Praise God

Marines Find Faith Amid the Fire

My brother is in the Army National Guard and we joke about Marines. But, even the most hardened Army-man can rejoice in the knowledge that these young men realize that there was one who made a greater sacrifice.

Praise the Lord that these Marines found the Lord. Pray that they will stay strong in their faith while in the field and when they return home.

"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command." John 15:12-14 (NIV)

Fark photoshop contest

What if Middle Earth met Middle America?

My favorite is by Sneakytoes, which is 9 down.

FARK.com: Comments Thingee (931164)

Nate's Blogger Blaster has a discussion on what women want. Nate lists several characteristics and there is some back and forth in the comments section worth reading.

What made me pause to reflect was the idea of women being more feminine will attract a more masculine man. Definately some truth to this, but I also find there is some value in being more feminine for the woman. In this little experiment of de-volving from 28 years of feminist propaganda that I'm undertaking, I have found that...

*gasps*

I enjoy being a girl!!!!

If you knew me 10 years ago, even 5 years ago... and quite possibly even last year, the above sentance would only slipped off my lips when singing that Doris Day song in a karaoke bar. It isn't just about cute outfits either. For the first time in my life, I feel that I am finally grasping how God designed me. And I really really like the sense of satisfaction and contentment that comes from being obedient.

Sarah hit is right on the head when she states it isn't about dominance or treating a woman like a child; it is about him taking the lead. Unfortunately, society has chopped the collective ..... off many men.

I am thrilled to see that there are still men out there... and I think most of them live in the South. But even they are a dying breed.

- The Empress Kitty

More on gay marriage

I was struck by this one line from the referenced article:

"Yet even as gay activists celebrate their civil rights milestone -- achieving their first full measure of equality -- the new Massachusetts reality has set off a ferocious backlash across the country." (emphasis mine)

Um... are gay people denied jobs? Are gay people forced to sit in the back of public transportation? Are gay people forced to drink from other fountains or go to other bathrooms? Are gay people denied their right to vote?

I don't think so. So this idea that this is their first full measure of equality is nonsense. They gay marriage movement is not the same as the civil rights movement of the last century. It's an abomination of the memory of those that fought and died to bring legal equality among the races. Gay marriage is nothing but an attempt to further erode traditional values and another marker of our post-modern, apathetic, everything is morally equivalent culture.

Pivotal day for gay marriage in U.S. nears / Massachusetts move to legalize weddings may intensify backlash in other states

The Fashionista strikes again!!!

Memo:

Do not wear cropped blue jeans that are embroidered on the cuff with green and white polka dot socks.

It's not just ugly.

It's disgusting. It took everything I had to not say to this woman in front of me at NFF "I wasn't aware the power went out anywhere in Nashville. Did you get dressed in the dark this morning?"

What on EARTH would possess someone to wear socks of any sort with cropped pants? Let alone nasty avocado green with white polka dot (that matched NOTHING else she was wearing) socks? ::shudders violently::

NFF update

Last night was "Alabama Love Story" with Mark Collie. Cute, sappy, movie about a washed up rodeo cowboy who kidnaps Tuscaloosa's female half of the couple of the year to hold her for ransom. The male half of the couple of the year refuses to pay the ransom on the advice of his gold-digging Mistress, er... assistant. Roper and Goodie fall in love and live happily ever after. Awwwwwwww...

Definately not scholarly material but after 3 days of heavy heavy material (and that Iranian feature), cotton candy was good to the palate.

Back to meat and potatoes tonight.

What to chant at your next protest

michael moore at The Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler suggests that the next time we hear anti-goblization/anti-war/pro-stupidity protestors rant "HAL-I-BUR-TON"...

...they are implying the war was so that Dick Cheney was lining his pockets....

we yell back "GEN-ER-AL MO-TORS!" or "WAL-MART!"

I also suggest "Krispy Kreme", "Aldi!" and "Versace."

Honorable Mention

Well, not by the judges. Susie liked it.

Visit Practical Penumbra and its archive to see the entries in the "stupid customer" contest.

The Empress's entry:

"Many moons ago, I worked for the local ice rink. I became the keeper of the stupid question list. The absolute worst question I ever heard was when I was working in the concession stand. A gentleman walked up to the counter and said "What's the difference between nachos with cheese and chili cheese nachos?"
I looked at him and said "Umm... the chili."

All of the stories are really really funny. Definately read the winner's story. Hysterical!!!

NFF news

You may be getting tired of my daily film festival digest.. but.. the Empress does not care. It's her blog... heh.

Last night, I saw "Paradise is somewhere else," an Iranian film about a young man who wants to go work overseas and pays the money to a dealer to get out of the rural part of Iran, near the Pakistani border. He's heard of people having alot of success in the Emirates and wants to leave his sheparding life behind. They hire a replacement and he pays the money.. then his father is murdered. In an erie glimpse of close(d) communities, they elders arrange to have the poor, migrant shepard they hired framed for the attempted murder of the engineer (who the family thinks murdered the father).

As Eidak escapes into Pakistan - the only one trying to get in - he runs into Gol Mohammed's younger sister. We see him at the end of the movie running back to face his fate.

I also saw "Sunset Story," a documentary about a retirement home for political progressives in LA. A bunch of liberal old people... oh boy...

The film was really really good though. We follow Lucille and Irja and listen to their stories and how they reached their conclusions. Lucille snapping at Irja for forcing her to celebrate Jewish holidays ("You are more Jewish than me!" Lucille snapped - she being of Jewish origin.) Irja admitted that Communism would never work because it was too easily turned into a dictatorship. We see them protest different things. But the best conversation of the entire movie...
Irja: Don't you think they should pay the workers [of Sunset Hall] more?
Lucille: Yes, they should.
Irja: Where would they get the money? That's the problem.
Lucille: They could raise the rates.
Irja: Are you going to suggest it?
Lucille: No!

Ahhh... make everyone else pay more.. but not me. Give me more money.

My underwear is watching you...

Torrid Product

"I'm smart because I've got cool, hip smart looking glasses"

VonDada writes in response to a UMass Grad Student's statement that Pat Tillman was not a hero and got what he deserved:

" "Mystified, but not surprised." -Sentence fragment

"And, not just the regular army..." -Starts sentence with conjunction

"But, does that make him a hero?" -Ditto

"However, in my neighborhood in Puerto Rico" -Oh! Now I get it.

"pendejo, an idiot" -improper translation (babelfish trans: pendejo = a$$hole)

"decided to insert himself into a conflict he didn't need to insert himself into." -Dangling particle

"knee-jerk" -overused cliche

"sacrificial lambs" -Ditto

"Tillman got himself killed" -redundant reflexive

"our social values are probably more enlightened than theirs." -missing verb

"For that reason..." -unclear reference

"has been wrongly utilized" -split infinitive

"The sad part is that we won't realize it before we send more people like Pat Tillman over to their deaths."

-this entire sentence tends to negate the thesis of "Pat Tillman is not a hero" with it's martyr overtones.

_______

Screw the War on Terror, how about a war on Graduate Student with poor writing skills." (emphasis mine)

The original article is, as they say, farked because of too many hits. The text is posted somewhere on the comments thread, linked below.

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Holey Moley!!!

Now that's a sinkhole, courtesy of the Baltimoresun.com

Market Economy at work

The $160,000 Parking Space in Boston.

More from NFF

Instead of discussing in-depth the movies I saw yesterday (People of Angkor and Tennessee Film Nights 1 and 2), I thought I would talk about a theme I noticed – gender roles.

Oh sure, easy enough.. dish about the oppressive patriarchy and how evil men are. Well, just so everyone knows, the Empress is quite fond of men. She compliments and scratches without sex discrimination. Heh.

