I was just cold

Now I'm wet and cold.

I just turned the A/C off because I was chilly and I was just about to pop off to the grocery store to pick up lunch for the week and then to fill up my gas tank when a crack of thunder stopped me in my tracks. I had been so intent on trying to figure out some knitting instructions and on knitting that I hadn't even heard the rain falling. And believe me, with the amount of rain that's falling it is very plain to hear.

Needless to say, I'm not going out shopping just yet even though I've already run out into the very cold rain to make sure I rolled the windows up this afternoon when I came home and left the car parked on the driveway. I'm glad to say the windows are up but I'm soaked and really cold now.

I can hear the rain easing off a bit even though there is still thunder and lightning. I think I'll just get gas on the way to work in the morning and I'll figure out something for lunch tomorrow. Right now, I'm getting out of my wet clothes and into my warm, fresh from the dryer jammies.

Happy Birthday to me

It's the big five oh. I don't feel five oh. I don't feel any different than I've felt for the last 20 years or so. Oh, well.

I'm taking a personal holiday from work so I have the day off. I had planned on sleeping in, but my brother called at 6:57 a.m. to wish me happy birthday while on his way to work figuring I'd be on my way to work as well. We had a lovely chat for almost 40 minutes while he filled me in on his life as a country boy. There's Mike the rooster who is going to be dinner next week because he's dumb as a post. And there's the turkey that's going to be Thanksgiving dinner in '06. And the cats who hunt field mice. And the rabbits. And his vegetable garden. He's certainly taken to the country life.

As soon as I get dressed - yes, I'm lounging around in my jammies - I'm off to get the new license tag for my car and then I'm off to WalMart and Hobby Lobby to find some size 8 double pointed knitting needles and some yarn to make slippers. I think I may treat myself to lemon peppered chicken for lunch at my favorite steakhouse. And then it will be home to do laundry and stitch on the butterfly fairy. Oh, and I need to make a quick trip to the grocery store to buy more soup and fruit to have for lunch at work this week.

I'm off! Later, 'gators.

Vast Amount of Spare Time: ...brains....BRAINS....

If you thought her fingers for Hallowe'en were great, take a look at what else she's cooked up.

This is someone who enjoys Hallowe'en just a little too much.

;D

Epilogue.net

Annah Hutchings : Lost

Jacob Probelski : Fire-From-The-Eye

Selina Fenech : Hope - I think the alternate title of 'Wishful Thinking' suits the work better.

Selina Fenech : The Story Keeper

Well, I didn't stitch

And I didn't go to the movies either. I did something I enjoyed much more as all the entries below this one - which are in reverse order - show. This was a much better 'me' day than the one I planned on having when I left for brunch this morning.

I hope you enjoy my day as much as I did.

;D

I have to wonder

Does God weep when the living trees He raised are destroyed to make room for a dead brick edifice that Man raises in their place in the name of the God who made the trees?


A very lush copse of trees, very similar to the one in the following picture, was razed to make room for another church. The only god I could believe in would bleed for the trees and turn his back on the brick.

The Gulf of Mexico on a good day

The sands of time

Beach bound

Where I used to work

. . . but don't anymore.

The Brazos River

Riddle me this

Why am I standing beside the road in the middle of nowhere with a flag stuck in my head? Don't know? Neither do I.


This is a statue of Stephen F. Austin, still not quite completed yet, standing in a field beside the road in the middle of nowhere on the way to Angleton. I have no idea why it is there. I suspect if I read the local newspaper I would know but I don't so I'm just as clueless as poor Stephen F. looks.

It's a snap to drive

Yep, that's me taking the picture while I'm driving down the road.

Looking forward and back

Just the barest hint

. . . of autumn's burnt gold green foliage.

Drivin' down the highway

. . . going just a hair under the speed limit.

Shy Pond

The path I walked on

Nature's idea of aging gracefully

The sky is blue

. . . but the clouds have been dragging their bottoms and they've gotten a little dirty.

Dying from the inside out

Can you tell I like trees?

For those of you who wonder what I look like

Me taking a picture of me taking a picture of me.



~ evil grin ~

The new intermediate school

Looking into the heart of a tree

Almost spooky enough

. . . to be a Hallowe'en decoration.

You may call them weeds

. . . but I call them wild flowers.

Blue sky, white clouds, old trees

They still look like zombies

It was such a wonderful day I decided I didn't want to be indoors so I took a cue from someone who has been putting a lot of miles on her Kiwi and went walking and driving around the this place I call home and taking snaps of whatever took my fancy. I started with the mural painted on the side of the old Lake Theatre. The three men next to Elvis with his pink Cadillac still look like zombies to me. I still can't figure out who they're supposed to be.


Starting at the very far left - an old juke box, the Blues Brothers, Marilyn Monroe, Hank Williams (Senior), Patsy Cline (I think), Minnie Pearl, the zombies, Elvis Presley.

Did I mention . . .

