I Bowed to the Inevitable...

... And took Jessie to get her hair cut today for the first time... ever. She has been begging me to let her get it cut for a year now, and I have resisted--sure that she would have cutter's remorse, and sure that I loved it long and unique. But it's not all about ME, more's the pity.

Yes, it's her hair. Yes the cut is adorable. I just have a problem with the hair- like- everyone- else thing (she wanted her hair cut "like Phoebe's" and this is THE cut for little girls now).

I had my hair in the Pixie cut when I was her age and HATED it. What do I know. She loves it, it's too short to tangle, she can brush it herself. It's a win, win, win (cry).

She wants to Donate to Locks of Love so we had the stylist put it in a ponytail prior to cutting it. She measured the cut ponytail at 18" and then she took off another 2-3" during the styling.

Jester

County Road Jester born 6/30/99 of sire Champion Thistleglen Fairfax and dam Stornoway Myra at County Road, crossed the rainbow bridge at 3:20 pm on 8/23/07. I held him as he crossed. His bravery through all of his surgeries and his gentleness throughout his trials made everyone at the vet love him and stop by his run for kisses and pets. Many thanks to his primary vet, Lori MacDougall who celebrated his life and cried at his passing with me.

Our Last Night in Montana

I sit in bed all cosy with my laptop on my lap and my spouse by my side (also be-laptopped) and reflect on the past two wonderful weeks in Montana. It's always hard to leave here, but this time is harder than usual. We spent the majority of our time up on Finley Point at Flathead Lake just collecting rocks, reading, drowsing in the sun and swimming in the lovely cold, clear water. Every afternoon and evening we saw the resident deer--the doe and her two fawns, the three year-old buck, and various of their friends. At night we carefully put everything inside the cabin so the resident bear wouldn't get it. But the bear didn't bother us as the last cherries are falling off the trees bursting with late summer juice and he has all he can eat from them--keeps him busy.

One gray day Dave, Jessie and I drove up to Logan Pass at the top of the Going-To-The-Sun Road in Glacier National Park. We thought about going on up to Canada and seeing the Waterton side of the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, but the day got away from us and the construction on the GTTS Road slowed us down a bit. For those of you who have never been to Glacier--and for those who just want to marvel at the incredible feat of engineering that is the Going-to-The-Sun Highway, the etours on this page are fascinating (especially the power tour).

I still haven't replaced my broken digital camera and the iPhone is just not meant for panoramic shots so I don't have any photos from our day. I was forced to live not commemorate the sightings of a herd of bighorn sheep grazing at the pass, a columbia ground squirrel, a pika and a young mountain goat grazing at the side of the road. There wasn't any snow at the visitor center and not much on the mountain above it, but it has been a particularly long, hot summer. For good snow shots, and a previous day in Glacier, see the original post on Siyeh Pass. What great days I've had in Glacier.

Tonight we stopped by Van (from that day on Siyeh Pass) and Molly's house and Jessie played with their daughters Emma and Sally. I could go on about how I have known Van since first grade, but instead I am just going to say, take it as read that we had a Big Chill kind of evening and are hoping to repeat it again next summer.

Now to close, perchance to dream of high blue mountains rising into the clouds, snow kissed air flowing down from them--even in August, and the beautiful wild country that is the home of my heart.

Mika - Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)

Saw this on Lilith Saintcrow's blog and had to grab it. no, this is not *entirely* how I am spending my vacation...

The Mayonnaise Jar and the Two Glasses of Wine

As I scurried to ready myself for the BMAC in Philadelphia, I took a break to have lunch and catch up on my email. In my Inbox was the following from my mother:

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 glasses of wine...

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full.

They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full.

They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two glasses of wine from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things; your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions; things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else; the small stuff.

If you put the sand into the jar first , " he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18. Do one more run down the ski slope. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first; the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand." One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the wine represented.

The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of glasses of wine with a friend."

The Indigo Girls

Last night I saw the Indigo Girls in concert for the first time. The concert was on the lawn at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens--a hometown show for them. I was so overwhelmed by the concert that I dreamed about them all night. Two women, two instruments, that's it. Two incredible voices and two amazing song-writing talents. This was the best concert of my life by far. Today on iTunes is an all-Indigo-Girls day--not too difficult as we have all of their albums (whatever the media, they will always be albums to me). And this group already holds a special place for me: Our friend Andrea sang "The Power of Two", an Indigo Girls song, at Dave's and my wedding. It gave me goose-bumps to hear the IG sing it last night (as D and I held hands and hugged).