So, first there was The Damned and The Sacred – already mentioned. On this theme, what struck me was the nature of folk dancing. The young men danced with a lot of energy. They would explode into leaps across the stages. The moves were sharp and very militaristic in style. Contrast that with the way the young women danced. Tiny little steps that allowed them to appear as though they were floating. The hand gestures were graceful and refined. It reminded me of an article that Rabbi Botech wrote on how women (as opposed to the Queer Eye guys) civilized men.

In the next movie, The People of Angkor, we followed the workers at the Temple of Angkor as they tried to piece together the ancient ruins and protect them under the barrage of tourists. Some of the workers would explain the various symbols of the gods and goddesses. We learn that Aspara, one of the goddesses mentioned in the movie, is an idealized woman. She smiles without showing her teeth. She works hard to make her home a peaceful place. Physically, she’s beautiful – curves in all the right places.

Then there was Resolutions of a Complacent Man, who spent more on wine depending on the age of the woman he wanted to have sex with. Our lead character visits his mom on Sundays so that he can stop at a strip club on the way home. He resolves to remember the names of people and lists 10 women he was in varying stages of ‘relationship.’ He is frustrated at how one relationship went wrong when the sex was so good. Did he miss the sign that she would get angry? Her declaration that she was… intimate with her step-father was his first clue that she was nuts.

The short of all this – seeing it up on the big screen for all that it is, contemporary Western gender roles and a lot of the behavior is down right revolting. Not like I haven’t seen it or been disgusted by it before.. or even been supportative of it. The pursuit of nookie and dollars consuming one man in his late 30’s will leave him empty as he gets older. That guy reminded me of another man I knew from Dallas who went through a period of picking up a different girl to sleep will 3 different nights of the week. He told me that sometimes the women would say “Hey.. nice couch. It would look better if my dress were draped across it.” *rolls her eyes* Don’t misunderstand me – I’m all for healthy sexual activity. Just that God intended them to be inside martial relationships.

The guy from Dallas did admit that the sex was some way of plugging a hole, temporarily at least, that was inside of him for some type of connection.

I’m off – 2 more movies tonight. Here’s to hoping I will stay awake.

"Because I'm not relevant in any other way"

Elton John Says 'American Idol' Vote Is 'Racist'

Could it be that just not enough people voted for Jennifer Hudson...? That there isn't some grand race conspiracy to demonize the black contestants.

I don't recall them making the same claims when other black contestants were voted off in seasons 1 and 2. And other talented people were dropped, too, because lack of votes.

This is news?

Not for those of us who work in higher education. Berkely announced that was how it would read undergraduate applications - "holistically" and encouraged minority students to write about all the struggles they faced to get to the point where they applied.

Affirmative Action Making Comeback

Just a horse of a different color... and another sign of the further decline of higher education. I'm inclined to agree with Matt Damon's character from Good Will Hunting - I could have gotten the exact same education I spent... way too much on for $1.50 in late fees from the public library.

The piece of paper isn't worth squat. And what a hypocrite I am considering I won't quit my job in protest.

Who knows.. I might.

Iraqi flags

Allah in the House has some hysterical potential Iraqi flag designs.

God is better than football

So says the church group in the short animated film, Harvie Krumpet. Tonight was the opening night of the Nashville Film Festival and it looks like it will be a good event.

Tonight, I saw The Damned and The Sacred - a documentary about a Chechen folk dance group as they toured Western Europe. I was impressed by their courage (to practice while helicopters fly overhead and shoot up buildings just streets away), their honesty, and their passion for their art. The director of the troupe was genuinely concerned for the kids, even taking on kids who had no talent just so they wouldn't get into trouble back home. Best part: a documentary without an agenda. It didn't attempt to paint the Russians as boogie men or the Chechens as heros. Just a bunch of kids trying to make the best of a bad situation.

Second on tonight's bill was Animated Expressions - an hour and a half of animated shorts. Already mentioned Harvie Krumpet. Harvie is a Polish-born Australian immigrant who collects "fakts" such as "Fakt #908 - Love does not conquer all" after his new bride's pets reject him. He has a plate in his head that becomes magnitized, he has a carpe diem moment and joins a nudist colony and the Animal Liberation Front (Fakt #758 - There are more chickens than humans on Earth). He has cancer and marries the nurse. Since one testicle was removed due to the cancer, they can't have children. So they adopt a thalidmyde (poor spelling I know) who has no arms. She grows up to become an attorney for the disabled. Harvie ends up in the old folks home with a nasty roommate who had lost the will to die. Very cute and funny. I know it was nominated for an Oscar and I think it won. If it didn't, it should have.

The other short of note was "Dear Sweet Emma" - an sweet, non-threatening elderly lady with homicidal tendancies. We see her crying over the paper when the sherriff said they will stop the search for her missing husband. The radio announcers says that they are all there for her.. here's a peppy song to cheer her up. A pretty little bluebird dances for her. Emma beats it to a pancake with her skillet. Her emaciated cat tries to eat the left over bird-bits and Emma stuffs it in the garbage disposal. When she opens her freezer, we see her missing husband stuffed inside.. at the same time, a skeleton drops from the cabinet.

Out on the porch, "dear sweet" Emma sweeps away the carcasses of the smooshed birds as the announcer says "And Emma, you will have your pick of any of the men in the county..." - which is met with a murderous grin. Sick, twisted and funny as all get out.

Stay tuned for more reports from NFF as events warrant.

On conducting business

Just as a memo to people who might ever call me at work... leaving me 4 voice mail messages - all with the same question and 4 emails.. all with the same question - will not get you a response any faster.

Particularly when I'm out sick.. m'kay? It just annoys me, m'kay. And I'm likely to push you off onto the least helpful person I know, m'kay?

About The Empress

Just because this is now called Pink Kitty in no way means..

1) that I am Communist, Socialist, red.. or even a light red or pink on the political spectrum. I'm a libertarian and proud of it.
2) that I'm into furries. I own a tiara... not kitty ears.

Got moved

Now that we are settled and I stare at the corner of the room for 7 hours a day, all is well.

Blogging will commence at regular intervals. Even my pink ninja has a home.

Moving

::sigh:: The Empress is having to give up her fine office digs and move down the lawn. What she will miss about her office...

not having to share space.
having all of the tools to do her job in her office.
the window.
the view of the lawn from her window.
the view of the cute college boys sans shirt playing on the lawn.

The Empress will likely not be around to blog tomorrow.

Worst song ever?

I disagree. The worst song EVER is the Barney song.. or Sherri and Lambchop's song that ever ends. And if you know either one of them, they are now both stuck in your head.

'We Built This City' ranks as the worst record ever

But since they were only rating pop songs, I may allow it. Other bad pop songs would include anything by Journey. I'll think of some more bad songs later. Feel free to add your own. Maybe you know one the Empress hasn't thought of yet.

The Alliance Humor Assignment

New Precision Guided Humor Assignment: The 9/11 Commission

Let’s face it – Congressional hearings are so 1980’s. This is 2004. The producers need to spice it up a bit. Get rid of C-Span and bring on Mark Burnett! Here is the 9/11 Commission if it were replaced with Reality TV.

1) Simon Cowell appears in his trademarked black outfits. He sips on his Crown and RC cola (in the bright red Coke cup) and tells each person testifying: “I don’t mean to be rude but that was dreadful. Horrible. The worst I ever heard. If America gets it right, you will be going home tomorrow.” He looks at his fellow commissioners and says the adults are speaking and they don’t know what they are talking about.

2) The Donald then arrives on his helicopter and sits next to Simon. The Donald berates the performance of the Commissioners in their latest task of hawking officially licensed Donald Trump hair pieces on the street corners of Washington DC. He then fires each of them and makes $250K for every time he says the phrase “You’re fired.” Omarosa yells that the whole thing is racist when race hasn’t been mentioned at all this season.

3) Now that the Commission is out of a job, they head over to the Fear Factor set because they $50K to pay for first-class plane tickets to where ever they will go after this.

