The morning's been CHILL - the cloud cover only just NOW gave way to a little bit of sun. I'm loving it, especially after that little hot streak a few days ago. I DO like getting up early in the morning to enjoy the coolness, but I like it even better when it lasts all day - LOL.

Sounds in the house sound different today. I listened closely to the toilet tank refill because it sounded strange, but it was fine. So was the hot water heater, although it was different too. It's almost like hearing things for the first time, but not as melodramatic. *grin*
posted:11:37 AM | link |

Douglas Adams, reknowned author of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, died on Friday - what an unexpected thing! And I know I'm not the first, nor will I be the last to say it, but I want to add my voice... "So long and thanks for all the fish!"
posted:7:54 AM | link |

LOL - another BAT found its way in this morning! This time, we decided to put the dogs in the bathroom right away so that the bat wouldn't be flying too high avoiding the dogs and missing all the exits. So John opened the bathroom door and yelled, "Ack - it's in HERE!" and then pulled the door shut really fast. So we propped open one of the outside doors, conveniently right next to the bathroom, and blocked the other pathways with ourselves and a broom and other implements to wave about. John opened the bathroom door; a moment later the bat was flapping around. A few swoops around this time and he was out the door. YES! Only a four minute operation this time. *grin*
posted:7:11 AM | link |

Ever wondered where you'd come out if you dug a hole from where you lived through the center of the earth? (And who hasn't?) Now you can find out!
posted:7:20 PM | link |

Yesterday there were two catepillars prowling around the bottom of one of our outside doors. Today there were two cocoons there instead. Coincidence? I think not. *grin*
posted:12:41 PM | link |

From watching interactions on an email list (not one of ours :-) ), I offer this: the line between "stating your truth" and "getting defensive" gets crossed when you stop having fun and start getting annoyed. And just because someone disagrees and isn't willing to debate an issue, doesn't necessarily mean they are getting defensive. Maybe they just like talking about what they believe. :-) But only you know if you're still really having fun or if you're trying to ignore a nagging feeling of needing to prove something.
posted:11:17 AM | link |

Hee hee - Recession Recipes from the twisted souls at Eat Dangerously.
posted:5:28 PM | link |

From this article:California suffered its second consecutive day of statewide blackouts on Tuesday as consumers turned up their power-hungry air conditioners amid scorching temperatures, ignoring pleas for conservation, while officials warned of more of the same on Wednesday. Egad - it sounds so sinister! What gaul! What selfishness! What ignorant yokel ye "consumers" be! I'm not outraged by this writing, despite my remarks. I'm rolling my eyes because of how this news article tries to make it sound so wham bang and DANGEROUS et al. heh heh.

It was hot, people turned on their air conditioners. As a result, CA pulled rolling blackouts. That's it. We were hit a little after 4 (apparently, we're in a block with San Fransisco or something, which makes perfect sense, since we live like 2.5 HOURS away?), but that just meant our fan stopped and we couldn't use the computer... so we got out the battery operated fan John used to use at his job on Wall Street and read books for a bit. Now, granted, there were some OTHER disruptions in the article, like a woman being trapped in an elevator, a dental patient having to be sent home in the middle of a treatment, and gas pumps just shutting off... if PG&E stuck to a strict hourly schedule, it might be easier to avoid being in the middle of something at the top of the hour, just in case. But anyway... it's going to be warm again today, and we're going into town to do some laundry... we'll see if we get interrupted in the middle of the rinse cycle. *grin* Hell, the power goes out here in the sticks a lot ANYWAY - no biggie!
posted:8:09 AM | link |

Hot. 100 degrees. Can't talk now. Retreating to a happier place in my mind...
posted:3:29 PM | link |

Never ever drink a SoBe "Power" beverage after 6 p.m. if you want to sleep at all that same night. It's got so much caffeine in it you can TASTE it. Of course, I didn't know that's what I was tasting at first since those drinks are all a little different. I'm sure the taurine, et al, didn't help me be less WIRED last night either. Wired doesn't mean energized, it means wired. Even Coke's never affected me like that. I've decided to let myself be annoyed by this whole thing for a while. Playing at righteous indignation can be fun. ;-)
posted:9:21 AM | link |

And yet another Happy Birthday to you, tom! I've known you for FIVE years? Get OUT! *grin*

(Oh, yes, and happy birthday also to the late Jane Roberts, author and channeler of the Seth Material as well - thanks to tom this now sticks in my mind.)
posted:12:41 AM | link |

The problem as *I* see it (tom rant, 'Reesa rant) is that Chris Carter doesn't know HOW to tie anything together or up. He's gone in so many different directions, with so many different KINDS of explanations about what happens with Mulder and Scully et al, that he's just completely scattered. Is there anything he could do with Scully giving birth that could MAKE us care anymore? Alien baby? She loses another baby? It gets taken again and we're back to square one? It's normal and then what? At least there was a LITTLE surprise with last night's episode in that (spoiler alert) the creature wasn't just a new genetic breed, but the scientist himself changing into it. BUT... there's no sense of POSSIBILITY anymore. Carter's also done too good of a job of shutting it down from the inside using Kirsch's (spelling? pardon) character. Now, if they had a director in place that encouraged X-Files cases... but maybe that would no longer fuel Chris Carter's seeming need to feel like he's (through his characters) are always just barely hanging on.

And while we're at it, let's mention the Lone Gunman. They were GOOD characters. Why all the slapstick? Why do they care about bear poachers in Russia? I thought their motivation was government conspiracies but only the first episode with Beyers (again, sp? pardon) father had any hint of it. They didn't seem so bumbling in the X-Files. I am starting to think that people just don't know how to write geeks as PEOPLE - what to DO with them. Take Malcolm in the Middle too, while we're going there. *grin* Pretty good show. But none of the plots ever play with the idea of Malcolm being some kind of genius at all. Genius doesn't just mean Krell (sp?) boy crap and being beaten up for being smart.

Okay - I'm going to take a deep breath now. Thanks for inadvertently encouraging me to rant with y'all. ;-)
posted:2:47 PM | link |

John brought home a little african violet plant and a blooming mum plant from the store the other day. It's amazing what bunches of colorful flowers can do for... well... anything! :-) The mum flowers actually match the can of Hansen's raspberry soda sitting next to them. Oh, I'm so coordinated - somebody call Christopher Lowell! LOL.
posted:11:21 AM | link |

Whether it dies or not, Bush's Faith-Based Initiative is doing a fantastic job of unearthing hidden beliefs about what a 'religion' is (at its most basic) and the sometimes narrow, and yet unconscious perspectives many people have about it. I have to say I'm not surprised that so many officials didn't think this through beyond the usual mainstream religions, but I AM surprised that so many of them "admit" it by avoiding direct answers to direct questions - LOL. Most of them probably have no real idea what, for instance, Wicca, is really about. Anyway, it's doing a good job of raising discussion, so cool.
posted:2:47 PM | link |

The thing about bats, see, is that they are so very SILENT. Outside at night, you can SENSE them flying overhead, swooping around at all the insects, but you can't HEAR them. They are like mini-dragon-ghosts (sometimes similies DON'T help, do they - LOL). The one that was flying around in our house (see previous entry) was flapping and swooping everywhere, but didn't make one noise - it was amazingly odd. Occasionally it would land and rest on the rough redwood paneling on one of the walls, but only for a split second, and then it was off again.
posted:2:12 PM | link |

What happened to May 5? Oh, yeah, that's right - I was unconscious most of the day, and in the bathroom when I wasn't. Lucky for you that's all the detail I'm going into here about THAT. ;-) I'm feeling better today though. Good thing to, because a BAT decided to follow John back into the house in the wee hours of the morning when he was coming back from taking the dogs out. Yesterday, I was so weak I could barely stand, but today I'm at LEAST strong enough to stand around for an hour with a broom and the doors and windows wide open, trying to get the silly bat out of the house!

The Ted Andrews book on Animal Symbols says that the bat is a symbol of change and initiation, of letting go of the old parts that no longer fit. Very similar to my little physical challenge as well. (sorry - LOL) It's also about facing your fears - and I guess you could say that one of my fears is that nothing will EVER change, or that it will change in only a side path, and not "forward" as I see it. Time to get rid of THAT little ditty - replace it with another thought that I like better. Yeah, that's the ticket.
posted:8:31 AM | link |