The show started at 8:00 and the gates were supposed to open at 6:30 so we got there about 6:15. We stood in the drizzling rain at what felt like the end of a very long line. But the people that streamed past us to the back of the line during the ensuing 45 minutes that it took till the gates opened at 7:00 made our line look like a couple of people around a water cooler. And we still all fit in.

When we got in and found a space we weren't pressed right up front, but we were very close--on the little Botanical Gardens Lawn there isn't a "far away" seat anyway. We put down our tarp and our blanket, got a bottle of wine, some water, some antipasti from the Sun In My Belly caterers, and settled down to play gin rummy till the concert started.

The pictures were taken with an iPhone (not even a real camera) as I was *sitting*, lounging really on our blanket. I am usually not too much of a concert person as I don't like to stand for three hours to listen to music--and the person in front of you is always standing so you have to stand too if you want to see. This concert was perfect: There were songs you had to stand up and dance, and then you sat (or lay) back down and lounged for awhile. Because everyone did that, everyone got to see all the time--how cool is that? The first picture is the opening act, Brandi Carlile, then the stage just as dark fell, then--still sitting--our view of the Indigo Girls themselves. Sadly the pictures don't capture just how close it felt or how clear the view was.

Jester

Life had such an emotional shear this weekend that I can't even blog about it in one post--there was too much distance between the lows and the highs. So first I'll tackle the lows. It was a tough weekend for Jester. One of his wounds has torn open again and he needs another surgery (and another suctioning drain). I went up to see him Saturday and was both heartened and horrified. He is moving around well and I understand, eating well and accustomed to the routine at the vets. But he looks like a Frankenstein monster. There is a catheter in his neck because he wasn't supporting the ones in his legs well, and two suctioning drains in his surgery sites with the tubes and bulbs strapped around his belly. He has staples in the surgery site on his belly where they removed skin to cover the wound in the back, and then there are the main surgery sites from the base of his tail all the way down his leg...

I leave tomorrow for Philadelphia (with the mini-van) and dump the whole mess in Dave's lap. The vet will still call me every morning with the updates, but it looks like Dave's going to be the one who needs to pick Jester up (in a rental car or with the help of a friend) and (maybe) has to deal with a suctioning drain for a few days. The Indigo Girls sing "Heartache for Everyone" in the background on iTunes.

On the bright side (and I'm glad there is one) the vet said he has adapted to their routine and is eating and moving around well (in his cage) up there. He clearly hasn't given up. Poor stoic boy: he's just going along with everything until he can get home.

So now we wait. Maybe surgery tomorrow (if the wound opens so much that they risk losing the skin graft) but they would prefer to wait till Thursday if possible. Maybe home Friday.

A Funny From Mom

It is rare that I get anything funny enough in email to share, but I loved this one (thanks Mom):

An honest man was being tailgated by a stressed-out woman on a busy boulevard. Suddenly the light turned yellow just in front of him. He did the right thing, stopping at the crosswalk, even though he could have beaten the red light by accelerating through the intersection.

The tailgating woman hit the roof--and the horn--screaming in frustration as she missed her chance to get through the intersection. As she was still in mid-rant, she heard a tap on her window and looked up into the face of a very serious police officer. The officer ordered her to exit her car with her hands up. He took her to the police station where she was searched, fingerprinted, photographed, and placed in a holding cell.

After a couple of hours, a policeman approached the cell and opened the door. She was escorted back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with her personal effects.

He said, "I'm very sorry for this mistake. You see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, flipping off the guy in front of you, and cussing a blue streak at him. I noticed the 'Choose Life' license plate holder, the 'What Would Jesus Do' bumper sticker, the 'Follow Me to Sunday School' bumper sticker, and the chrome-plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk. Naturally, I assumed you had stolen the car."

Oh the Quizes I Can Take...

You're The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe!

by C.S. Lewis

You were just looking for some decent clothes when everything changed
quite dramatically. For the better or for the worse, it is still hard to tell. Now it
seems like winter will never end and you feel cursed. Soon there will be an epic
struggle between two forces in your life and you are very concerned about a betrayal
that could turn the balance. If this makes it sound like you're re-enacting Christian
theological events, that may or may not be coincidence. When in doubt, put your trust
in zoo animals.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Not surprisingly...

You're Montana!

When asked about you, most people ponder the late 1980's, a glorious
football dynasty, and even mention something about rice. Despite all this nostalgic
reverie, this has nothing to do with you. While the 1980's were great, you feel you
belong in the 1890's. You're rugged in the extreme, it's true, but would rather tackle
a bear than a football player. And you just don't know how to grow rice. It's
going to be a long winter.


Take the State Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

No, I didn't fudge the results. No, I didn't take the test multiple times, I came up Montana the first time. What's meant to be is obviously meant to be. What state are you?

UPDATE: Just to see what would happen the second time around I did it again and gave really, really honest answers. Guess what?

You're Alaska!

You're big, bulky, and extremely wild. At the same time, you're rather
cold and standoffish, even a loner of sorts. Taming you may be one of the last great
quests of the people who do manage to find you or even seek you out. So many of them
just want to plunder you for what you have of value, but there are a few, the ones
who will stick with you, that truly value your rugged remoteness. As long as no one
is spilling stuff on you, you are truly beautiful.


Take the State Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Bamboo, Five Toads and a Snake

(Note added on 10/20/08): I am tired of everyone coming here for the photo of the copperhead snake, I am taking it off the post.)

(Note added on 6/8/08: over the past few days hundreds of people from all over the net have visited this post. Why? Where is the link to the copperhead snake photo? I'm really curious and would love to know. Would someone please answer in the comments? Thanks... Brenda)

Vacation is over, and we're home. It was wonderful and relaxing, and... just like an Animal Planet episode! It all began last Monday. J and I hit Publix at 10:30 to pick up the groceries for the trip. Two hours (and two carts) later we got back home and started packing, and loading the food and ice into the coolers. We were on the road by... 4:00. Not the best time to get on I-85 heading north, but it was okay.

A couple of hours later we were in Deliverance Country. the gorgeous cabin shown here wasn't the one we had, but we had the same wonderful screened-in porch and we had *two* picnic tables. Ours was painted a blend-into-the-forest green. Here are some highlights of the trip:

Dave arrived Tuesday night and we roasted hot dogs and marshmallows in our fire pit. Thursday we grilled steaks over charcoal on our outdoor primitive grill. Note: No other method of cooking a hot dog can hold a candle to roasting over an open flame. other Note: I am the undisputed champion of the perfect roasted marshmallow--golden-brown all over and evenly melted through. Marshmallows and Merlot.... yumm. Jessie doesn't like her marshmallows roasted at all, and Dave is a quick burn kind of guy.

Our cabin had a resident deer mouse I named Alphonse (heck, it probably had all of his sisters, brothers, cousins and living ancestors too. Mouse poop ahoy!). One night I was reading in the big chair in the living room and I looked up to see a mouse shimmying down the wall. When he got to the ground he dashed into our bedroom with me in hot pursuit. A couple of hours later I came face to face with him in the kitchen by the microwave. He was absolutely adorable, but I still would rather he had stayed outside. Every night after that we heard him partying till dawn--in the kitchen, in our room, even in the underside of our bed! Good thing we had big plastic totes to keep all of our food in.

The forests of South Carolina are being taken over by timber bamboo, and no one there--the park ranger included--has any idea. I was amazed at the proliferation of timber bamboo seedlings throughout the forest. It is by far the most common species of plant I saw and it all seems to be about the same age and grown from seed. Don't the park rangers and forest service see what's going on?

Yeah, right now it's all 2-5 feet tall and 1/4" in diameter. But they have mature groves of it (which must have flowered to produce the seed which produced all these seedlings), they can see how dense and tall it gets. I would think the native pines, oaks and maples don't stand a chance against it. Just wait another 5-10 years...

We were warned about the copperhead snakes, the cane rattle snakes and the diamond-back rattle snakes, but I really thought they were exaggerating. Nope. Jessie and I went for a walk at 9:30 last night to see all the toads that come out onto the road at 9:00 every night. A rain of toads every night at 9:00. But since we didn't get out till 9:30 we missed much of the rain and only saw five toads. Dave was nursing a cold and stayed in the cabin. As we were walking back along the road in the full dark we saw a copperhead snake in the road ahead of us--good thing we had our torches, huh?. It coiled to strike and we skirted quickly and carefully around it. It was just a little one, but still...

Thursday the three of us hiked to Hidden Falls from our cabin--about six miles round trip. There was a newly-fallen tree across the path 50 yards from the end that we had to go around (that was a bit hairy, but we all made it okay). We had lunch at the base of the falls and I picked a tick off my foot. South Carolina is just FILLED with critters!

Wednesday night we listened to the telling of the legend of the Guern (the bootlegger who owned the land the park is now on and he wouldn't sell. They destroyed the dam above his property to make the lake at the campground and the water took out his still--which exploded, cutting him to little pieces. He still haunts the place and there have been disappearances and even a death laid at his door). Then we watched fireworks over the lake put on by the Park Rangers. Grant Park it wasn't, but in its own way, it was better.

Lastly, but not leastly, sleeping in a hard little double bed for six nights was... interesting. Dave and I got it down to kind of a ballet of synchronized spooning. That was definitely better than the first night when I slept with J before Dave got there. She may be smaller but she packs a punch. I'm sleeping, minding my own business (by definition) and WHAM, a kick to the stomach. I recover from that, drop back off, and, WHAM a right hook flail to the eye. Jessie is a very restless sleeper.

For Bridget

1. Your Middle Name: Kathleen

2. Age: 46

3. Single or Taken: More twined than kudzu.

4. Favorite Movie: Moonstruck.

5. Favorite Song or Album: This minute? I Will Follow You Into the Dark by Deathcab For Cutie

6. Favorite Band/Artist: George Winston

7. Dirty or Clean: Used to be Squeaky, now Not Quite Smelly

8. Tattoos and/or Piercings: Abstract dragon's wings in glorious color above the butt, 19th century graphic arts black lizard on right hipbone.

9. Do we know each other outside of LJ/Blogger?
Since I appropriated Dave.

10. What's your philosophy on life?
It's for the perseverant.

11. Is the bottle half-full or half-empty?
What bottle? I'm too busy to look for a bottle. Why didn't anyone pass me a bottle?

12. Would you keep a secret from me if you thought it was in my best interest?
Yes.

13. What is your favorite memory of us?
Picking you up at the airport loaded with California wine for our wedding (Dave's and mine, not, obviously, yours and mine).

14. What is your favorite guilty pleasure?
Computer/Video games. I don't feel guilty about much else.

15. Tell me one odd/interesting fact about you: I was a ski instructor when I was 18.

16. You can have three wishes (for yourself, so forget all the 'world peace etc' malarkey) - what are they : 1) The weight I want with no effort. 2) To live anywhere I want, anytime I want, in the style I want. 3) Nicholas Cage as my love slave.

17. Can we get together and make a cake?
I'll watch.

18. Which country is your spiritual home?
Montana. Trust me, it's a country. Big Sky Country.

19. What is your big weakness?
Roederer Cristal champagne.

20. Do you think I'm a good person?
Yes.

21. What was your best/favorite subject at school?
Languages. Any languages.

22. Describe your accent: Montana, baby, pure Montana.

23. If you could change anything about me, would you?
Nope.

24. What do you wear to sleep?
Wear? Why would I wear anything?

25. Trousers or skirts?
Capris.

26. Cigarettes or alcohol?
Alcohol, oh yeah.

27. If I only had one day to live, what would we do together?
Whatever you wanted.

28. Will you repost this so I can fill it out for you?
Oh why not.

And there you are! Now who else is out there? Ren? Jody? Sue? Lurkers?

Happy Father's Day! Happy Day After Wedding!

The title and the post have nothing in common. One is happy and full of good wishes, the other is grim and bleak, driven by the fact that we sit in the airport in Austin with a five year-old who is completely exhausted by three long days and late nights of wedding festivities. Additionally we wait to board a flight which was delayed by an hour and a half and which looks to be now full due to the cancellation of another flight. Oh joy. We have the aisle and window on one side and the two seats on the other. Now it looks like there is a good chance the middle seat will be taken. Oh joy.


Jessie was extraordinary for the wedding. And looking at the few pictures I took, it's impossible to remain grumpy about the travel. Yes, she's exhausted beyond her capacity to be reasonable (as am I), but we had a simply lovely time. We stayed at the House on the Hill from Thursday till today and it was also the site of the wedding. Dave was the Best Man and J was the Flower Girl. Vanessa was an exquisitely lovely bride and Bryon beamed with happiness throughout the weekend.


And now we actually get to board so I am going to end with some photos of Bryon, Dave, Jessie and Vanessa. The story of how Dave and I were moving around the equipment of the Midgetmen buck-naked... really... at 5:30 am outdoors in the midst of a hellacious thunderstorm will have to wait for another post... along with the rest of the cruise pics. (photo key: Bryon left, Dave right; Bryon; Jessie; Vanessa and her Dad (Anthony))

Jessie Superstar!

Since we have the superstar board back home, I thought I would take this opportunity to post a pic of it. The resolution just may not be good enough here, in which case I could be a nutball and recreate the whole thing on Flickr... or I could just take a nap!

The Train is Pulling Out Of the Station

Jessie's agency is sending her "sheet" off to the printers. I'm not sure if I'm ready for the additions to our schedule that this activity of hers might bring, but we'll find out!

Tagged for a Meme!

Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write their own blog with their 7 things as well as these rules. You need to tag 7 others and list their names on your blog. Remember to leave a comment for them letting them know they have been tagged and to read your blog.

1. I do not believe Brussels sprouts are proof of the anti-Christ (as my husband does).

2. I grew up saying "Gezundheit" whenever anyone sneezed even though (as far as I know) no one in my family is German.

3. The maid of honor at my wedding was a man.

4. I put The Body Shop shea butter products on my hands every night before bed.

5. My husband says (when asked what weird habits I have) "That thing where you juggle chipmunks, and you're not all that good at it." (I am wondering who else he is married to) "And your fondness for early Patrick Swayze movies... those are the worst of them, really."

6. I am going to a baseball game Friday for my 46th birthday to watch the Braves (who supposedly can't beat anyone) trounce the Cubs (who--according to my mother-in-law--have been sucking stoats this season [I'm paraphrasing]). There'll be beer and fireworks.

7. I love to blog. I mean it. I REALLY love to blog.

I am tagging 7 people to meme, but I only expect a couple of them to respond (surprise me!). .. Bridget, Bill, Sue, Barbara, Christian, Lize and Lili.

Life, It's STILL What's Happening!

Thanks for the link Bridget! Always good to get a random read on life from an internet survey.

Your Life is 21% Off Track

In general, your life is going very well. You're quite happy with where you are and what you're doing. And even if you get a bit off course, you're usually able to get back on track easily.

Are You Living The Wrong Life?

The Cruise Part 1

Coffee in the ... hey wait a minute, this isn't Glass Incarnate, it's the weekend! Wouldn't you know, but as soon as I have the button for Keith's gift at the top of the blog--needing to be there and so keeping me from posting about anything else--all I wanted to do was post about the cruise!

Of course I still haven't scanned the photos that the cruise-line people took of us--pictures that I promised to mail to everyone else in our group and at our dinner table (ah well, one thing at a time) but I do have the few I took at Chacchoben--all but one saved for the next post. I also have a couple of shots of one of the cool towel animals our room steward did for us every couple of nights.

So what is it (besides the towel animals) about a cruise that makes is such a wonderful experience? If you're like us and don't get off the ship at the ports of call, what makes it different than just staying in a hotel somewhere for a week? It comes down to three things: obligation, socialization, and fending.

Obligation: Every vacation I have ever taken to a place other than home or visiting friends has entailed at some point having to go out and do something. Maybe it's a walking tour of the Ruta Moderna in Barcelona, or maybe it's a morning scuba diving, or maybe it's going to a vineyard to sample 1000 wines. On a cruise, there is nothing to do other than find a nice nook to read, walk the upper deck, eat and drink. And with the current pace of life for us, that's what vacation should be all about.

Socialization: Every vacation home (mine or Dave's) or to a friend's house means living on top of other beings and having to interact with them. Don't get me wrong, I love my family and friends, but negotiating someone else's space and continued participation in the expected social rituals (like conversation) can be more than I am up for. A cruise ship is so big that even if you do go with other people, you're off in your own space unless you explicitly seek each other out. No one thinks anything if they don't see you for a whole day. As much blissful anonymity as you could want.

Fending: If you stay in a hotel, motel, cabin or condo, you have to actively think about and plan eating. You may even have to fix your own food. Hotels have one dining room (very occasionally more), while cruise ships have several dining and drinking options and they are available whenever you want them. Better still the food is already included so you can eat as often or as little as you would like (I managed to lose weight on the cruise). The closest hotel vacation I have found to the cruise experience is going to Vegas--and that is definitely NOT an all-inclusive trip!

So I love to cruise and would do so again in a heartbeat. The one I want most to do is from Galveston to San Diego through the Panama Canal. I could also spend a bunch of time in the Mediterranean. Sailboats are for Other people. I want my hot shower, gentle rocking motion, non-stop food and--most of all--blissful anonymity. Oh yes, and a little private balcony. Interior rooms also being for Other people. I LIKE hanging in my room and want to be able to tell when it's light or dark out (and even to be able fall over the balcony into the water if I want to--not that I would, but it does seem to be a popular cruise pastime recently).

And if you do feel like getting off the ship there are fascinating things to see--like the Mayan ruins at Chacchoben. More photos of them in the next cruise post. Could be another three months...

Keith Frey

Here's the link (the button below) to contribute to Keith Frey's going away gift. If you don't know who Keith is, or weren't looking to contribute, then you probably want the wicked-cute toddler pictures further down the blog.

Life, It's What's Happening

Delaying Posting on the Cruise... Again!

I got this from Jodi and it's the first meme I have really, really really wanted to do. And it is one more thing I can do to annoy Bill by not posting about the cruise. Heh.

The Movie Meme

1. Name a movie you have seen more than 10 times.
"The Princess Bride" and "Moonstruck"

2. Name a movie you've seen multiple times in the theater.
Wizards, the animated by Ralph Bakshi. 13 times in the theater and now I own it.

3. Name an actor that would make you more inclined to see a movie.
Nicole Kidman

4. Name an actor that would make you less likely to see a movie.
Tom Cruise

5. Name a movie than you can and do quote from.
The Princess Bride, "You were not hired for your brains you hippopotamic land mass!"
Shakespeare in Love (added from Glass Incarnate)

6. Name a movie musical that you know all of the lyrics to all of the songs.
"My Fair Lady", "Oklahoma", "Carousel", "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers", the list goes on...

7. Name a movie that you have been known to sing along with.
All of the above plus "Moulin Rouge", "Grease", the list goes on...

8. Name a movie you would recommend everyone see.
There are many because I am opinionated, but I will go with "Love Actually"

9. Name a movie that you own.
Pick a letter... But a rare good choice: "The Iron Monkey"

10. Name an actor that launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops.
Can't think of a single person off-hand

11. Have you ever seen a movie at a drive-in? If so, what?
Most recently, "Premonition" and fell asleep during the second feature, "Ghost Rider"

12. Ever made out in a movie?
Oh yes

13. Name a movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven't gotten around to it yet.
Well, Ghost Rider. I finally saw Prizzi's Honor. Still have "Meet Joe Black" and "The Last Mohican" on the shelf unwatched.

14. Ever walked out on a movie?
"American Gigolo"

15. Name a movie that made you cry in the theater.
Please, they almost ALL make me cry. "Dances With Wolves" comes to mind first. Then "E.T."

16. What was the last movie you saw in the theater.
"The Last Mimzy"

17. What is your favorite/preferred genre of movie.
action/adventure, romantic comedy

18. What is the first movie you remember seeing in the theater?
Drive-in. Either "Taste the Blood of Dracula", or "Scream and Scream Again". Or was it "The Asylum" or "Night of the Living Dead"? Yeah, that was it. NOTLD

19. What movie do you wish you'd never seen?
I have blocked them all and repurposed those brain cells.

20. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed?
"Howl's Moving Castle" and other Miyazaki's. They are somehow... alien.

21. What is the scariest movie you have seen?
"Halloween"

22. What is the funniest movie you have seen?
"Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle"

Legs OR What We Watched During Dinner...

Watching "Bones" tonight over dinner. There's a scene where the forensic anthropologist examines a severed leg from an accident. Jessie looks at Dave and says, "Daddy, was that the leg from the bachelor party?" What happens in Vegas obviously doesn't STAY in Vegas...

Dave replied that all he ever said was that he had to find and return a leg. He didn't say anything about how the leg was lost, the circumstances under which losing a leg made perfect sense, or who (indeed) stole the leg. However he does assert that if HE had stolen the leg, it would have come back with rhinestones and ostrich feathers on it. No use being in Vegas if you can't pimp your gimp.

iLike!

Thanks to Ren, THE GENIUS, I now have an iLike account and can easily link the song of the morning to my Glass Incarnate postings. It also shows everything I have been listening to recently and since it's the melancholy playlist from Ren, my taste looks a lot more hi-brow than it normally does. At last a technology that makes music as easy to show and share as pictures are. When was the last time you had to download a "player" to view a picture someone sent you? Never! I am tired of being prompted to download yet another widget to share music snippets. It's not like I'm trying to pirate anything--I just want to share a small piece and pique the interest. I will be pursuing iLike more... let's try an add to the template...