4) The first challenge is to put them in a tank with creepy-crawly things and time them until they jump out screaming that George Bush was right in the first place. The 5 who last the longest move to the next round.

5) The second challenge is to listen to Bob the Bachelor’s, William Hung’s, and/or an American Idol compilation CD without hurling their cookies. If they do happen to hurl, a bonus cookie will be given to the one who spews the furthest. The 3 who don’t hurl move to the final challenge.

6) Final Fear Factor style challenge: date Bob the Bachelor. Two of the commissioners burst into flame.. no one knows why but it makes for darn good TV.

7) Jeff Probst magically arrives on a jet ski. At tribal council, he snuffs out the flaming hair of the 2 losing commissioners. “The tribe has spoken.”

8) The last remaining commissioner, Bob Kerrey, looks at Condi Rice and offers her a rose. Condi, a bit flustered and surprised that she was picked over John Ashcroft, graciously hugs him and says ‘yes.’ Meanwhile, Jamie Gorelick seeks a name change to disassociate herself with Al Gore who’s brought his beard back into the fray and claims that marshmallow peeps were behind 9/11. He also reminds the studio audience that he invented toilet paper, the internet, and Velveeta.

Next time on the 9/11 Commission:

- The FBI and CIA go head to head in the ultimate Survivor obstacle course that includes bugs (planting and eating), balancing (all of the lies told), and strength.

- Back at the ChapMogoBoga camp, Rupert begins to question whether or not the alliance he had with Thomas Keane.

- A surprise guest who will actually claim responsibility for that horrible show “Coupling” visits the commissioners.

- Carson, from Queer Eye, shows up and tells them all that “YOUR SHOES ARE LAST SEASON!” and they are in dire need of a makeover.

Because we are tired......

I have something witty to say about this.. but it's late and I'm tired. And I have to be at work at 7:30. A full HOUR before whiny little Duke brats (no offense to Beth who is a Duke grad) have to be in class.

Duke University Cuts 8 A.m. Classes

Just wanted to wish...

Everyone a wonderful weekend and I hope it is as sunny where you are as it is here in The Empress' world.

Too bad her allergies keep her inside too much. Even drugs do not help. If The Empress had her way, pollen would be banished.

I'm back to a microbe...

But you, my loyal readers will bring me back up to Marsupial status soon. I know it! That should take a couple of weeks.

Peas in a pod

Nader Wants Filmmaker Moore to Come Home and share some of his food with him. Nader is all skin and bones.

Peace and justice movement? I think it needs some fiber.

Meanwhile, John Kerry's supporters are holding a bake sale (same page of the article) to raise funds for more Botox treatments. He is also hoping to re-pay his wife for picking up the check when they went to Burger King the other night. He forgot his wallet... again. His wife got mad when she found out that her burger had Hunt's ketchup on it.

Reason not to get rid of Kaaza just yet

Universal to Raise Price of CDs by $1

It's a scheme by the RIAA. The industry raises prices again, music lovers go back to downloading songs for free. The RIAA sues more 12 year olds and college students and improves their image even more!

Meahwhile, iTunes turns a profit and wonders what Universal's problem is.

Caption this picture

Omarosa at the The Apprentice after party.



The Donald made the right choice - Bill rocks.

Finding Common Ground

The Passion of the Christ has brough Christians together. Their faith has been re-kindled. We hear stories of people moved to confession of theft or even murder in the news. I wonder how many more private confessions to God went on as we watched the representation of Jesus carrying our burden on the cross.

The one thing I hope will last is that Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox believers can stop bickering among themselves and recognize that we do have a shared belief in Jesus Christ. He said that others will recognize believers by how we treat each other. Many so-called Christians are among the most catty people I know. I definately camp out there some days.

Not very good fruit being produced.

This Week in Arts and Ideas from The Moscow Times

Another entertainment industry Rhodes Scholar

Tonight, I feel like picking on really bad photos of celebrities. Here's one of Courtney Love, in the court room during her trial.

1) A good stylist can take care of the split ends. Hot oil and/or conditioner will get rid of the frizzies.

2) Plastic surgery that leaves one with a permanently surprised look is a sign that you've had too much plastic surgery.

3) You might be a redneck if you choose to wear a tube top or something strapless to court.

I'm smart

But I don't look it...

Madonna and her new book

duhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...

What the General Assembly is up to

Like pollen, orange road cones, and preparation for football season, spring in Tennessee begets more bad legislation from the TN General Assembly. The Nashville Scene has listed some of the more bizarre bills aimed at protecting public good or preserving some board that oversees 3 other people beside the board members.

Nashville Scene

Remember: if you appreciate good government and good sausage, don't watch either of them being made.

I still like sausage.

The Scene also talks about Lt. Governor John Wilder, who was older than dirt when I worked there in '97.. so he must be near fossil like now. We would walk past the Senate photos and studied the aging process. I rode on the elevator with him once.. going up 4 floors. He closed his eyes and started rocking back and forth. The door opened to the 4th floor and I just stood there.

Interns didn't dare get out of the elevator before a Legislator (even if the intern were female and etiquette would say "ladies first.") I leaned over and just watched him for a second, holding the button to keep the doors open. I finally whispered "Governor?", as he likes to be called. He near snorted and waddled out of the elevator.

Pink Kitty!!!!!

That's me! I'm changing the name of the blog to Pink Kitty's Scratching Post.

I was going to say litter box but that implies that it's just well.. you know... and I'm not about that.

Purple Striped, Pretty Green Polka-Dotted Sky

Cartoon personal ads

HYSTERICAL!!!!! Love the ads for Stewie, Brian (the dog from Family Guy), Cartman from South Park and Yoda.

Some four-letter words but it's still funny.

FARK.com: Comments Thingee (910407)

There's a problem with your church when...

Its way of intellectually defending itself is through lawsuits.

Scientology critic ordered to pay church

That would be because Scientology cannot stand up to any kind of academic/intellectual investigation... that would be because its a cult.

My country is taller than your country

According some researcher with nothing better to do with his government grant, American men are now shorter than Europeans. His reason?

Socialized medicine made Europeans taller. Supposedly, the trend took a noticeble turn in the 1950's when medicine was socialized across Europe.

Funny, I thought it made them poorer and slaves of the government.

Europeans stretch for edge over New World

One more thing...

It might not be an issue for my readers outside of the South but...

today is April 13th and it snowed in Nashville today. Didn't stick but it SNOWED! It's officially spring and it snowed. It didn't snow all winter.

Words I hate

"Continuing the coversation" or dialoge or discourse... in the vein of understanding and learning from each other.

Do I sound like a PC liberal yet? Every time I hear it, my ears want to bleed.. part of me shrivels up inside.

Anyway, VU feminists found something to get their boxer-briefs in a wad about now over a flier posted in a dorm. The guy didn't get busted for the content of the flier.. he got busted for using the VU artwork without permission.

But we have to have a forum and continuation of a project to continue to educate people and fund a women's studies graduate student.

''It's unfortunate that on a campus of several thousand people, 50 people showed up to express their outrage,'' said Sandra Harrell, co-director of Project Safe. That would be because the other 10,000 people on this campus are outraged at you for delcaring a flier done in jest (as I'm sure it was and there wasn't any "underlying anger" in it) an outrage.

It's an outrage I tell you!

Flier found in VU dorm prompts outrage - Tuesday, 04/13/04

Proof the General Assembly has nothing better to do

My old stomping grounds, the Tennessee General Assembly, continues its long tradition of bills that have no real significance.. but we are going to waste everyone's time with them anyway.

There was the long debate on the road kill bill... now dogs in pickup trucks.

Let's not discuss anything important like.. um... homeland security or cutting taxes.

