite laying next to Mouse in the dining room. Goblin still hisses and spits at the kittens when they actually look at her while any of her pet humans are watching. I think great progress has been made since Goblin was laying less than two feet from Mouse and I was actually in the room looking at them. Of course, they weren't looking at each other.

Rainbow in repose And here we have Rainbow stretched out on the dining room chair that used to have plastic wrap covering the fabric to protect it until Rainbow and Mouse clawed it off. My mother bought the dining room suite for me as a house warming gift last year and I haven't had the courage to tell her the plastic is off and the seat is slowing being covered in cat fur of many colors.

Heru contemplating mischief And lastly but not leastly, we have Heru contemplating mischief with a small box of trash that hasn't made it out to the garage since I just unpacked the books that arrived in it. Heru has a nasty habit of walking in amongst your feet and I have the nasty habit of roaming about the house in the dark, so the two of us in the same house are an accident waiting to happen. Today, I stepped on Heru. It must have hurt because he yelped and took off and he wouldn't let me near him to check if I'd done real damage. By the time I finished snapping the cards and the other cats, he'd forgiven me and let look at his legs to make sure I hadn't broken something. He quickly got bored with me when he spotted the box with paper in it. Men!

Christmas cards

The first batch of Christmas cards arrived today. They were from friends at Shadowmarch - Hazel, Bandit, Mwyaren, Ad1tu, and Calesta. Getting the cards did much to lift the glums I was in. They cheered me so much I even printed out address labels so I can actually get the cards I have to send ready to mail.

Christmas cards Christmas cards Christmas cards

One from Epilogue

Leigh Robertson : Edo Anteater

FoxTrot by Bill Amend

Oh, yes it was!

(If the title link has gone out of date, click here for the saved image.)

Human Test: Novel Vaccine Stops HIV - Trustworthy, Physician-Reviewed Information from WebMD

Scotsman.com News - UK - Blackadder's deadly serious attack on 'religious hate' bill

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Gunmen storm US mission in Saudi

BBC NEWS | Americas | US deserter seeks Canada asylum

BBC NEWS | Americas | US troops sue over tours in Iraq

"Stop loss" - what an interesting term for involuntary conscription. Even though I am an Army brat, I was not aware that military personnel could be kept on active service for 18 months past their retirement or discharge date. It was not an issue for my dad who put in two tours of duty in Viet Nam - in 1967 and again in 1970.

Saturday, December 04, 2004

Gifts for the Geek who has everything

ThinkGeek :: USB Christmas Tree

ThinkGeek :: USB Glowing Snowman

ThinkGeek :: LED Binary Clock - this one is my personal favorite!

ThinkGeek :: USB Mini Desktop Aquarium

ThinkGeek :: Scrolling LED Badge

ThinkGeek :: USB Optical Liquid Mouse

ThinkGeek :: Swiss Memory USB - I'm also rather partial to this one ...

ThinkGeek :: Illuminated USB Cables

ThinkGeek :: USB FlexLight

ThinkGeek :: C.H.I.M.P. (monitor mirror)

ThinkGeek :: Web Designer's Mousepads - and another personal favorite ...

ThinkGeek :: Fireworks USB Hub

ThinkGeek :: MP3 Memory Music Watch

ThinkGeek :: Set Of Circuitboard Coasters - and these are just too kewl for words!

ThinkGeek :: There's no place like 127.0.0.1 bumper sticker

And you thought there weren't any clever - and useful - stocking stuffers to be had for the Geek on your Christmas list.

Virual bubble wrap

Knock yourselves out!

ThinkGeek :: DotCom - Alcohol & calculus don't mix

Hey, best friend! Yoohoo! Snag the husband and make him look. This link is for him as well as for you. OK, it's more for him 'cause we share the same silly love of word play.

ThinkGeek :: DotCom - Deja Moo

Sometimes this happens more often than others. Sometimes it's an accurate descriptor of my life. And sometimes I just wish I was ballsy enough to wear it to work.

CNN.com - Extinction may claim Hawaiian bird - Dec 1, 2004

This is so tragic. I hate the thought that I was present when a species became extinct because of man's encroachment on its habitat. I hate the thought more that I never knew the bird existed until it became extinct.

CNN.com - Bush Arrested in Canada for War Crimes

Don't get your knickers in a twist. The Canadians weren't that courageous. This is only a link to the faux-CNN article referenced at Snopes: Urban Legends Reference Pages: Politics (Maple Leaf Bag).

Thursday, December 02, 2004

The Twelve Days of Christmas

Urban Legends Reference Pages: Christmas (The Twelve Days of Christmas)

The Twelve Days of Christmas - Illustrated!

Welcome to www.12days.net - web art created by children, each based on one day from the Twelve Days of Christmas

Netsurfer Digest Presents: The 12 Sites of Christmas, 2003

Christmas Songs: The Twelve Days of Christmas

Author Jan Brett's Home Page - A Great Place for Ideas

I stumbled across this site while looking for a partridge in a pear tree graphic. For a teacher or parent of young children, this place is a treasure trove. There are pictures to download and color, calendars to print up, and other stuff for kids or teachers/parents to use. I had a blast just surfing around.

Author Jan Brett's Home Page - A Great Place for Ideas

Fear of Snakes, Spiders Rooted in Evolution, Study Finds

Scientific American: Study Paints Our Sun as a Planet Thief

BBC NEWS | Health | Obese children sleep-problem fear

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Ancestor's DNA code reconstructed

BBC NEWS | Health | Cannabis raises risk of psychosis

BBC NEWS | Business | Dollar falls to fresh record lows

BBC NEWS | Americas | Bush to thank Canada for 9/11 aid

BBC NEWS | Technology | Why 2004 was the year of the blog


Currently Reading:

Recently Read:

Amazon Wish List: