Alec Baldwin

Nobody really cares what I think, but as it’s *MY* blog, I’m going to tell you anyway.

That horrible phone message rant to Baldwin’s daughter was played for me without warning; it was on my “nice” am morning radio show that I’ve listened to for the past 20 plus years.  Having heard it and been shocked and disturbed by it, I feel a sense of outrage.  Well maybe not screaming at inappropriate people outrage, but controlled disgust.

I’m disgusted at Mr. Baldwin for losing his cool like that with his kid.  If that’s who you really are Mr. Baldwin, you need help.  I certainly don’t mean, oops I cut all my hair off and I’m going to re-hab help either.  I mean sessions with a certified professional.

I’m disgusted at the people who are supposed to be advocates for this little girl but yet distributed the message to the media.

I’m disgusted that with all the talk about this message there hasn’t been a louder dialog about abuse and anger management.  I’m not suggesting that Mr. Baldwin is an abuser, but this would be an opportune time to talk about the signs of abuse, or how to get away from someone before it escalates to violence.

I’m disgusted at media outlets that are supposed to be reputable (CNN!?) who posted this as a summary to today’s follow up story: “Story HighlightsDr. Phil says Baldwin called him for advice “

I’m disgusted at Dr. Phil who is posing as a mental health professional and yet doesn’t understand thing ONE about patient confidentiality.  Unless he was asked to leak that to the media and then I say poo on Mr. Baldwin’s pr machine for thinking that going to the “yelling therapist” for advice was a good idea.

 

In fact, poo on everyone involved! You people stink!  Maybe I am a little outraged.

My Samsung has last rung...

It's been five days since I found my new cell phone in the washing machine. I'd like to blame the cat but he doesn't do a damn thing around the house so I'm pretty sure it was me. Each day the display looks more and more normal.

I want to plug the thing into the charger and see what happens but I am afraid of it shorting out and causing a regional blackout. I may wait until about 5 minutes before I leave on vacation and that way I can't be blamed for any damage.

As much as I feel naked without a lifeline, I think I will wait until after I get back from Mexico to purchase a replacement. I'm pretty sure it would be in bad taste to ask the kind people who pitched in to buy this one for me as a gift to pitch in again. Perhaps Emily Post might ask me to rethink that.

Purchasing the insurance would have been a good idea and it would have basically guaranteed that I would never need to use it. My track record with car insurance, extra maintenance guarantees, postal insurance generally and very unscientifically proves my theory.

SadRico, however did prove that the $14 insurance policy on the rental truck for moving day was worth it. It saved me between $300-400 when Rico hit my neighbors car with the big truck. Whew!

Well - I guess that's all I've got for now. Headed to bed early, as it's been a long week.

The Spin Master

In an eastern region of Ethiopia yesterday a small outbreak of violence occurred between Ethiopian Military who were guarding a Chinese oil drilling operation and a regional separatist group called the OGADEN NATIONAL LIBERATION FRONT (ONLF).

The BBC reports that it was a massacre where 9 Chinese nationals and "scores" of Ethiopian military guards were killed in an unprovoked attack.

Conversely, the ONLF spokesperson disputes the use of the word "massacre" and says it was a fight and that they won. He does claim that 350 Ethopian troops were killed and his side lost two men.

I don't pretend to understand the politics behind this event - I believe the ONLF doesn't appreciate the Ethiopian gov't allowing and spending resources to enable foreign oil drilling, while the people of the region are living in poverty. (See also the economics of oil drilling in the gulf off of Louisiana.)

I do wonder if the ONLF spokesperson had to compete for his job. "Alright Abdirahman, here's the scenario. We've just sunk a boat with 20 kittens and Mother Theresa. What would you say to the media?"

Things that aren't good to find in the laundry

Maybe once it dries out it will work again...

Motto

This company mission statement was at the bottom of an e-mail I received today, I was hoping it is a joke, but it’s not.

"Putting clients first by putting employees first, immediately after prioritizing fiscal responsibility and leveraging profitability toward exceeding by empowering our employees to put clients (and themselves) first, in a diverse and respectful environment of only those that come first, first"

Book Review: The Stranger Beside Me

I grew up aware of Ted Bundy, maybe it was because he was a "local" or the shocking nature of his crimes. I saw the Mark Harmon tv movie (which scared the CRAP) out of me and to my horror today attended a Ted's Dead celebration party in College.

I had not however, read Ann Rule's book. It is in fact, very good even today. She does take some license in describing his thoughts and emotions over some actions that I doubt she could really know, but does a wonderful job of showing the duality in his life.

Amazon.com sent me (because I asked them to) the Updated 20th Anniversary Edition that has a note from the author penned in 2000. This follows the "Last Chapter" drafted in 1989 following Mr. Bundy's execution and the "Update" from 1986, which followed the Epilogue from 1980.

A little like the last 20 minutes of the final Lord of the Rings everything starts wrapping up very fast and you have to pay attention. Mr. Bundy did some last minute confessing which brought some information to the families. I wouldn't dare to call it closure.

Ms. Rule has a unique voice that suits the non-fiction crime genre. She's not overly solicitous about the gory details and doesn't try to beef up the story. It was a good read but more than a little creepy. I did feel sheepish about reading on the bus.

As an aside, my dear father met Mr. Bundy in 1973 or so when he was working on Governor Dan Evans' staff. Dad's recollection was that he was charming, but in that political way where someone smiles at you while you are talking but aren't really listening and the moment they turn away they stop smiling. Dad was convinced that his "murderous activities" hadn't yet begun at that point, but was surprised to learn that in fact they had.

So, all these years later - lesson number one... don't hitchhike, lesson number two if someone seems creepy they ARE creepy.

Red Lobster!

I foolishly tried to "take the edge" off my white white body by signing up for some tanning sessions.

Starting slowly, I purchased 10 sessions and unrobed for the first. Four minutes on a medium bed was all I wanted to endure. It's an odd place, the tanning salon. Orange colored teenagers check you in and give you your salon number.

Your room is a closet with a massive coffin looking thing in it. There's no instructions other than hit the blue button when you're ready.

I donned my space alien eye wear and hit the blue button, which is across the room from the 'bed'. I hoped on, and pulled the casket thing around myself. This was all a little difficult because I had my eyes closed.

The heat from the bulbs is actually pretty nice and you do feel a burst of energy from the UV rays. The downside is smelling your burnt skin for the rest of the day.

Yesterday I went back for session 2 of 10 (another 4 minutes) and opted not to fully disrobe. NO ONE IS GOING TO SEE MY WHITE WHITE ASS! I failed to remember this when it came to my chestal region, and today I am PINK.

Sadly due to the prone position the undersides of my breasts got the brunt of the burn. If it doesn't cool off by tomorrow I may need to skip Tuesday's session altogether. The idea is to take the edge off, not leather up. I may be pretending to be a feminist tomorrow - that's never a good look (braless) although I made it through today with only mild whining.

I would snap a photo of the red red boobies, but frankly I'm pretty confident you're not interested.

At any rate - the next session (whenever it may be) will be torso covered event. I promise.

Soundtrack of your life

From Don't Trust Snakes here's my answers to the "soundtrack" game:

The instructions:

Set your iTunes etc. to "Party Shuffle," "Random" or whatever the appropriate setting is, refresh it then fill in the form below.

No cheating, just do it, yes that includes you . . .

You may be surprised how scarily accurate this can be."

Here is mine.

(Copy and paste then delete my answers and fill in yours).

Title: "Pefect Situation" - Weezer
Opening Credits: "In My Head" - No Doubt
Waking up: "We're not going to make it" - The Presidents of The United States of America
First Day of school: "Heart of Gold" - The Kinks
Falling in Love: "Love is A Stranger" - Eurythmics
Fight Song: "Learn to Love" - Harry Connick, Jr.
Breaking Up: "She Bop" - Cindy Lauper
Prom/First date: "Blue Savannah" - Erasure
Life: "Who Killed Tangerine?" - Tears for Fears
Mental Breakdown: "Disturbance at The Heron House" - R.E.M.
Driving: "Mobile" - Avril Lavigne
Flashback: "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye To Yesterday" - Boyz II Men
Getting Back Together: "Shaking the Tree" - Peter Gabriel
Wedding: "Cuyahoga" - R.E.M
Birth of Child: "Bad Connection" - Yaz
Final Battle: "Better Together" - Jack Johnson
Death Scene: "Let's Just Kiss" - Harry Connick, Jr.
Funeral Song: "Good Riddance" - Green Day
End Credits: "Last Days On Earth" - Tears For Fears

Well, hmmm some of these are pretty funny. The "breakup song" is about masturbation (tee hee) and I think I did dance to Blue Savannah at my prom.

My "funeral song" is one that you can play at my funeral. In spite of the name it's about remembering to make the best of every day.

It appears that my one Harry Connick Jr. album is getting too much play on my soundtrack.

My "final battle" song is a little too upbeat - it's not quite as "I'm gonna go down fighting" as I would like, but neither is my fight song. I guess my philosophy is to love them to death.

Ooks!

Sad news to report, my cool optical mouse with the handy roller ball died overnight.  The “handy” on-line service request system is not set up to request a new mouse.  I can get a whole new laptop bundle in 24 hours, but not a replacement mouse.  Maybe I’ll “Have” to go to Frye’s after work tonight.  R.I.P. old mouse, there were some good times together.  Remember that Onion.com article about the secret service agent who jumped in front of President Bush to save him from having to answer a direct question.  That was funny.  Good-bye friend.

So as I was digging through the “Drawer of Crap” to find a temporary mouse (I just can’t function with the little mid-keyboard nipple my finger gets cramps)  I started to express my mild dissatisfaction with Gidget who sits near my “office”.  As we were chatting I realized that the cord on the mouse was just long enough to act as a jump rope, so I took a couple hops.  Acknowledging that I looked ridiculous I stopped (we laughed) and I turned to head to my “office”.  It was then that I saw the conference room that has full view of our common area is in use and that some “suit” was looking at me.  *BLUSH* 

Oh well, I never said I was mature. 

(Ooks isn’t a typo – it’s homage to my friend Rich’s college lab partner who used “ooks” instead of “oops” to indicate a mistake.  No amount of friendly coaching could get him off of “ooks” and thus it has firmly entered itself into our vocabulary.)

gob smacking

According to the BBC News (which I like because of the accent) women civil service employees are outraged about some new questions on their annual required physical check up.

The new questions ask them to detail their last menstrual period and if they've ever been "confined" which is an interesting way of describing maternity leave.

I've had boyfriends ask "are you on your period?" in the middle of a disagreement and barely live to tell about it, but I don't think withholding sex would work with my employer. I'm doing that today and it's not getting me anywhere.

It's not really clear to me how a period affects anyone's ability to 'ride a desk' but perhaps the Indian Government knows more than I do about this, as my grandma described, "wonderful gift." Yes, you guessed it, Christmas gifts from grandma sucked.

Just so you don't get the impression that the US media is the only one who will print the most wacky things because it's funny... to describe the anger felt by the women this is the quote they chose to run:

"It's gob smacking."

Uh ok, I guess that means that they're pissed?

My Humps?

I have to say that while the tune is catchy... I have HATED this song since the beginning, but you have to watch it, and then the Alanis Morissette version. Totally funny!



now watch this:



Do you think they are talking about her ass?

Sonics

AP Newswire:  Sonics, Storm owners reach agreement to buy Renton site

The Sonics hope the arena will be ready for the 2010-11 NBA season.

Note to self:

Move before fall 2010

A New Friend

I noticed this little guy outside my office window and had to step out and try to get a photo. This shot actually works for me, I like the soft greens and purples in the background. Not too bad... I'll not put my work against the serious photographers out there, but sometimes I get one right.

Motivative, the response

Anonymous writes after reading Motivative:

I must correct you here TP. The folks from the Yakima Nation Tribal College are indigenous people. THEY AREN'T THE FOREIGNERS!!! WE ARE!!! DUH!!!

TPgal said:
The kids that won in our room were the crew from the Heritage University from the Yakima Nation Tribal College. I knew it, foreigners get all the breaks.

TP Gal Responds: I am fully aware that the students who attend the Heritage College are traditionally native people - I though for sure that it was somewhat obvious that I was trying to be funny.

I apologize if my attempt at satire was lost on you. (Satire is where you say something so obviously wrong that it's funny. See Stephen Colbert as an example.)

In reality, the day spent with these kids is very inspiring; it is amazing what they are able to do. The team from HU deserved to win, and I was delighted to be able to hear their presentation. They are mostly first generation high school grads and college students and they've done remarkable research regarding the economic condition of the Yakima Valley and have tailored their program to serve the community.

They recognize that the Hispanic population of the Yakima Valley area is exploding and have developed classes to teach business owners not only Spanish language but cultural facts that will help them better relate to this market segment.

They found that because the population of the YV has almost twice the unemployment rate of the rest of the state and the median income is remarkably less than in other areas of the state that there was a need to distribute information about high interest credit cards and short term pay-day loans to help educate about the true high costs of these items.

They also partnered with a club in Mexico and helped a village of families who had been subsistence farming to form a co-op and grow organic vegetables and raise chickens. By teaching them basic business and economic skills this co-op now sells their goods to restaurants in a neighboring city. The HU outreach has significantly impacted the lives of these families.

Good luck to the team from Yakima! Do the state proud!

(As an aside, it turns out that almost 40% of the students at the college are of Hispanic ethnicity and most are first generation Americans. I didn't highlight this fact in my original post because I wanted to make a joke. However, I think if anyone is going help turn around the economic crap-hole that the Yakima Valley finds itself in these days it's these kids. I am humbled by their efforts. See now you've learned something, but it probably wasn't as fun as the first post.)

Happy Easter

Yaz turned me on to Slate.com blogging the bible and it got me thinking... what else is out there... so I googled the Lego Jesus and came up with the Brick Testament, a cute and well crafted slide show of the life and times of Jesus.

It's Good Friday, so I snipped this as a sample for you: (the angel rolls away the stone and the guards tremble and fall as if dead)

Motiative

What!?

I do only one good thing a year as I'm quite selfish and too important to help others. Today was my day to give back to the little people.

I participated as a judge for a regional collegiate competition. Schools from the "region" (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Alaska, California, Nevada and Hawaii) known as "the whole fricken West side of the USA" presented an annual report of their activities for the last year. They have a charter to promote business ethics, economic growth and other useless skills.

The presentations are good but what's really fun isn't hearing about how they taught high school and college kids credit card skills, or created a micro-loan program to enable immigrants be self-sustaining. No, the fun part is judging others.

There were many remarkable kids there but here were the top two that stood out:

The boy who brushed off his knee length tuxedo jacket to double as a business attire. It was cute, and in my head I gave him kudos for bravery. I did cut his points in half because he has to learn the harsh truth that fashion matters.

The other notable student was a gal who will win the "TP gal 2007 Fictionary Award" for excellentary word creatoryness. In less than 8 minutes she dropped the following words:

Motivative

Interactual

Advisement ** this apparently IS a word, but I promise you not in the context with which she used it.

Reoccurent

It was so bad that the CEO of CoinStar (seriously) mocked the team about their new vocabulary. Probably not his nicest move, but he's the CEO so whose going to tell him to shove it?

I did get into a raging debate with a student from the College of the Nazarene about the rights of students to post what they want on their MySpace pages. I was all "Look here Jesus-girl, if you put pictures of yourself doing heroin with your pet goat on a public web page expect people to judge you. Duh!!"

She was all "goat?"

Score the point for tp gal.

The kids that won in our room were the crew from the Heritage University from the Yakima Nation Tribal College. I knew it, foreigners get all the breaks.

City University-Bellevue also won... All they did was create a multi-cultural program to help immigrants build businesses, get jobs, and thrive (whatever) in our economy. Their program reminded me of a Jackson Pollack painting...anyone could have done it.

So, now that my one good deed for the year is done I have to say I'm exhausted. It is hard work having to listen to each team brag about their year long activities. I don't mean to whine, I'm sure that my six hours of time will totally change their lives. I just worry what they'll do without my guidance going forward. So can see, right, how it's a concern?

Oooh and the weirdest thing... There was a girl there whose name was Stephanie Petersen!!! How bizarre is that?

Sorry, one more thing I can never judge again because the judge demographics survey has its age boxes all screwed up.

18-24

25-35

36-45

46 and older

What the hell!? I don't accept that I share a box with 45 year olds.

Ta ta... I'm off to do more good deeds!

Book Review: Saturday by Ian McEwan

I told a friend that I was reading this book and she was excited to learn that the actor from Moulon Rouge, Trainspotting, and the second (more embarrassing) Star Wars had written a novel. Sorry, wrong person. Ewan McGregor has written a book, but it's more of a diary of his around the world on a motorcycle experience. It was interesting and a fun read, but I wouldn't call him a writer any more that I do myself.

Saturday is written by the author that wrote Atonement, and The Innocent. He's actually got quite a few under his belt, and Amazon informs me that he just about to release another.

The non-ObiWan has crafted an entire book about one Saturday in the life of a British Neurosurgeon and his family. Had it not been recommended to me by a trusted friend I might not have made it past the morning wakeup and shower ritual - which took more than 50 pages.

While the day is extraordinary in some of the events that occur it is believable all the things he packs into his day off - including a couple consults at the hospital, a visit to his addled mum, and an unfortunate fender bender. All of this is set against the backdrop of a single day on the eve of the American's pushing ahead to invade Iraq. McEwan gives us two distinct opinions on the issue during a debate the main character holds in his kitchen. Published in 2006, but set in 2003 the good doctor speculates that the war will last a few weeks and it will be looked upon as a crowning achievement for the Americans.(oh well... he's an author not a seer)

I was content to read 20 pages on the way into work and 20 on the way home each day until yesterday when I hit the last 80 or so pages and I had to decide between finish reading in my car at the park and ride or zip home and finish it in bed. Safety won out and I finished last night at about 11:00 - (I'm not a slow reader didn't leave get home until almost 9 and spent an hour with my friend the tv. )

I must say that I'm glad I read it, as someone who wished they could write (not this stream of conscienceness stuff but weaving scenic metaphors and building suspense) it was enjoyable to observe McEwan's craft.

All that said... if you're going to only read one Ian McEwan book. it should be Atonement.

If you're going to read only one Ewan McGregor book it has to be Long Way Round.

May the force be with you.

Movie Review: Zodiac

If you like cop dramas but don't need the car chases this could be the movie for you. It was smart, well acted (well... Robert Downey Jr is a tad cartoonish for my taste) and enjoyable.

It wasn't scary but at times quite suspenseful. The fashions were a little frightful, but I think it was intentional.

Clearly not a movie for kids, but worthy of viewing. Most definately drop it in to your NetFlix queue.

Mulling

Step back, I've been thinking...

I'm talking with another company about a job. It's confusing because I am not unhappy where I am, and it's pretty stable at MegaBank which is nice. I'm finally feeling financially solid after years (since forever) of being in debt and behind the curve on the debt to income ratio and I would hate to get myself in a situation where I could go backwards. It's not that the proposed job wouldn't match or more than likely pay more, but stability in that they fired the last guy. He wasn't a good fit, and I would hate that to happen to me. Obviously, they aren't going to take a "chance" on the replacement but there is always a chance of a job not working out. Leaving a completely stable place and taking a risk is new territory for me.

I'm making lists of pro's and con's and trying to be realistic, and yet embrace my adventureness. One thing that's bothering me, is that we've had a LOT of turn over at MegaBank in my group and while a certain amount of change is good, the idea of telling my manager that I'm thinking about leaving makes me want to puke. I don't have any delusions that I'm holding the team together, and I'm not on the "high talent" list which means that if I say I'm leaving they're supposed to try and retain my services. But the timing would suck for the team.

Since I'm only one interview into a three interview process (and I'm not sure how many other people they are talking too) I don't want to spend too many cycles on this topic, but its swirling around in my head.

The one good thing for MegaBank is that in light of the remote possibility that I'm leaving I am trying to catch up on all the crap I've been ignoring for ages. I'm working harder than ever these days - I don't want to be the one people blame after they are gone. "Oh, yeah... tpGal was supposed to do that... she didn't do anything around here." Some of that can't be avoided, but I know which areas I don't want smack talked about me.

tit... tat

After a short hour of mulling it occurs to me that I AM worthy and that this self doubt could also be described as humbleness.

At the end of the day, if others find it difficult to see the complete and total wonderment that is TP Gal it is their loss and I pity them.

See the humbleness, let it wash over you.

Self Doubt

We held a strategy meeting today and it went really well. I felt articulate, well informed and that I not only contributed, but encouraged others to get their ideas on the table. All in all it felt pretty good.

I get home tonight, check my e-mail and there's a small time bomb inside that makes me question my skills, contribution and experience. Does everybody question their contribution at times or am I just weak?

BTW (real world friends)- I can not be more specific so please don't ask for details.

Presidential Impeachment?

Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a frequent critic of the war, stopped short of calling for Bush's impeachment. But he made clear that some lawmakers viewed that as an option should Bush choose to push ahead despite public sentiment against the war. (www.seattletimes.com March 26, 2007)

Now, I think it's pretty clear that p.Bush is a boob who isn't acting in the best interest of our country and I'm counting the days until he is out of office. I also think there's a small possibility that he may be the anti-Christ, but I don't think we need to spend any government cycles on impeachment.

It didn't change anything for Clinton - a footnote really and it won't change anything for Bushie, he doesn't have the honor or character to step aside or admit that a change in direction is warrented. He certainly can't see his role in the decline in the stature of the US on the world stage - or that it has even happened.

Our legislative branch of the government needs to focus on the issues that p.Bush is not, i.e. the environment, our dependency on oil, budget, my love life (wait, sorry).

Feel free to disagree, that's ok with me. In my world disagreeing doesn't mean you're anti-patriotic or against the troops.

Movie Review: Shooter

I wasn't expecting much from this movie and it delivered on what I expected: action, dark plots, unsurmountable odds and Mark Wahlberg without a shirt. It wasn't overly arty nor did it try to be deep. The plot is semi-believable and the supporting characters aren't given unneeded back-story. That said - this movie is nothing more than your average HOT super smart guy is framed by government henchmen and has to get the bad guys so he can have his life back. (See also: Spy Game, Enemy of the State, The Fugitive, Mission Impossible)

Marky Mark kicks some ass and isn't encumbered by a need to be "funny" (re: Will Smith and/or Ben Affleck action movies) or over act (re: Will Smith a/o Ben Affleck action movies). He is wildly dark and moody and I ate it up.

As a matinée shoot 'em up I give it a thumbs up! It would be worthy of a shallow night out, or a Friday night after the kids go to bed.

Ronco's New Fry Daddy? Housewife convicted of frying husband

Um... gross

By STAN LEHMAN

Associated Press Writer

SAO PAULO, Brazil — A Brazilian housewife was convicted and sentenced to 19 years in prison Friday for killing her husband, chopping his body into small pieces and frying it. Rosanita Nery dos Santos, 52, drugged her husband in his sleep, then stabbed him to death two years ago in Salvador, about 900 miles northeast of Sao Paulo, said police spokesman Idmar Bonfim.

She then hacked Jose Raimundo Soares dos Santos' body into more than 100 pieces, which she boiled and fried before hiding in plastic bags beneath a staircase in her house, Bonfim said. He said police discovered the body parts after receiving an anonymous phone call.

Bonfim said the killing was either part of a black magic ritual or an attempt by the wife to collect life insurance worth about $34,000. (Hmmm... which could it be?)

Citing testimony from the woman's relatives, he said she may also have committed the crime "to avenge many years of humiliation from her husband." He did not provide further details.

Santos denied killing her husband but said she chopped up his body, Bonfim said.

"She claims masked assailants entered her house, killed her husband and then forced her to cut up the body and fry it because that would prevent the stench of a decomposing body from alerting neighbors," he said. (and then they forced me to buy these shoes, and the wide screen tv, and the trip to Belize, it was awful!)

Perspective

tp gal bitching about nasty flavored gum

today marks the 4th year of the invasion of Iraq

what did i blog about today... gum

what a moron.

President bush's stance on the war is so frustrating. It's like one of those dreams where you know you need to run but you can't seem to move. (sometimes i have the dream where I just need to pee and I try and I try and I can not pee. usually though, when I wake up I realize that I really need to go and am thankful my mind won't let me do it while I'm asleep. I do fear for the day when I'm old and feable and start to let go in my sleep. There goes ole rubber sheet tp gal.)

Anyway, Mr. Bush... wake up, we need to send the troops home so they can pee.

Yuck

What is it with the crazy gum flavors these days? I bought some green apple gum and was looking forward to a sweetish sour candy flavored treat, but it actually tasted like chemical warfare and I had to spit it out.

Two weeks ago, I purchased a 60 piece pack of Eclipse Winterfrost gum – sugar free! To capitalize on Powerful Fresh Breath and man oh man, once the crispy white shell has crunched off the gum the little blob of goo is nasty. It does change the smell of your breath, but not in a good way. People are buying me toothpaste and dental floss. I’m frugal tho’ and only have 40 pieces left.

Today, I was chatting with an esteemed colleague and saw that the tall girl (who is out today) left gum unattended on her desk. Am I rude enough to take gum unoffered. Hell yeah I am. Don’t worry I paid for it. 10 bites in my mouth started to fill with a horrid mint / alcohol flavor. What the hell? Mint Mojito gum. Damn… it wasn’t good. (I will leave her a quarter and a note to apologize for foraging at her desk.)

Whatever happened to Big Red or Dentyne? Where have all the good gums gone?

It's good to be alive!

Went sailing today with Alicia and Capt. Ted. That;s Alicia and her rodeo knot.

Last night it was Jenga with Yaz & MC. Here's Yaz in her best "Wilson" pose.

Vacation Count Down

45 days until there's sun and tequila in my world. I'm looking forward to this get away, it should be relaxing. Not every vacation can be tours of Europe (even for me) and my happy place is the shore, with clean towels and a good book. Please send me your list of good vacation books.

I'm doubtful that the Mexico book selection will be of the same dark non-fiction ilk as has been lately consuming me. I can't share with you comments on the latest "A very hard worst time ever - EVER!!!" (or something close to that) because it's a book club book and we have rules. I will say that I shall not be using my time machine to drop me at the Oklahoma panhandle in 1936!

For the vacation I'm searching for the latest in the Devil Wears Prada genre, something light and fun. I am open to any "oh my goodness you HAVE to read this" type suggestions.

Happy Birthday Rico!

Happy 39th birthday to Rico - formerly known as SadEric, SadRico, and for a while Divorcing Eric.

What a difference a year makes. In 2006 Rico was weepy and clingy, in 2007 he's busy, has a nice lady friend and is maintaining the perfect together time to alone time ratio with tp gal.

I'm still paying off last years multi-gagillion dollar sorry you're getting a divorce birthday gift so this year it might be stollen bags of tea from the office wrapped in yesterdays newspaper.

Anyway - he's doesn't read this so I can say anything I want about him.... He's a good guy and I'm happy he's happy. It doesn't get better than that.

tp gal goes to Washington

Credit card companies burn me up, especially when they send those "checks" in the mail that fail to mention clearly that if you use them and go over your credit limit that they will up your interest rate in addition to over limit fees. I haven't used these checks but they strike me as predatory in nature and extremely misleading. They print "YOU HAVE A $6500 LIMIT!" on the front of the letter and on the back in tiny type it tells the customer to call for any questions - such as the balance!?

Any way, I've bitched about this before, but as I was reading the NY times online the other day I noticed that the good Senator from Michigan? was leading a committee on unfair lending practices regarding credit cards and fees and so I fired off a quick note about my opinion of these unsolicited checks.

Since the Senator wasn't from Washington, I also sent a similar letter to the Honorable Senator from Washington, Patty Murray.

Tonight I got back a form letter that coincided with the general topic under which my letter seemed to have been labeled. As the reply was somewhat close to the topic of my letter I feel somewhat heard and somewhat represented on this issue that I clearly feel strongly about.

However, I'm still somewhat unsatisfied.

Synerjizm

The climactic ending to a very successful interdepartmental meeting.

6 out of 50 isn't too terrible

During lunch today I popped onto RottenTomatoes.com to read the review of a movie I saw this weekend.  I found a link to the top 100 (rated) movies of all time.  Who doesn’t love a list?  So I checked it out and I’m pleased to say that I have only seen six of the top (worstest?) 50 movies.  I can almost justify each of my mistakes too:

Godsend – had Robert De Niro in it

Twisted – Samuel L. “motherf8cken” Jackson.  How can you mutherf*cken go wrong with muther f*cken Sam f*cken Jackson?

I have to admit that two of my 6 were Freddie Prinze Jr. movies… but he’s super cute.

Two were movies I saw at home on cable so I don’t think they really really count, and the last one… Christmas with the Kranks… I was just wrong about that one.

Fictionary Additions

Work Fork Optimization: taking the plastic forks from the coffee room from a different floor to augment the lack of forks in your department.

Philantropic: Charitable behavior limited to tropical areas. “Yes I’ll build homes for Habitat For Humanity as long as I get to go to Bali. I ain’t building no homes in Nome!”

People are asking

Tell us about this job!?

There's not much to tell. I had a casual conversation with the managing director for an organization and jokingly said that I would take over for him permanently and he got excited. I'm updating my resume and tossing it his way.

The discussions with my non-existent life partner about the decision making procces (if there was a job offer) would be about risks and a nagging insecurity that stems (I think) from a failure to recognize that I'm no longer the 'little girl' at the office. TPgal needs to put her "grown up" face on.

Then there are the bizzaro world items on my resume - the 8 months as the Assistant General Manager at a hotel for example. How do I succinctly explain I was doing a friend a favor and that it was a way to pay the rent until something in my my field came along? But it bridged a year so there's no way to avoid it on the resume.

And how do I professionalize my eight years at the paint store? Job title: Girl Friday? I had so many hats that the experience itself was actually positive and I learned a lot including accounting principles, billing practices, superb customer service, marketing, dealing with the media, the community, non-profit business management (No not Not-For-Profit aka charity, but the lean lean lean years where we made less money than it took to keep the doors open) I also got to do some event planning, dog poop scooping, and gossip containment. It's just hard to leverage the poop scooping as a foundation for my next career move.

On top of some mild(?) insecurities there's the fact that I'm happy with my job. I could work harder and get more done but for the most part its great. The benefits are good, stocks, bonuses- good, and they gave us an STD this year! (short term disability leave - I actually hate that but it sounded funny.)

But until I hand over my resume and actually go for an interview I think its best not to discuss it further. I don't want anyone -mostly Mom or Janie to go to that scary place where they're so excited and proud that I can't think. So far it's only as real as a phone call and a casual comment. No one is quitting anything.

But, just in case do you think that asking for a car service as part of my executive package is too much? Guaranteed business class flights? Personal masseuse? Damn, there's the phone, it's reality calling me again. gotta run.

It's not like counting is all that important anyway

How embarrassing to post a top ten list with only eight entries. The shame.

Top ten...

Ways I'm thinking of getting out of this meeting:

1: pen "accidentally" in eye
2: feigning heart attack
3: emergency meeting
4: epileptic fit
5: paralysis
6: checking out mentally (pretending to listen while running the movie Titanci in my head "you jump I jump, right jack?")
7: using my blackberry to "look busy"
8: giving everyone in the room a nifty nickname. "Loud short girl". "Tiki Pete", "the wannabe Exec"

interesting day

1) managed to get two tickets to the Police concert thus fulfilling a "lifelong" dream. Well, not really, but I did want to see them when they were like totally rad, and due to unfortunate circumstances (geography, economic stature, and being 14) I was unable to go. My seats aren't awesome but they are "in the room" and that's fine with me. Yaz and I will go and Do do do do da da da da our hearts out and then we can die.

2) I got invited to SPEAK at a security conference. Wow how thrilling and scary all at the same time. It's actually a topic I know a lot about and I'm excited to put some time into expanding my area of knowledge just to make sure I'm not blowing smoke. The only issue is that it's in Milan and the old boss had budgeted funds for travel to the event but the new boss is a tad bit more frugal so we'll see. She seems to have money when she wants to go places. I'll be peeved if the answer is no and there's no real justification.

3) I was also invited to apply for a position at a different company today. It's a semi-real offer that would be a pretty damned sweet if it worked out. It would pull together my security "expertise" and my love of event planning together with the added benefit of a juicy title. I said I would pull a resume together but told the "offerer" that the stars would have to be in alignment on both sides for it to work. I certainly wouldn't quit my very decent job for a "year long trial." Don't worry party people I would be based in Seattle but would get to travel and as I have little "drag" (i.e. kids or spouse) it would be not terrible. You can't not apply though when the current (big dude with fancy title) asks you to apply to replace him.

4) So, I've got a lot on my mind so instead of sitting here and typing it all out -- it's dreadmill time! (damn that's 3 times in 5 days - can you say mission?)

3 fun things

The new bed, the nine thousand pound buffet used as tv stand (imagine it with a flat screen!) and me and my tiara. There was a picture that better captured the tiara, but I thought this one was more "me".

done

I guess the pressure of 10 days in shorts is enough to get me on the treadmill.

The bus ride home puts me to sleep and I wanted more than anything to put on my pj's and make some dinner when I got home. It was a hard hard day. (Note to those of you who have jobs where you have a manager: When you go on vacation make sure you have your shit done so that if the boss gets in your business to help one of your customers it's not instantly apparent that you suck. Ok... good.)

Alas - the elliptical trainer called louder than my pj's and off I went. The cute new tennant was also working out - we had a little chat and we went about our workouts.

The little 1 gig iPod Shuffle is an awesome workout buddy - it doesn't get in the way like the bigger items and gets loud enough to drown out my weazing. A gift from Apple to be sure.

So, now that I've broken the trend I'll be back on machines Saturday.

Cinco de Mayo!

The long awaited cheap-o Mexican holiday is on baby! Rico and I scored two rooms at the Intercontinental Hotel in Puerto Villarta at the smokn' hot rate of $49/night! (he's an employee of a large hospitality company and has the connections... it's all legal don't worry.) We're using companion fares and upgrade certificates to fly down for less than our hotel will cost us - and we're staying for 9 nights! It's going to be fabulous AND thrifty my favorite things!

Do you see that third chair on the left? That will be mine! The hotel doesn't have a traditional spa so we may have to outsource the 90 minute deep tissue massage but a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do!

His new gal won't be coming with us, but we're still getting separate rooms - tp gal snores (sorry, I know that kills the fantasy that I'm hot AND perfect) which will be great for our personal space.

We'll be there the 2nd of May through whenever which means we'll be partying it up for Cinco de Mayo. (I think it's a made up holiday to sell more tequila to gringo's but tp gal don't care!)

You know what this means: tp gal + bathing suit = two months of pre-vacation dreadmill action. Look for a posting tomorrow to proclaim that I actually did it. Until then aidios!

Cognitive Dissonance: To help or not to help - rebuttal

I suppose this is how the no-longer-a -wordprocessing-operator probably used to feel when I—facing serious deadline pressure—would sometimes trouble her to help me with a formatting problem in MS Word that would have taken me an hour to resolve because, let's face it, unless you have a graduate degree in Advanced Word, it's very much a WYGINWYW user interface (What You Get Is Not What You Want). But she would bite her tongue and fix whatever the problem was in about three minutes so I could get the document out and help keep our enterprise functioning.

Assuming the "darned tool" in this case is some arcane software tool, rather than some person, I can really sympathize with someone not mastering it if he only needs to use it very occasionally.

Anyway, I'll have to differ with my friend Peter here. If it's really a few minutes of assistance every couple of months, I'd say just suck it up because doing anything else would only expend more of your time and, potentially, burn a bridge for little reason. maybe someday you'll need something this annoying fellow can provide.

Well - in fact it is not the same thing. What I have asked him to do in order to help himself is to take the time to write an e-mail that says "I need access to this tool" and then to go to the tool and click the big "EXPORT TO EXCEL" button.

I'm irritated by the complete lack of acknowledgment that I may not be on this earth to assist him because he's too short sided to follow through or the implication that his work is more important. At the firm, I appreciate the nuances of the Attorney, 'No-longer a word processor' hierarchy (if anyone ever referred to me or one of my staff even administrative staff in that manner I would call them out on the carpet and explain the nuances of Employee Relations to them) but imagine a fellow Attorney who kept coming to you because it was easier for you to do something than for her to take 5 minutes (sometime during the month) and figure it out.

This I'm sure would get under your skin. Maybe not the first time, and not the second but the third probably would raise your ire just a tad. I could not be convinced that in the last 3 months he hasn't had 5 -10 minutes to resolve this for himself.

I'm not the kind of co-worker who gathers favors. If I can help I will, if there's something I need from someone else I try to be as respectful as possible while making the request. However, at the end of the day we're both being paid to do the same thing - keep the company running. I'll do my part and figure out how to do my job and he should do the same. I have been more than accommodating; this is the third time he's demonstrated the failure to plan ahead and my "team attitude" is all shot to hell. That's all I'm saying.

Cognitive Dissonance: To help or not to help

There's this guy at work who really makes me struggle with my own values. He's a total wanker who seems to succeed within his own little division-sphere (which isn't mine).

We use to report to the same senior manager and now through the Wheel of Reorganization now do not. In November he IM (instant message where folks pop up on your desktop all urgent and blinking orange) asking me for help to get a report from the darned tool that holds lists of applications. (woo hoo). I told him I would help, but that if he needed the report in the future to request access to the tool himself. Fine.

December - here's wanker again asking for the information about how to get access to the tool because he needs the report super fast. Well there's lead time on these things so I had to pull the list again.

So, here it is end of February and here he is again asking for my help,
what do I do?

It only takes 3 minutes to pull the report and I'm the hero - "living
the brand"
It irritates me that he won't plan ahead and get the access he needs, but as long as I help he won't do it.
Am I hurting a larger more important process by refusing to help when I can - even though I'm not his f*cking assistant?
At what point do I stop being helpful and turn into a door mat?
Does whining about this to anyone at work do anyone any good? Wouldn't it just make me look like an ass?

I did give him the list but asked him to please request access - what good that will do - who knows.

When I'm on the other side of this table (being the useless twit who won't do my own work) I do make a point to thank the person publicly via their manager but Wanker is (I think) hiding his total incompetence behind my inner need to do the right thing.

Wow Mommy, this circus sucks.

Thanks to CNN and MJS for a little mid-day tee hee.

Gunman kills 2 clowns in Colombian circus

I know... the clowns didn't think it was funny.

crazy pricing makes me mad

Dear Catalog Retailer (PotteryBarn, Illuminations, Crate & Barrel),

I enjoy getting your glossy pages in my mail box, I don't mind being on your lists. In fact, when you don't write I often surf over to your Internet stores to get a fix. I know my life would be so much better if I only had the versatile Bedford Corner Desk in antique white or the Caprice Votive Cups and Hammered Pillar Plate that cast mesmerizing light in complementary shades of soft green.

Your prices are reasonable in fact it's almost like you know how much I make and can spend on these delights. But my yearning for the Bronze Leaf Wall Sconces or the newest Kitchenaid mixer in SeaFoam grinds to an abrupt halt at the way you tier your pricing.

The price should be the price - there shouldn't be any little add on surcharge if it's being delivered. Yes, I will pay for the cost of delivery - but not and inflated price to have it delivered - especially if you don't offer it in your store. This is what runs through my head:

1) I want that, ooh available online only ok
2) Shipping is $15.95
3) The cost is $100 ($20 additional delivery charge)
4) Why in the hell isn't the cost of the item $120? You suck.

If I can buy the thing in your store fine with the extra shipping charge, but if not - the price should be the damned price.

End of rant

Mixed Media

Brittney shaves her head - Page 1
Anna Nichole -who's the daddy? Page 3
More American soldiers die in Iraq - page 10
Death and AIDS overwhelm Darfur - page 15

What's important? Grrr

Note to self: don't cheat on a dictator

In an attempt to use my President's Day holiday wisely I chose to seek out a movie with good Oscar buzz. Forrest Whittaker has won almost every award possible for the movie The Last King of Scotland so I figured it was best to see it before Oscar night.

I will admit that the idea of a movie chronicling the oh-so-stellar and upbeat life of Idi Amin wasn't high on my list, but I was and am giving the tpGal official thumbs up. General Amin - was not someone that you would invite to dinner and I don't think anyone will be building shrines in his honor anytime soon. The film did a good job of slowly exposing the truth and brutality of a man who was rumored to be 'charming'. Rather than hitting the audience over the head with the horrific crimes of this man, we are slowly drawn into a frightening scenario of seduction and power. Waiting for the other shoe to drop is almost as bad as the moment that it does.

Obviously not a film for kids, but I will say that it was excellent.

If you do much reading on the topic (try the Guardian's Obit for Amin) you'll find that Amin had a flexible moral compass and dealt with his problems in a permanent and memorable way. You should pay attention in case you ever find yourself about to cross the line from fidelity to not. Glenn Close ain't got nothin' on Idi Amin.

Yo Grover Cleveland!

It's President's Day Weekend and instead of honoring one of the prez' that get all the press and attention in public school I thought I would highlight for you one of the "lesser known" presidents. Mr. Cleveland, or the Grovernator as his friends called him was elected after the Civil War, and the only Prez to leave the White House and return for a second term four years later. Which might have been a blow to the ego of #21 (Chester Arthur) had he not declined to even run for a second term. Anywho....

Grov a democrat, was single when he took office and a also tad bit portly. Not quite portly enough for Eddie Murphy to mock, but he'll get there eventually. Power and love being what it is, Grov managed to land himself a filly. He is the only President to ever marry at the White House.

Politically Cleveland believed that special favors to any economic group should be banned. He likened federal aid to "paternal care" and it weakens the "sturdiness of our national character. . . . " It makes me wonder what he would think of our subsidied food supply in America today.His popularity was greatly impacted by his "fend for yourself" policies and he was no nominated to run for a third term by his own party.

He also vetoed many private pension bills to Civil War veterans whose claims were fraudulent. When Congress, pressured by the Grand Army of the Republic, passed a bill granting pensions for disabilities not caused by military service, Cleveland vetoed it, too.

He also signed the Interstate Commerce Act, the first law attempting Federal regulation of the railroads.

In December 1887 he called on Congress to reduce high protective tariffs. Cleveland was defeated in his re-election campaign in 1888; although he won a larger popular majority than the Republican candidate, he received fewer electoral votes. (deja vu?)

Not one to let go of a fight (teaching economics at college?) he was elected again in 1892, Cleveland faced an acute depression and in response obtained repeal of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act and, maintained the Treasury's gold reserve.

He left Washington and moved to New Jersey where he eventually went to the great Camp David in the sky.

I'm famous at PNB!!!!

Funny turn of events today, I called the Pacific Northwest Ballet to exchange some tickets and during the transaction I ended up renewing our subscription and getting tickets to something else (the phone rep was really really good apparently). The point is that I was on the phone for a while with this guy and we ended up talking about Swan Lake. I said it was lovely as always but that there was a family behind me eating... and he interupted me by yelling "Peanut Butter Cheerios!!!!"

Oh my lord how on earth did he know that? Apparently one of my readers forwarded my posting to someone at PNB and it made the rounds. I'm glad I didn't mention how much I want to kidnap dancer Jonathan Porietta and force him to be my husband/sex slave. That would have been an embarrassing revelation.

I can guess the 6 degrees of peanut butter cheerios of as to how this happened, but unless they fess up I will live the dream that my posts are so meaningful that they've touched the mass market. Perhaps the Peanut Butter Cheerios incident will knock the "who knocked up Anna Nichole" story off the front pages.

Hold on, the phone is ringing... gotta go it's reality calling.

Sonics Pick Renton

I guess now on game nights I'll go to Queen Anne and kill time while the world takes an already clogged Interstate 405 to my neighborhood.

Having moved from Sonics land 15 years ago I thought I was done with that... guess not.

Who knows, maybe I can sell my condo for way too much money and move to poor abandoned lower Queen Anne (again).

Welcome to Renton Sonics!

Happy VD

Swan Lake and Peanut Butter

Swan Lake Pacific Northwest Ballet puts on a lovely Swan Lake performance. It's beautiful and makes me cry a little. So pretty.

Of course I do have a complaint. It is me for pete sake. There was a family sitting behind me. Dad, Kid, Younger Kid and Mom. Kid was directly behind me.

K & YK were about 3 and 4 maybe 5 years old. TOO YOUNG TO SIT THROUGH A THREE HOUR BALLET. Thank you very much.

Mom and Dad were thinking about the timing so they kindly brought cherrios in plastic bags for act 1 and those horrific peanut/nut orange-colored crispy things for act 2 and 3. The orange treats were especially nice because as the children shoved them mindlessly into their mouths the peanut butter smell grew with each handful.

The bags nicely crinkled with each tiny monstrous hand movement.

Just in case I became deaf because of the food noise, the children were kind enough to kick my chair in time to the music. Every once in a while I would hear a parent "whisper" something (not in English) to the spasming children. I would NEVER disrupt other patrons to speak during the performance and as my seats are mid-row there's no calling an usher. I attempted to give the father the look of death during the first intermission but they were quick to remove the little darlings to the lobby.

Sadly, the parents brought food items for acts 1-3 but there are 4 acts in Swan Lake. The little princess with her fake angelic eyes and little ribbon in her hair was so bored during act 4 that she started rubbing her cute pink rubber boots together and fiddling with the zipper. Zip up, squeak, zip down, zip up, squeak, zip down, unintelligible "whisper", whine, squeak.

I tried my darnedest to go to my happy place, use my skills at tuning out others to pinpoint my attention on the stage. ZIP. But as I was watching the swans dance across the SQUEAK stage my mind drifted ZIP to ways to punish a parent for CRINKLE placing their children in such an inappropriate situation. ZIP. I don't blame the children.

The little girl next to me (unrelated) asked her daddy if he could make them be quiet SQUEAK. Then he pulled out a gun and made them leave. The entire audience and the dancers gave the dad a standing ovation and then we watched the rest of the ballet in peace. (I wish.) I lived through it without hurting anyone but be careful the next time I hear the squeaking of rubber boots it could be ugly. PBSS... post ballet stress syndrome?

(For the record... I am NOT making light of PTSS. I'm just saying I might understand it a little more now.)

Tomato & Herb Pasta

No picture of this one but it was lovely!

3 cups of halved grape tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped white onion
1/2 cup chopped pancetta
black pepper
16 fresh basil leaves
2 teaspoons of chopped fresh oregano
1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup fresh Romano or Parmesan (grated)

Pasta (I used penne because it's pretty)

Heat oil on medium heat in a large saucepan. Add onions, pepper and pancetta - saute until onion is clear - about 6-8 minutes. Add tomatoes (and any juice) cook another 5 minutes. Add in basil and oregano. Season with salt.