Senate to allow unrestrained dogs in truck beds - Tuesday, 04/13/04

It reminds me of when I went to TISL - the colligate mock-legislature. We debated for 2 hours whether or not to change the state bird to the turkey but neglected good bills like banning speed bumps (which was selected as a top 10 bill and passed on to Governor Sundquist for possible submission to the legislature. TN's first seat belt law was originally a TISL bill.. for what its worth).

Support independent film!

This blog talks alot about small musical artists because they still make music for the sake of making good music.

Along that same line, I would encourage the few readers to visit their small theaters and local film festivals. There you can see some truly original (and sometimes disturbing) works of cinematic art.

This is the 3rd year in a row I will be going to the Nashville Film Festival. Each year, I've seen more and more movies. This year, I've got tickets for 14 movies over 6 days... can we say butt-numb-athon?!

Most of the movies I will be seeing are documentaries. There's the required Tennessee Filmnights dedicated to local film makers and Animated Expressions - proving that cartoons are not just for children. The couple I'm really really looking forward to seeing are "The Ladies' Room" filmed in a public restroom in Tehran, Iran.. "Paper Clips" about the boy in East TN who wanted to collect 1 paper clip for each victim of the holocaust... "Born into Brothels" about the children living among the prostitutes in Calcutta, India.

Nashville Film Festival

Maybe I'm the only one...

But I called the IRS help line with questions about my dad's estate taxes, personal, and business taxes. I found them to be helpful. They were polite and he explained what the different numbers and forms I would need to file for my dad's 2003 taxes.

Once I get an accountant, life will be sweet.

Just when I was about to call it quits for the evening

There was very little blog-worthy today. It's a gray kind of rainy day and my mood matched. Nothing was the least bit humorous or irritating.

Until I read the below referenced article. Maybe Andy "Looney" Rooney has a point...

But man, get a real job. You've been in the ivory tower so long, the oxygen has not gotten to your brain since.. umm... maybe 1960?

Apparently his contract must be up soon and he's trying to prove that he's a viable commodity to CBS by slamming Mel Gibson, his movie, and our troops in the last 30 days.

I'm proud to support our troops. While they may have signed up for the college benefits, they are still overseas fighting for us and for the Iraqi people.

What is Rooney doing to help either cause? Does he think his crotchey comments are furthering debate? Will he change any minds? Likely not. He might get himself dropped from CBS. That network has been sitting on the hot seat since January... angry veterans groups are they last thing need attacking them (in addition to the FCC, their advertisers, family groups, and conservatives).

Andy Rooney: GIs not heroes

First time players

At dinner with my small group this evening, Karina shared a story from Cross Point's awesome softball team... (awesomely bad softball team....)

Her roommate is the catcher. This is her first time playing in that position. At first, said roommate stood against the backstop.. the ump made her move forward, somewhat closer to home plate.

The pitcher threw the first ball and the roommate caught it. The young woman then looked at the umpire and said "Am I supposed to throw this back?"

No word if the umpire died of hysterical laughter or was able to keep himself composed and show her some grace in explaining the rules of softball to her.

Those who fail to learn from history...

Are doomed to repeat it. Did this former learn NOTHING from World War II?

You cannot negoiate with the enemy. Let's just sit Osama down and ask how he's feeling.. can he express anger in more constructive way like drawing or boxing as opposed to blowing up the World Trade Center?

Let's say "We'll pull out of Iraq if you only recurit 2 more terriorists per month." Osama will laugh so hard he will pee on himself.

Only a self-hating liberal would offer such a dumb-a$$ solution to a declared war. The enemy declared the war on the US.. and the US has elected to fight back.

IOL : Will Britain hold peace talks with Bin Laden?

Survivor and The Apprentice

Lex went the way of the dodo on Survivor last night. He broke the rule of Survivor...

NEVER TRUST BOSTON ROB!

For that matter, everyone else has broken that rule too. Lex deserved it. For crying out loud... you have the opportunity to vote a member of the opposing tribe, and you DON'T take it... you should be thrown out by Probst on principle.

I hope, I hope, I hope that EMB (Evil Mark Burnett) is editing him for a major fall and soon. I can appreciate his game play but I do not like him at all.

If Boston Rob does make it with Amber to the final two (as rumor suggests), Amber will win. And.. um... what game has she played? She's just hiding underneath the target that is Boston Rob.

I didn't see all of The Apprentice last night but I saw enough to rejoice in the fall of the wondertwins Nick and Amy. Nick - the used car salesman like person and Amy with no depth and all the 'right answers' that one can use to play BS Bingo in a meeting where you are bored to tears.

So, your final two are Bill and Kwame. I like both. They are each qualified and have different experiences and skills. Can't wait for the finale and then season 2. :)

The Fashionista strikes again!

Protecting the world from horrible shoes and mis-matched patterns!

Shoes that should NEVER have been manufactured under any circumstances.. ever. EVER!!!!!!

--- flip-flops with a heel. ---

Flip flops are atrocious enough when seen away from beach/lake settings.. but.. to but a kitten heel on them is a crime against humanity, er.. fashion.

Andrea said it is the mullet of shoes... a party on top and business on the bottom.

But... how do you collect it?

NewsChannel 5 reports that there is a bill in the Tennessee General Assembly to tax drug sales.. the illegal kind of drugs.

Can you image the street deal?

Dealer: OK.. that will be $20 plus tax.. bringing the total to $22.
User: What?
Dearler: Yeah - since that bill passed, we're being taxed. I've got to send sales tax revenue to the state. They haven't prosecuted me for selling drugs but they will come after if if I don't send in my sales tax reports and check.
User: That's farked up! Here's the $22.
Dealer: Many thanks. Pleasure doing business with you; come again soon!

How the heck are they going to enforce this? Like drug dealers are willingly going to send in the tax reports and such.

Then again, this is the same body that brought you the Roadkill Bill a few years ago (where it is now legal if you hit a deer, you can take it home with you for dinner).

Jeff Foxworthy: "If your idea of fast food is hitting a deer at 65 mph, you might be a redneck."

Bill to tax drug sales

What is the reason behind the slump in music industry sales?

RIAA, Lars from Metallica, et al will tell you its piracy. I think it's because music today stinks and people aren't willing to plunk down $15+ on crappy CDs.

It's still easier to download the 1 song you like from say.. um... Apple's iTunes (for 99 cents per tune) or from sites like Morpheus.

I read an article the other day that the music industry has spent so much time focusing on the teeny-bopper age bracket that they've neglected middle-aged adults. The execs, in their wisdom, think the teenagers parents only listen to oldies stations. The article went on to say this age bracket could be why artists like Clay Aiken and Norah Jones have done so well. They do have some talent, they can sing, and they don't sell sex.

Global Music Sales Slide, Some Recovery Signs-IFPI

The Genius that is William Hung

If you watch American Idol (or any entertainment program), you should know who William Hung is. He's the UC Berkley engineering student who sang "She Bangs" in his.... unique way.

And became a celebrity. His single is #8 on the digital download chart on Billboard.

On the American Idol website, they have a couple of documentaries on William Hung. His advisor said "he has some sort of quality which is oblivious to most social skills."

THAT is the understatement of the year... and I don't even know the boy. He is an engineering major and that's all I need to know.

But I do believe him when he says that he's a sincere and kind person... think Forrest Gump.

AMERICAN IDOL

What Al Franken does on his day off

Courtesy of the talented photoshoppers at Fark.

FARK.com: Comments Thingee (897918)

Maybe we should add a new one where Vox Day is kicking Al Franken's flabby tushie.

Gay Marriage Stuff

This morning, I was watching the local news. They reported that Rutherford County was considering a resolution saying that marriage was between a man and a woman. Copies would be sent to various officials in state government, encouraging them to make sure that the law is clear on this matter.

The area representative for the Human Rights League said that he didn't think counties should be involved and that it was a matter for the states.

But... was he supportative of what Mayor Newsome did in San Francisco? I bet he was. So law-breaking' mayors are OK but county officials who seek to behave within the law are discriminatory.

One word - CRAP! OK, a few more words... I'm not surprised by the response by the HRL person. It's again showing the duplicitous nature of the gay rights movement on this issue. They only want certain people (actvisit judges, bone-headed mayors) to make law - in their favor, of course.

Thank you India

Do you remember that Alanis Morissette song? In yet another attempt to show us that she is somehow still relevant, Ms. Morissette stripped down to a body suit with fake nipples and other assorted naughty bits. She was 'protesting US censorship.'

I'm all for artistic expression. If you want a song full of explatives, that's fine but I do not want to hear it. You as the artist have every opportunity to do what you want - just because you are an artist doesn't mean that there will be outlets for you to get your crap... I mean... work... out to the masses.

This reminds me of a debate Ari told me about in one of his classes. A city had commissioned a piece of art. It went up; they paid the artist but afterwards, some people wanted it taken down because it was either in the way or offensive. I don't remember. Most of the people in his class sided with the artist - it should remain where it was unchanged.

Ari's point was that once the artist had been paid for the work, it was no longer his property. If the new owner wanted to use it for kindling, he could and there is nothing the artist can do otherwise. I completely agee.

And Alanis, keep your freakin' clothes on. I didn't want to see you butt naked in that video and I certainly didn't need to see the picture of you in a body suit now. Geez. I may recommend you for a make-over on What Not to Wear.

Yahoo! News - Morissette strips down to blast US "censorship"

No Surprise here...


Magister Mundi sum!

Which wierd latin phrase are you?

I've been promoted!

So to speak.

I've moved from an insignificant microbe to a Marauding Marsupial! I feel so important. Many thanks to those of you clicking on my blog. As my fellow bloggers know, it's a labor of love - because we just HAVE to put our opinions out there. It's great to know that there are people reading.

I do appreciate the fact that you've made my little pink kitty-run house a stop on your blog reading circuit.

Maybe someday I can be a large mammal.

A quote

My brother, Eric, used to be a fan of the band Slayer back in high school but isn't anymore. He listens to Christian music now. Last night, he mentioned that Slayer was on the Ozzfest tour and said...

"Is Ozzfest sponosored by AARP this year? I mean, the bands headlining - Ozzy, Judas Priest, and Slayer - are all old enough to qualify for membership or Social Security."

Imagine the PA annoucer:
*heavy rock sounding radio voice*
"Ozzfest 2004. Brought to you by Budweiser, AARP, Viagra, and Metamucil."

How's that for your rebel Rock-n-Roll image.

Nashville Star

I'm not the world's biggest country music fan; probably has to do with living in Nashville and being surrounded by it since the womb. Neither of my parents were into country either. But I digress...

I watched 1 episode of Nashville Star last season. Buddy Jewell won and put out a great CD after years of plugging away in Nashville.

Last night was Willie Nelson night. Each contestant sang a song by Willie. Except for the last guy who was a poor man's Keith Urban, they were all really good. There was a good mix of the different styles of country - pop-sounding top 40 country, old-school cryin' in my beer country, and sittin' on the front porch with a banjo bluegrass.

I highly recommend seeing really talented people perform. They are WAY better than the chumps on American Idol (which is one of my favorite shows). The judges in Nashville Star pander a bit but there is only one Simon Cowell.

Nashville Star is on at 9pm Central on Saturday night on USA Network.

4 stars.

Giving props to the Ladies

On my music recommendations of late, I've recommended cd's by some of the most talented gentlemen out there - all of whom look doggone fine in a suit.

How sexist of me, a woman, not to mention some of the wonderful female vocalists that I've been enjoying.

There's Billie Holiday - Lady Day. She's turned my Altec speakers next to my computer in to a 1940's era radio. Outstanding. Her Greatest Hits 2 cd collection is a good place to start.

Etta James - "At Last" is one of the best songs - EVER.

More contemporary - Norah Jones. Her voice is a bit different and a throwback to old smokey room jazz. Her music is crossing over on multiple charts - pop, country, jazz, and adult contemporary. We will eventually have a shrine to Ms. Jones. :)

Alicia Keys - talented, good looking, soulful with attitude. American Idol contestants miserably fail singing her songs.

Liz Johnson - Nashville sax player and vocalist. Her cds are at cdbaby.com. She's a friend of one my co-workers and as the cd made its way down the hall, she garnered more fans and performed at our Peabody staff picnic last year. (Incidentally - Helen stole my idea for the tiki lounge theme - it was way more fun than her Provencial France theme staff picnic. Blech.)

See? And you thought you were stuck with Britney Spears.

More good music

I got my package from Columbia House yesterday. One of the cd's was the self-titled release from Michael Buble'. Good stuff. Sounds alot like Peter Cincotti.. who reminds me of Frank Sinatra.

Have you figured out yet that I'm on a jazz kick? Or that I'm totally in love with guys who have that throwback to the 1940's and 50's.. when men were men, women were women, and the dogs were not accessories.

The Pledge is offensive

This blog has wacked Michael Newdow a few times for being an idiot (though one that stands up for what he believes) for suing that "under God" is establishment of religion and his poor sensibilities (and tried to hide it under his daughter - who's a Christian?!) were offended.

DougM at scrappleface.com posted this little bit to show that the Pledge of Allegience is truly an offensive statement:

"Pledge" is objectionable to the Endust manufacturer.

"Allegiance" is objectionable to proto-traitors and
international progressisves.

"Flag" is objectionable to iconoclasts.

"United States of America" is objectionable to illegal
aliens.

"Republic" is objectionable to Democrats.

"Stands" is objectionable to paraplegics.

"One Nation" is objectionable to neo-confederates and
anti-federalists.

"Under God" is objectionable to megalomaniacs.

"Indivisible" is objectionable to mathematicians.

"Liberty" is objectionable to socialists.

"Justice" is objectionable to the Bar Association.

"All" is objectionable to Tide users.

Hey, just mumble the parts you don't like.

A whole lotta lip

From a story at foxnews.com

Virgin Atlantic Airways was forced to ditch plans to
offer hip, fun urinals in the men's rooms of its
lounge at New York's JFK Airport after feminists
complained that the designs were offensive to women,
reports the New York Daily News.

The airline wanted to put bright-red urinals shaped
like women's lips into the restrooms, but the National
Organization for Women had a hissy fit.

"I don't know many men who think it's cool to pee in a
woman's mouth, even a porcelain one," NOW President
Kim Gandy wrote on the group's Web site.

The company said in a statement that it was "very
sorry to hear of people's concerns about the design of
the 'Kisses' urinals" and that "no offense was ever
intended." The urinal, designed by a Dutch company,
was the idea of a female designer.

- OK. The mouth shaped urinals were in bad taste but
was it really anything that NOW had to get its
boxer/briefs in a wad about?

My weekend and a quote worth remembering

Because I know you are dying to hear about it.

When I wasn't curled up in bed nursing my cold or my sore shoulder, I did manage to make it outside on a beautiful Saturday. Andrea, Beth, Eric S., and I went for a walk at Crockett Park.

We walked for a while.. explored.. and found some picnic tables. Just before we got up, I noticed a little spider crawling on my shorts. I flicked it off - and toward Eric S. Beth and Andrea both said, in their best Designing Women voices, "The man should have to kill the bug!"

"But he shouldn't have to wear it!" Eric replied.

Because women who wear high heels vote!

The Nation.com

NASCAR Dads vs. The high-heeled vote

The referenced article and another in this month's issue of Glamour discuss the large single female population that should be voting. Both point out that single women tend to be 'progressive' (re:
socialist/democratic) "anti-gun, pro-choice," etc...

Meaning they are perfect lackeys for the Democratic Party and John Kerry should appeal to them.

*long pause*

OK, now that I've picked myself up off the floor from laughing too hard, I do have something serious to say.

It's bull----.

There is a reason why single women gravitate to the Democratic party more than the Republican party and it has very little to do with personal philosophy or ideology. It has everything to do with protection.

Despite the ramblings of feminism, most women desire to be protected and cared for. God kind of ordained this in scripture you know. Women and men were made differently; that's why there are certian physical differences between men and women. Women have higher pitched voices and are smaller (not to say women are
helpless because firearms do even the scale quite a bit) and engender a sense of responsibility in a man to care for and protect them.

That's why we see problems with women in combat with men. The men, instead of focusing on killing the bad guys, focus their energy on protecting the women in their unit - possibly at the cost of the entire unit.

Back to the election and party politics...

Women since the creation have wanted to be protected, God made provisions for this - family and marriage. Was this status abused? Yes. No doubt. But, I think that is more to do with our sinful nature than it does with the idea of marriage itself. So, in
the last 75 years as women marry later or not at all, they are left without a protector. And this scares them.

Without fathers, brothers, or husbands in their lives, women are left to fend for themselves. Women in contemporary society are capable of caring for themselves. Yes. I'm not saying that women are dependent UPON men. Geez. Breathe... inhale.. exhale...

What I am saying is that since the family structure has been decimated by radical feminism and socialism, women have been left in a lurch and no one to fill in the gaps in their life. So, since you, young mom, have no grandparents for your baby, you leave your
child in state-sponsored day care and schools.

You, young woman, have made a choice to live your life without a stable relationship, you rely on state-sponsored insurance or retirement benefits.

You, woman of any age, believe that it's your right to choose... to kill the unborn baby, to have different sexual partners, to spend frivioulsly or whatever it may be. It isn't a right and I'm damn tired of cleaning up after you because I just happen to be responsible.

Single women may not really believe in what the Democratic Party sells, but it is the one place that says "We'll protect you..." and that's good enough for them. The Republicans or Libertarians saying "We'll teach you how to protect yourself" is too much
work for the Sex and the City wannabes floating around
out there.

As an aside, I'm going to try to find the study that The Nation, Glamour and other articles are citing. I want to read the research for myself. I doubt my opinion will change but I may have something more to say.

It's a conspiracy

Pet stores want to sell more products so they convince the city council to require pets to be buckled in when in the car.

Now citizens will have to plunk down $20 to $30 for a pet seat belt.

Government sucks.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

I always knew Every Rose has its thorn was a country song

It will be now.

Bret Michaels has gone country!

And like.... And like.... And like....

"At the end of the day" was voted the most annoying cliche'. Other nominees were "like," "with all due respect," "bottom line," and "pushing the envelope" by the Plain English Society.

I'm not sure if at the end of the day, at the end of the day is the most annoying and overused cliche'. At the end of the day and when you get down to the wire, I think it is something else.

We have to prioritize what words we use and tighten up our speech. But I think this group should try to see the glass as half full and be optimistic instead of feeling trapped between a rock and a hard place.

The English language is constantly changing and growing. OK, so may be not for the better but, maybe we move the chains and start again from first and 10 and keep pushing forward toward the goal. All good things come to those who wait. We have to think out of the box when it comes to reforming the english language, since so much of the nizzle shafizzle comes out of pop culture and MTV. One step at a time, we can make it. Rome wasn't built in a day - remember that. Because when in Rome, we must do what the Romans do.

Hey y'all, thanks. I just had to touch base with you on this topic. Keep up the good work. Parting is such sweet sorrow. Ashes to ashes... all that glitters isn't gold.. it's no skin off my nose. Just remember to watch your mouth and not act like you were raised in a barn.

My Way News

1984 marathon

1984 is my favorite book. It has been since I was a sophomore in high school. I was the only one in my english class to get it. I sat there and explained about the mocking of the Soviet Unior, the threat of socialism in the US and Europe, and the power that technology in the hands of the government can have over citizens.

Did any other 15 year old care? Nope. Back to listening to Vanilla Ice was more important. Vanilla Ice is now an un person. His face has been taped over with.. um.. well, no one could replace him. He wasn't that good - just that manufactured.

But the 20th anniversay of 1984 is approaching. I think I might pull out my well-worn copy of the book and read it again.. or watch the movie.

Double plus good.

www.1984plus20.org

What to say and what not to say

As a public service to the 3 people who read this blog and might ever think of graduate school, do NOT say:

"This degree will help me to continue my life long love of learning..."
or
"I want to teach at the college level. In order to that, I need a terminal degree."

or tell us all about how you struggled to overcome obstacles and adversity to be the first person to attend college (noble but that is not creative or original)

or send in crayons that say "color your world", photo albums, or statements of purpose that look like interviews in alumni newsletters.

And these are all real examples from statements I've read in the last year. They were attemping to be creative and original... and none of those people got in. If you are thinking about applying for graduate study and someone says the committees don't read the statements of purpose, that person is lying to you. It is one of the most seriously considered parts of the application.

What should you say:
- show that you've done your homework and researched the school, its program, and faculty. Demonstrate how your interests and goals are compatible with the school.
Example:
"From my experience with the Tennessee General Assembly, I want to continue to focus on education policy and work with Dr. McLendon on state level higher education policy." Dr. McLendon focuses on state/federal education policy and has several articles published on some of the recent trends in state-level higher education policy. Of course, your statement will be written more cleanly than mine. I just came up with that off the top of my head.
- have people proof read it for grammar errors, flow, and style.
- show that you have a goal, even if it changes while in graduate school. "I want to go to graduate school." is not enough. Neither is stating that you want to wait out the job market highs and lows, even if that is the truth. While I'm not telling you to lie, you need to think about why you are going to spend the next 2 years of your life in near poverty for a Masters or 6+ if pursuing a PHD.
- don't tell us you need funding. Everyone does. We know that. There should be check box or seperate application for financial aid. Don't put it in your personal statement.

There may be more tips in the future but that's a start.

More Monty Python for your pleasure

Part of my favorite sketch.. I think I can recite most of it from memory:

Owner: The Norwegian Blue prefers keepin' on it's back! Remarkable bird, id'nit, squire? Lovely plumage!

Mr. Praline: Look, I took the liberty of examining that parrot when I got it home, and I discovered the only reason that it had been sitting on its perch in the first place was that it had been NAILED there.

(pause)

Owner: Well, o'course it was nailed there! If I hadn't nailed that bird down, it would have nuzzled up to those bars, bent 'em apart with its beak, and VOOM! Feeweeweewee!

Mr. Praline: "VOOM"?!? Mate, this bird wouldn't "voom" if you put four million volts through it! 'E's bleedin' demised!

Owner: No no! 'E's pining!

Mr. Praline: 'E's not pinin'! 'E's passed on! This parrot is no more! He has ceased to be! 'E's expired and gone to meet 'is maker! 'E's a stiff! Bereft of life, 'e rests in peace! If you hadn't nailed 'im to the perch 'e'd be pushing up the daisies! 'Is metabolic processes are now 'istory! 'E's off the twig! 'E's kicked the bucket, 'e's shuffled off 'is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin' choir invisibile!! THIS IS AN EX-PARROT!!

Not sure I will have much to say today

First, I can't find anything interesting to blog about. It is a slow news day..

Second, I am in a cough-medicine induced hazed from being sick since Sunday. I'm patiently waiting for my Dr. to call back and tell me there's an antibiotic waiting for me at Walgreen's.

Just as something random - I love Monty Python. The Lumberjack Song just came on Launchcast. Hehe. But the Philosophers Song is funnier.

Slow News Day

Yahoo! News - Kleenex-Maker to Raise Prices in U.S. if such a story is on the front page of Yahoo. Isn't there anything on the election, war on terror, or Jennifer Lopez's newest boy toy to write about?

Good news for Puffs, Bounty, and Charmin. I wonder how this will affect the bulk prices at Sam's or Costco where you can buy 45 rolls of toilet paper for $11.

Why I hate election season

As if 2004 Presidential race hasn't been going on long enough with the year long Democratic Party thing, every 3 days, we are going to have to hear about another poll telling us John Kerry is slightly ahead of George Bush..

They will call every obscure place in the US.. Bucksnort, TN (real place), Los Angeles, CA (supposedly a real place), Boring, OR (real place), Tuxedo, TX (real place), or Vermont. They will ask them their opinion about the candidates or issues with questions like "If John Kerry were to raise taxes to fund education, would you support John Kerry?"

I was asked a question like that once about the potential TN income tax. I told the little girl on the other end of the phone "That's not a valid question and I will not answer it. But you can put down that No! I do not support the income tax at all." She was a bit stunned to say the least.

So next time askes:
"Would ya like to take a survey?"

respond with..

"Do you eat beans? Would you like to see a new movie starring George Wendt? Would you like to eat beans with George Wendt? Would you like to see George Wendt eating beans in a movie? Do you eat beans at George Wendt movies? Would you like to see George Wendt in a bean eating movie? How many beans do you eat at George Wendt bean eating movies? How many bean eating movies have you seen with George Wendt? If you were a bean what kinda bean would you be?"

That would be funny. And.. we have another... *counts* 9 months to go. It's worse than being pregnant! (not that I have any personal experience in that arena but I imagine both the 2004 election cycle and being pregnant are both equally painful).

Yahoo! News - AP Poll Shows Bush, Kerry in Close Race

Say no to tracksuits

Listen to Carson, Stacey, and Clint - tracksuits are wrong. They are not cute. They should only be worn at the gym or out running and no where else!

Say it with me
"Tracksuits are not good."
"Tracksuits are not flattering."

On my way to a meeting across campus, one of the Vandygirls walked around me. Not unusual - we Southerners tend to stroll everywhere. She was wearing a tracksuit.

Not just any tracksuit. A velour tracksuit.

Could it get worse? Oh yes it can! It was salmon orange. Not salmon pink but salmon orange! With big black clunky slides.. and I could see VPL!

(Visible panty line for those not in the know)

And it was a thong. Thongs are supposed to eliminate vpl.. but I guess even the thong can't hide under a salmon orange velour tracksuit.

Because it's all about...

The... you know. Skin color. According to this story all power in this country is held by white middle-aged men.

Funny, I thought all the power in this country was held by Wal Mart. Who else but the 500 lb gorilla can dictate to artists what to put on its albums? But if the artists were "true artists" they would say forget Wal Mart and hold onto their artistic integrity. But no, they are not artists. They are fronts for greedy record companies only interested in putting out crap music and related officially licensed products to 14 year olds who have disposible income.

But back to the story, when Ari was taking his women's studies class last semester, he would talk about his membership card into the power structure. It involved a body part that women do not have. But since gay men also have this body part, sexual orientation also plays a part in getting past the bouncer at the door. Because of this extra appendage, all the doors of power (sucess, wealth, influence, etc...) on earth would open up to him.

Our conversation was in jest but there are those in the radical feminists and other groups that believe this. And they are putting it into the school system.

My question: why is the school system allowing obviously biased groups to come in and make presentations? I know - because public schools are crap. They have no curriculum that isn't about 'diversity' or creating a divisive enviornment. See Vox's column this week and his blog for a lengthy discussion on public and private schools and home schooling.

New Comments Section

After much internal debate, I decided to add a comments section. We'll see hot it goes. It's sort of pink - like the blog. But there are no kitties. Pink isn't my favorite color. It's really blue and purple. But I do like the kitties.

No flaming. If you have something constructive to say, please feel free to do so.

There you go.

On being a lady

I will be occasionally posting on something I am working on. For almost 28 years, I have bought into the lies that feminism has spoon-fed women. Women and men are the same; you can have it all at the same time; you don't need to take care of a home; you can do it all by yourself and etc...

Part of this is a general commentary on society - there is no grace, no civility or manners anymore. People want to stand out by being more outrageous and offensive (think Christina Aguleria and her song about how she is upset that people think she's a ho because she likes sex and men can get away with it. Well, if you ask me - both of y'all are ho's - the guy and the girl. And it's sad that it's acceptable behavior).

I digress. So, I am learning.. attempting to re-train my behavior, my thoughts, my speech, my dress - the whole shebang. I want to be more lady-like. You can never go wrong with good manners or being well-dressed. These are qualities neither my mom or nana taught me due to the generations of dysfunctionality in their families.

In the And God Made Woman class I've taken through church, we learn that we are not prisoners to the past, that we are daughters of the King. Given such, it is time I start acting appropriately. This doesn't mean that I will be behaving like Her Royal Highness, the Empress Kitty. But it does mean having grace, dignity, self-respect, humility, confidence, and searching for the same in others.

God thinks that I am special enough to send His son to die for me. Why can't I see my self in that way? Why do I have such trouble seeing the same in others?

What do I hope to achieve by telling you about it? For the women who read this blog: that you are more than what society has defined for you. It is a good thing to recapture our femininity. The Proverbs 31 woman is something to work on through out the seasons of your life.

For men: there are women out here that do not want to tear you down, belittle you, and emasculate you. Be the man that would be attracted to a Proverbs 31 woman. If you want her to speak well of you at the city gates, you have to behave in that manner. Remember Ephesians 5 - love the women in your life as Christ loves the church.

Both men and women choose to love and choose to respect. Neither are automatically earned. They take effort and sacrifice.

Tell me something I don't know

Match.com has a physical attractiveness test. Takes about 15 minutes and I do suggest the audio guide to help you. It flushes out the instructions.

It said that I was very picky - in fact that I was more picky than 99% of the female population who took this test.

Who does this survey say I'm attracted to?

Hugh Jackman.

Not really but he was mentioned as an example of a face type. Or Viggo (as Aragorn)... heh. Generally - men who are older (though not opposed to the idea of dating younger men)
of Mediterranean origin (that should thrill Ari - he's Greek),
who are taller than me (not difficult since I'm 5'3" but I do love my high heels),
big guys (you know - former football players and wrestlers body types),
blue eyes (I disagree with this - I like brown and green eyes, too),
glasses (a great pair of glasses can go a long way. Since I had lasik 2 years ago, they are now an accessory for me - like my earrings)
neatly trimmed facial hair (goatees and beards have their place)
dark brown hair
men who look like (and act like) men - not boys. No boys.
and men who SMILE! I like men who smile!

But you know, all of this is well and good but real heart of the matter is that for as attracted as I am to say Viggo Mortensen, he isn't a Christian. And that is what I am first and foremost looking for.

Your friendly neighborhood fashionista strikes again

Here's the story...

Last sunday, I was picking out something to wear to my dad's memorial service. I picked out a black sweater that has white cuffs and collar. Very cute and classy. Well, you think that black pants would just be the right thing...?

No!

The black did not match. I pulled out the 3 pairs of black pants that I had..

One was too wrinkled from being worn earlier in the week and hadn't been laundered yet. I think one didn't fit, I'm not too sure. And the one that is my current favorite.. but none of the black was similar when you held them together. I was having a hissy fit. I finally settled on the pants that are my current favorite.. primarily because they were clean and wrinkle free and put them with my cute little black ankle boots.

Quote Stacy, the What Not to Wear Mistress: Black is slimming but it has to be the right kind of black.. and the clothes have to fit. (ok it's a paraphrase - I can't find the original)

~ * ~ YES! I've turned into a girl! ~ * ~

Butt-ugly dress

I normally love the selection at alight.com for us plus sized gals (though they are pricey - the quality is excellent). But yeesh...

The Leaf Me Alone Dress is WRONG!

Survivor: All Stars update

I know, I've been very lax in posting my updates and opinions of Survivor this season.

