Pick of the Peeps

In honor of Easter, the Washington Post sponsors an annual contest where readers can create a diorama featuring Peeps. Personally, I am not a fan of Peeps but theses iconic little buggers do pretty much symbolize Easter, don’t ya think?

View the slide show here.

Have a wonderful Easter, everyone!

Do you like gladiator movies?

Have you ever been in a Turkish prison?

No, I’m not a fan of gladiator movies either but I have always considered this and the many lines of lines of actor Peter Graves to be among the funnies in the movie Airplane. I was sad to hear that he had passed away yesterday at the age of 83. Graves had a long career where he usually played serious roles but I’ll always remember him best as Captain Oveur.

Rest in peace, Peter Graves.

Would You Buy a GM Vehicle?

Hubs and I recently went to the Memphis International Auto Show because 1) we both enjoy auto shows and looking at the new model offerings of all the car manufacturers, 2) we are probably going to be buying a new car sometime in the next 6-12 months so an auto show is the perfect way to see what all of the car makers have to offer and 3) there wasn’t much else going on that weekend.

Happy Birthday, Hubs!

Today is my honey’s birthday. Maybe I didn’t get to spend more than a couple of hours with him today but I did managed to surprise him with a small gift which I know he was totally not expecting. The poor guy is working tonight which totally stinks but he has the next two days off so a little R&R will be a nice way to celebrate his birthday. Tomorrow night I’ll make a special dinner of whatever he requests – knowing hubs he’ll probably ask for steak – and then I’ve got some cupcakes to bake instead of birthday cake. Hubs isn’t really much of a cake guy and since I can’t make the one and only cake he really, genuinely likes (his mom’s jam cake) then he’ll have to settle for cupcakes.

Hell, who am I kidding? The cupcakes are for me … he won’t eat any. 🙂

Anywho, happy birthday beeb! I love ya!

Are You Cheap or Frugal? – ABC News

I saw a video today on ABCNews.com about being cheap vs. being frugal and how to tell whether or not you’re being one or the other. I know that with the economy being in the toilet most people are finding ways to tighten their belts but I wonder how many of us have gone from finding ways to save money in a healthy way to going way overboard?

I can personally think of more than one individual who has become a total cheapskate. Sometimes their behavior is so bad that I cringe at the thought of spending time with them because they make activities that should be fun and enjoyable  like going out to dinner, watching a movie, etc totally miserable for everyone around them because they are obsessed with saving money. I’m sure we’ve all known someone like that at some point in our lives. How is it that they manage to ruin a perfectly nice night out by tallying up who had soft drink and who drank just water?

Watch this video here and judge for yourself if you are cheap or frugal:

Are You Cheap or Frugal? – ABC News.

Meh. Let the (Olympic) Games Begin

The 2010 Winter Olympics have their opening ceremonies tonight in Vancouver and I won’t be watching. I can’t say that I’ve never watched the Olympics but I can’t remember any time in my adult life ever sitting down with the intent of watching the games. I see absolutely no reason to ruin that record. None of the sports played in the Winter (or the Summer) games interest me all that much and I can’t seem to find a reason to care whether or not American athletes bring home medals.

Meh.

Am I alone?

To tell the truth, if there wouldn’t have been a story about a luger who died today during one of the events that takes place before the opening ceremonies I wouldn’t even have known the Olympics were going on …

Photographic Proof That Children Love My Husband

Hubs and I returned on Monday night from a long weekend in Indiana visiting with my family. This was our first visit back to see my family since we moved to Tennessee in August so it was long overdue. We had a chance to catch up with everyone and as a bonus we got to watch the Superbowl together. (My poor Colts. What happened?)

We haven’t lived near my niece and nephew while they’ve been growing up and so it’s always amazing seeing how much they’ve developed in the months between our visits. The last time we saw them our niece, Katie, was about to enter pre-school and our nephew, Garret, was slow to warm up to people and a little shy. On this visit Katie couldn’t wait to tell me about her teacher and her new friends and the fun things she’s learning in school. Garret has completely come out of his shell these past few months and he’s talking non-stop. Oh, and both kids LOVE their uncle. My brother said when the kids got home the first night we were there they were so jazzed up over their uncle that they wanted to stay up late and build Lego towers for him and make drawings for him. He was all they could talk about apparently.

Hmph … what about me?

Katie & Garret wearing hub's Colts hats

I was a little jealous that hubs was getting all the attention but I suspect that most of hubs popularity was due to the fact that he had morphed into a human jungle gym and was swinging toddlers above his head and across the sofa all afternoon. Still, I guess he is pretty awesome so I don’t blame them from loving him so much. I know I sure do!