Fall is starting to come to town. Last weekend two cold fronts came through and dropped the nighttime temperatures into the 30s and the daytime ones into the 70s. The overnight temperatures have gone up into the 50s, but the days are still in the 70s. It has been glorious.

The trees are starting to turn that burnt gold green they do when autumn first begins. There's just the hint of that color, but autumn is definitely starting.

A 'me' day

The Prodigal Son is off to his first day of fiber optic class and he'll be gone until this evening so that leaves me here at home all by my lonesome. Yay! I'm planning on having a wonderful day of peace and quiet which will involve going out to brunch and stitching and maybe a movie.

And speaking of brunch, I'm off to IHOP to consume . . . well, I'm not sure what I'm in the mood for yet. But I am in the mood to consume. The tummy keeps poking at me trying to get my attention. Bossy tummy.

Later, 'gators!

B.C.

Ah, life in the not-so-fast lane . . .

the blue blog archives: halloween things

And if you should just happen to need short, blue hair for some reason, this should do the trick - if you can knit.

;D

Vast Amount of Spare Time: Mmmm....phalanges....

If you'd like to do something 'different' for Hallowe'en but you're at a loss what to do, here's a suggestion.

Enjoy! . . . or not.

;D

iWon News | Civil Rights Pioneer Rosa Parks Dies at 92

It is strange to contemplate the death of history, but so much of that has been happening lately.

SCI FICTION | There's a Hole in the City

Which Fantasy/SciFi Character Am I?

Jean-Luc Picard

An accomplished diplomat who can virtually do no wrong, you sometimes know it is best to rely on the council of others while holding the reins.

There are some words which I have known since I was a schoolboy. "With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censored, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably." These words were uttered by Judge Aaron Satie -- as a wisdom, and warning. The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged.

B.C.

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Peregrine swoops to photo prize

I prefer the picture of the elephants.

BBC NEWS | Americas | Warrant for DeLay arrest issued

"A Texas court has issued a warrant for the arrest of leading US Republican politician Tom DeLay on money laundering and conspiracy charges."

BBC NEWS | Health | Drug halves breast cancer returns

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | 'Zombie worms' found off Sweden

"They look like flowers poking out of the whale bone. The analogy goes a bit further because they have a root system that goes into the bone," Dr Glover, a researcher at London's Natural History Museum, told the BBC News website.

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Venus mission ready for blast off

Venus Express? Makes it sound like a shuttle flight from a major airport to a little local one and not like a space exploration mission.

B.C.

Johnny just knows everything, doesn't he?

I give up

It's been weeks and the Little Shit is still here. She showed up a couple of weeks before the Hurricane Rita evacuation and she's still here. She was only supposed to be here for a week while the air conditioning unit of the person she belongs to was on the fritz and awaiting repair. Somehow, during all these weeks, the Prodigal Son has decided he can't bear to give her back because she wouldn't be loved and cared for where she belongs as good as she has it here. So the Prodigal has talked me into letting her stay here permanently temporarily.

The brainless bimbo who actually owns the cat called her Precious and taught her to be antisocial. She growls at all the other cats and most people. She's also given to attacking anything and anyone who displeases her. The only cat she seems to be truly on friendly terms with is Heru, and he's never met a warm body he didn't like. All the world is his best friend.

She hasn't bonded with me - although she adores the Prodigal - and I haven't bonded with her - although I don't adore the Prodigal as much as she does ~ evil grin ~. I've never gone this long without an animal telling me its name, but I haven't a clue what hers is. Aside from Little Shit, which I've called her since day one, the closest I've come is Izzy, but that still isn't quite right. I'm wondering if maybe she is supposed to be Isis to Heru's Horus. (I'm the only one who calls him Heru. The Prodigal and all his friends call him Horus.)

Anyway, for your viewing pleasure, I present Little Shit . . . um, Izzy.



As you can see from the photos, the really nifty thing about taking snaps of Izzy is that parts of her show up really well all of the time and parts of her show up not at all. In the last two snaps, you can't really tell where her black ear begins and ends in that black spot it is part of.

And just because I can, the rest of the Ferocious Feline Federation.

The Prodigal Son set his phone to meow so Heru is trying to find that annoying noisy cat. Those are Rainbow's glow in the dark eyes in the background.

Remains of Star Trek's 'Scotty' headed for space - Yahoo! News

Couple Finishes 4,900-Mile Walk Across US - Yahoo! News

"The transcontinental trail starts in Delaware, meandering through Washington, D.C., Cincinnati, St. Louis and other cities, 14 national parks and 16 national forests before hitting the Pacific at Point Reyes.

The trail officially opened in 2000, 11 years after it was proposed by hiking enthusiasts as the first coast-to-coast footpath."

That's one heckuva hike.

AlterNet: Wal-Mart Coverage: Civics Student...or Enemy of America?

No comment.

The view from the house

Oh, before I forget . . . I finally took a couple of pictures of the view from the house I stayed at during my hurricane evacuation and where the Best Friend and I met up while I was on a business trip for work. I was obviously more asleep than awake when I took the snaps since you can't really tell how pretty the view is.