In a pan mix 1/2 of this tomato bacon goodness with your cooked pasta, cheese and mix. Transfer to the serving dish or "plate" and then top with the remaining mixture.

Hints:
Chop your herbs and veggies ahead of time
Serve cold in summer as a salad
Serve hot in winter as the main course

Pancetta Crisps

I had some folks over for dinner last night and served a yummy Italian themed meal that started with the simplest appetizer.

Lay strips of pancetta (Italian bacon) on a cookie sheet and bake at 450 until crisp (careful not to go longer than 12 minutes as at this temperature the oil will begin to smoke in a most unfortunate manner.)

Remove the crispy rounds and top with a drop of goat cheese and a sliver of ripe pear.

Add a sprig of thyme to garnish.

EAT UP!

Hints:

• leave the cheese out to warm up to room temperature, it will make scooping easier
• slice the pears thin and if you can't slice as you garnish, use a citrus fruit juice (lemon) to prevent oxidation of the pear meat. This does change the flavor of the pear so I chose to deal with the 'browning'.
• slice the pancetta a little thicker than paper thin, or if using the pre-sliced deli kind use two slices per round.

Adapted from epicurious.com

Retraction!

Furniture GONE!!!!!!!

We were able to get the big thing out without too much trouble so I'm pleased.

The fung shue (or whatever) is sooo much better!

Once my pork loins are seared I'm taking a shower and a nap. Woo Hoo!

It was too good to hope for

The saga of my furniture goes on and on...

The damned buffet delivery people charged me more than they quoted over the phone. My call to the company (Northshore Delivery) was very unsatisfying. Sometimes you want more than a "sorry" but since I'm unlikely to have a need for their services in the future my options are limited. I did place a call to CostPlus World Markets to let the manager know. He seemed very interested.

The damned Hope Chest charity people didn't come this morning as scheduled. Normally I wouldn't care but as it's like the 63 rd weekend in a row that I've spent a saturday hanging around the house waiting for someone to come it was irritating. Plus, I invited people over for dinner tonight and I wanted the house back to its new normal. Oh dear lord -- what if this IS the new normal?

Alas, I shoved all the donation furniture into the office and will simply shut the door. Lisa from the Hope Chest called to apologize and then asked if I had anyone to help move the furniture. Uh, no that's why I called you. At this point if we break the damned media cabinet I'll just take a sledge hammer to it and work out some aggression towards people who don't know how to use a calendar or a phone.

I did cover the chipped desk with some butcher paper and then got excited and covered the paper with clear packing tape (for spills) but it was a mistake because my arms stick to the tape. But... if I was typing with my wrists up off the table as Mr. Lux instructed me in high school typing class my arms wouldn't be resting on the table. For you kids, Typing was a class where we sat at electric typewriters (sort of like a computer with no monitor that's connected directly to a printer) for an hour each day while he walked around the room calling out letters.

A - A -A - J - J -J- M M-M-M!

It was a surprisingly stressful class considering it required in fact demanded no thought whatsoever.

It's Ghandi!

There is peace and tranquility restored to my life. The pink couch is in it's new home.

The other furniture people will be here tomorrow and life will be perfect. I will be parking in my garage tonight!

Hip hip hurray!

40!? No F*cking way!

So - time marches on and those of us who are lucky exit our 20's and 30's and turn 40. Boy aren't I surprised to learn that I'm still the same immature Duran Duran loving girl but just a little older.

I've been wanting to mark the occasion with something spectacular and since everyone I know is starting to turn 40 a big party seems "done." Don't think there won't be something fun - it will be a Saturday in the summer and I forsee a casual but fun evening out. I also predict a hangover, but that's another story.

Becky is marking her birthday with a tattoo and she thinks I might need to loosen up and get one too. I'm just not sure there's anything I feel so passionate about as to plaster upon my person forever. I love Daddy and Mommy would be creepy. "Becky Rules!" would also lead to a misinterpretation of my gender preference when dating. If one of you died suddenly I could have your name tattooed across my back in memory but you'd have to die in some spectacular tragic way. Please check with me first to see if your cause of death will be tattoo worthy before you confirm any plans. I would like to state that I would miss you even if I didn't mark up my body with your likeness.

Alas I really think an epic trip abroad is the ticket to mark the occasion of my 40th year. I was discussing this with Ali and she asked what my ideal vacation would be. That's easy a big sailboat in crystal clear water living in a swim suit and relaxing. She then said the craziest thing - "well, do that!" So I found a company that does this exact thing. They offer fully crewed outings in Greece and Turkey as well as smallish (10 people + crew) one to two week cruises for singles! This wouldn't be the same thing as a gigantic cruise ship with a thousand singles at a mixer - instead people without partners who like to travel. That's my speed.

I'm super excited and have already sent for information. Ali's new boyfriend "Captain Jack" is also a sailboat person so I'll quiz him on what I need to find out before I go to make sure I'm not going to end up as a tattoo on your back.

RIP TPgal... rotting away in a Turkish prison for disorderly conduct.

Yaz wants to go to Japan and heck with my new found wealth - I may do both!

Financial Freedom

After years and years of feeling like I was the underprivileged poor friend to everyone I am having to change my tune. No, I didn't win the lottery or get a massive raise at work I paid off a ton of debt.

I took the hard, but responsible path and applied my bonus and some stock toward credit card debt. It was actually pretty satisfying to see my debt drop by over 75%. The remaining debt, (not including the mortgage payments) can be gone within the year. It is a little weird to not having it hanging over my head.

The true proof to whether or not this is a long term fix is to see how the monthly budgeting goes. My savings should grow pretty quickly - especially after the debit card for that account is moved out of the wallet. I've been depositing a decent portion of my check each month into a separate account but with the debit card right next to my primary card it's been really easy to use it as latte money. Apparently that adds up over time. Who knew?

Movie Review: Children of Men

I should start with an acknowledgment that I deviated from the Oscar candidates to see this one. With nominated films available for viewing it is my own fault that this movie didn't score very high with me.

Children of Men is the dark exploration of a future world where humans lose their ability to procreate, but alas a miracle has occured a young woman is pregnant and her safety and passage to freedom falls on the shoulders of the lovely but mumbling Clive Owen. Doom and despair was expected, but somewhere in the back of my mind I was thinking that the movie would end with a glimmer of hope for mankind and the future of our world.

I walked out of the theater in stunned silence of the complete pointlessness of this film. I am a semi-smart person I understand dark, I even like noir but this was like watching the 2000 election returns over and over again - (a painful experience where all the hope for the world drains out of your body while you sit helpless to do anything).

My rating: Only if it's free on tv and the Trya Banks show is a rerun.