I also stopped being jealous when I remembered that I had plenty of time playing with the kids too. I logged more than a couple of hours working on Thomas the Tank Engine coloring books and building Lego castles.

Sweet! Snacks and coloring!

No Legos were harmed in the making of this castle ...

We had such a great time visiting with my whole family. It’s a shame we can’t live closer and visit more often but I’m sure everyone understands. My parents are tentatively planning a visit to see us this Spring and hopefully my brother and his family can come too. I’m looking forward to it!

Go Colts!

I feel like a half-ass fan when I admit that while I lived in Indiana I hardly ever watched any Colts games. When hubs and I moved out-of-stated I suddenly found myself drawn to anything having to do with the Hoosier state. “Ooh, there’s a documentary on tv tonight about beekeeping and they filmed part of it in Indiana? Set the DVR!” Ok, can we say “homesick?”

After hubs and I moved to Michigan and then to Tennessee watching game from our favorite Indiana teams was a way to stay connected but today as I sit here blogging and watching the Colts play I feel like I’m back home again cheering for the home team.

Oh, and have I mentioned that the Colts rock? I fully expect them to win today even though as I write this they are down by one point to the Jets.

Just My Opinion… and a Rant on Politics

I’m not sure if I see where President Obama’s going with his agenda for the country. Gas prices are still at nearly $3.00 a gallon where I live,  prices for groceries, housing and utilities continue to rise, and MILLIONS of Americans are out of work.  I think if the President were more focused on the economy and ways to make it grow and be healthy again then some of the problems I’ve mentioned will work themselves out. But no, what is President Obama focused on? Health care. Health care?

No, seriously. Health care.

Ok, yes, the state of our health care system does need an overhaul. I don’t agree with how the system is going about making the changes but I agree that things need a change. What really bothers me about this huge push to “fix” health care is that I DON’T GIVE A FLYING FUCK about whether or not the government fixes it. This is not a priority. And the bill that is most likely going to pass is not going to have any meaningful impact. Just more bureaucracy. Nope, in my opinion this is not a good fix and it’s not what the country (i.e. the president) need to be looking at. What I would really rather the government focus on is how to stimulate the economy. That’s what I’m most worried about and I want to know how does this stupid health care bill stimulate the economy?

Maybe a few more health care jobs will be created. 1) This doesn’t get people to spend money and grow the economy. 2) It’s not the president’s job to create jobs but rather the job of industry and business. 3) I can’t imagine my father, a machinist who has worked for the same company for nearly 30 years and is about to lose his job because the company is relocating their operations to India, I can’t imagine him retraining for a profession in the health care industry even if there were free government paid training.

I don’t have any answers here. I’m just angry that so many people where fed up with George Bush that they elected into office a man that I so fundamentally disagree with. And what surprises me most is that when I was younger, say fresh out of high school up until I met and married hubs, when asked if I were a Democrat or a Republican I would proudly say I was a Democrat. I look back now and realize I wasn’t really anything. I was just whatever my parents said they were and I didn’t really have any firmly held beliefs of my own. If you were to ask me the same question today – Democrat or Republican – I would have a harder time answering.  I don’t know that I’m strictly one or the other. Is there a third option? Independent? Libertarian?

Sorry for the rant folks and I know that I’m not very eloquent sometimes when I get myself worked up so if this was “babbling” sorry for that too …

Let The Good Times Roll

Classes begin tomorrow and I am fairly nervous. I’m taking two classes and they’re both lectures: History of the US since 1877 and Survey of Mass Communication. It feels like ages since I’ve been in on a college campus and now that I know I’m going to be nearly 15 years older than most of my classmates I’m beginning to feel self-conscious.

I can’t put my finger on exactly what it is but being around young people makes me uncomfortable. They never bothered me when I was the same age but now that I’m older … I don’t know. Maybe it’s their attitude. So cocky. Geeze, was I like that? Was I a know-it-all? If so, I apologize for the years of contradictions and snarky remarks my family and friends had to suffer through at my expense. Or maybe it’s their sense of entitlement? “Like, I know I didn’t do any of the assignments, didn’t pass any of the tests or quizzes, and that I really didn’t do anything but sit in this seat all semester but, man, my just coming to class should count for something towards my grade because my being here is important.” Um, no, not as much as you think …

I guess I’m just feeling like I’m going to stick out a little since I’m going to be older than most of the other students around me. (Oh, poor me! I’m not going to fit in! How will I make friends? I’ll never be popular if I don’t fit in!) I feel like I did the night before I started high school. Ugh!

The whole point of this post was to say that classes start tomorrow and that I’m nervous about my first day back after a long break and look where I ended up. Don’t you love when you’re adult mind reverts to old childhood insecurities?