And, yes, if you look really, really, really hard at the first photo, you can see the Best Friend relaxing.

Questions, questions, and more questions

Roseunicorn said, "Yipee!! = so how are you going to celebrate?"

This was prompted by me saying I'd just had my first month's anniversary at the new job in my previous blog entry. The answer is, "I downloaded the first three episodes of Lost from iTunes and watched the first two." Aren't I just the wild party animal?

Roseunicorn asked, "Have you figured out who to take to the Game?"

This one was prompted by the fact her brother gave me tickets to the Houston Texans' home game on October 30th as a birthday gift. The answer is, "I haven't got a clue. I may give them to the Prodigal Son and let him take three friends with him. I just don't know."

"And what are you doing for your Birthday?" pondered the Roseunicorn.

"Sleep," answered I.

And last, but not least, Karen posed this query regarding the new job, "Has it turned out to be as you imagined? Do you like it there?"

"Well . . ." said I. I like the job. The people are all really nice and the ladies I work with do a lunch date every other Thursday. I went to my first one this week and we went to a Lebanese restaurant called Wael's Mediterranean Cuisine off Bay Area Boulevard. I had their number 18 lunch special which had the word 'Shawarma' in the name. It was basically a platter with white rice, wonderfully seasoned grilled beef, grilled chicken with the same sort of seasoning, and a dip which looked like sour cream but very clearly wasn't. I didn't care for the rich - not much of a rice eater - but the beef and chicken were absolutely delicious.

Isn't it amazing how a question about liking my job turned into a dissertation on food? Anyway, back to the job. I think it will be a really good place to work when everything is set and ready to go. Right now, everything is still in start up mode so things are kind of strange. There really aren't any routines and people are still trying to figure things out. But they really are a very capable bunch of people.

And the company seems to be very people and community oriented. There is always some sort of bulletin about some function or event the company encourages participation in.

Yep, I think this is a good place. I didn't know what to expect because it is a change of industry for me - from construction to manufacturing - and because the company isn't American owned. But there really isn't all the much difference.

Oh, and the best part, I get to wear a lab coat when I have to go to the building next door. How kewl is that?

Interesting bumper sticker

"Last time we mixed politics with religion
People got burned at the stake"

Saw it on my way home from work today.

And speaking of work, I celebrated my one month anniversary on Wednesday.

FoxTrot

An interesting approach to math and football.

Hey, Best Friend! Have the hubby check this one out, too.

NEUTICLES.com

This qualifies as one of those "Now I've seen everything" kind of things.

Neuticles are artificial testicles, in three varieties and appropriate sizes, for dogs, cats, horses, and bulls that have been neutered and whose self esteem has been destroyed because of it. Not only can these globs of plastic restore you're pet's self-image, but you can also wear them in a show of support. Keychains and necklaces are available.

I thank the Maker Heru doesn't know about these things. I'm sure if he knew he would demand a set and then he'd be completely intolerable instead of just mostly.

;D

Vividas Streaming Page - Serenity

The link takes you to the vividas.com site where it will automatically prompt you to accept a certificate to install a player to view the actual first nine or so minutes of the movie Serenity. I took the option to accept the certificate for this instance and watched the video on high resolution (since I have a broadband connection) to no apparent ill effects.

If you're curious about the movie, this is a treat although I'm not sure I would have selected the very beginning as the teaser to get people to go see the film.

Anyway, enjoy.

It seems I'm almost all things to all people

You scored as Inara Serra. The Courtesan. You have a job that brings comfort to people and eases their burdens. It took years of training and dedication to perfect. So why do people keep calling you a whore? You tried to get away from those people, but something keeps bringing you back. River Tam 69% Inara Serra 69% Zoe Alleyne Washburne 63% Hoban 'Wash' Washburne 63% Capt. Mal Reynolds 63% Shepherd Derrial Book 56% Kaylee Frye 56% The Operative 56% Simon Tam 56% Jayne Cobb 50% Which Serenity character are you? created with QuizFarm.com

National Geographic Magazine - WildCam AFRICA

To view the web cam, you need the RealPlayer plugin. I despise RealPlayer, but I downloaded it just so I could see the watering hole. As I write this, it is 1:26 am where the web cam is and the only thing I've seen so far are bugs happily flittering about. The cam moves and seems to focus on things so sometimes what you get is an awful lot of blur. But still, it's a view of Africa - Pete's Pond in Botswana. At least, I assume Pete's Pond is in Botswana since the site references Botswana time.

Serenity

The movie, that is, not the state of mind. The Best Friend and I went to see it yesterday at the Starplex 12 in San Marcos.

There were a couple of things about the movie that I didn't particularly like although I can understand the 'why' of them, but it was really a wonderful little movie. If you've seen the Firefly TV series or own the Firefly - The Complete SeriesDVDs, the movie is a must see and a must own.

There's action. There's adventure. There are characters who aren't run of the mill. And most of all, there's actually a story being told.