The last of the male eye candy was booted last night. Colby went last week; Ethan went this week. *sigh*

Not that they were the reason I was watching or anything. I'm sure they are much more attractive when not covered with dirt and have brushed their teeth recently.

Amber and Rob got it on in Survivor's first make out session. Not since Colleen and Greg have two Survivor's been so.. uh.. intimate. And I don't think Colleen and Greg kissed. Anyway, the game play this season is pretty good. No real stable alliances but it will be interesting to see what will happen with the merge.

Boston Rob will take a big fall (a la the Rotu 4 from his season.) He's too cocky and Mark Burnett is setting it up for a big take down where the audience will rejoice.

Next week's predition: Jerri goes. Not next week - the week after. Next week is a re-cap episode.

In the "that's not accurate" category

NV, a local night club, hosted something that was supposed to resemble a Renaissance costume party.

But apparently mixing medieval, goth, and catholic school girl outfits all quailify as "renaissance." Hello? Historical accuracy anyone? Vinyl was not around in 13th century Europe - or anywhere! I know when I dolled myself up for the Ren Fair a couple of years ago, it wasn't completely true to the period but I sure looked more appropriate than the attendees of this party. I made a very cute little gypsy.

And this guy is not goth on any planet. He's not even retro cool.

Why I will never be goth?

1) Combat boots/Doc Martens/platform shoes/et al make your feet look big and drag the eye down the body and put all the weight at the bottom.

2) Black is ok.. sometimes. Color is much better.

3) Black lipstick was never ok. Ever. Neither is black nailpolish. Red is much much better.

4) I'm a conformist....

And is this couple going to perform a rendition of "Time Warp?" They remind me of Riff Raff and Magenta from Rocky Horror Picture Show.

A story

Alan told me this story about my dad. My dad was telling Alan a story that he had heard before.

(PK's note - if you are ever around me, I have a story for every occasion and have been known to keep telling the same story over and over.. now you will see why this story is funny).

So, my dad is telling Alan this story and Alan was very gently trying to nudge him along because he heard it before. My dad ignored him and just kept telling the story. Alan finally got a bit upset and said "could you hurry up" or something like that. My dad put his hand on Alan's shoulder and said "Now listen here you d*mn yankee.. It took a long time for the events in the story to happen and it's going to take me a long time to tell it."

Yes - I am my father's daughter.

Taking a break

Dear reader,

This blogger will be taking a break for a while. My dad passed away and there are alot of things to be taken care and well.. blogging just isn't high on the priority list at the moment.

Don't forget about me and I will be back soon.

- PK

Possible Runningmates for John Kerry

As suggest by IMAO

Funny funny stuff

It's a Tuesday

American Idol and Queer Eye are on (the latter is the John Zimmerman episode I've been talking about). Work is seriously interfering with my ability to blog.

And I'm going to have to put Her Royal Highness, the Empress Kitty in her place! She has been horrible! After making a mess of the bathroom this morning, she went into hiding. We have a love/hate relationship.

We love to annoy each other and hate it when it happens. I may have to borrow the neighbors daschund for the evening to remind Kitty that she is not the one who's the boss around here and at any time a puppy may magically appear. I'm the boss. I have opposable thumbs.

vive la liberté!

Long live the revolution! Nashville should annex itself next and become its own country.


Will Killington start national trend?

Worst jobs ever

You might think it would be garbage collector, IRS agent, or even the President of the US. I'm here to tell you it's not.

There are 2:

1) Ice cream truck driver.

You know them... blasting out some inane children's song at 200 decibels so you hear them from a half mile away and feel it rattle your windows when it passes. Handing out ice cream for $2 a pop when it's far cheaper to have mom go to the store and buy a box of 6 for $2. And then you hear the song for the rest of the day.. dagnabit ear worms.

Which transitions us to...

2) Attendant at the Small World ride.

There's alot of things I dislike in this world.. and a select list of things that I would destroy with nuclear weapons if given access to them. Osama bin Laden... the Left Coast... Democratic National headquarters... and the Baltimore Ravens among them. But the first thing I would dessimate would be all Small World rides. It has to be the worst job to be stuck there sending the little boats through the ride for hours at a time.. listening to that song.. waving and smiling.

I believe that song is being uses RIGHT NOW to torture Sadaam Hussein and the gitmo bay detainees. The UN should ban it. It is cruel and unusual punishment and a violation of our Constitutional rights!!!

Do think think that they medicate the attendants prior to work? That is the only way I could stand to listen to that song. Last time I went to Disney World many years ago, Lynn and I rode the "Its a Small World" ride. It got stuck in the middle of it. For 15 or 20 minutes I had to watch the perky demon puppets move up and down and wave to me and each other.. and hear that song...

I almost climbed out of the boat and walked back to the front. I should have but didn't. When our boat made it back to the boarding area, we looked like zombies. Our brains had been turned to mush through the constant playing of that song. We might all have said in unison "Yes Mr. Eisner... Yes Mr. Eisner... we will kill for you.. we will take over the US government."

Kind of like that episode of South Park where Cartman leads the Civil War re-enactors to take over the South and eventually Washington DC by keeping them buzzed with Smore's schnaps. We were buzzed.

What the....?

Guy-on-Guy dancing is called "gancing." I call it stupid, not cute, gay, bordering on sick. Sure, I want and love a guy who can dance.. WITH ME! Not with another guy!

The article doesn't have a name for girl-on-girl dancing. My guess is that most guys would call it "hot." I call it stupid and not cute.

Weird News: You Make Me Feel Like 'Gancing'

Newsflash

Martha Stewart has been found guilty and I for one am glad. I don't like her. I've never liked her.

I find her to be annoying and arrogant. She never offers less expensive versions of her creations and insists upon "only the finest quality" whatevers that you can only find in small stores in New York. Those of us outside of New England are just out of luck.. we don't have small Hungarian grocery stores here.

I like Alton Brown of "Good Eats." Most everything he uses can be found at your local 'mega mart.' And Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa. She has that Martha Stewart air about her (upscale New England.. spend way too much time at the Hamptons) but it's not complicated. And pretty good - I used her turkey recipe when I made christmas dinner.

And then there's Paula Deen of "Paula's Home Cooking." She's from Savannah and it's all about down home Southern cooking. Best cornbread dressing. Love cornbread dressing. And sweet potatos... Mmmmmmm.... yum.

This was the headline on fark.com
"Martha Stewart found guilty of obstructing justice and lying to the government. Residency in federal pound-me-in-the-a** prison thought not to be a good thing"

Quiet today...

There just isn't much happening today.

Yesterday, I used every mass-mailers friend... the folding machine. Foldie and I are now well-aquainted.

A quote for you -

"Jenny, I would have written you a poem or a song except that I don't have any talent." - Ben Affleck (parody from South Park)

Quotes of note

Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
There is a reason double knit polyester went away. People died. - Carson
This man is obsessive compulsive? Compulsively dirty...? - Ted (staring at the dust on a never used wok)
Bad taste does not discriminate - Carson
YOUR SHOES ARE LAST SEASON! YOUR SHOES ARE LAST SEASON! - Carson to Kyan during a push-up contest against a former Marine
It's 1984 and they want the decorations back. - Thom on the phone
If you can carve your name in the bottom of your bathtub, you probably need to clean it. - Kyan

Different Sources
No, don't buy a .22. You can't stop a rabid squirrell with that. - Eric (my brother)


Oh - if you want to read about the upcoming episode with John Zimmerman on Queer Eye, go here.

Is this new?

Not if you've ever gone to a midnight showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show.

It just has a new name - movieoke. You get to act along with your favorite scene.

So practice your lines:
"Nobody puts Baby in a corner..." and place the emphasis on different words
Nobody PUTS Baby in a corner
Nobody puts BABY in a corner
Nobody puts Baby IN A corner

or
"The next time I come in here, I'm cracking skulls!"
or
"Luke... I am your father."
or
"Someday my Prince will come"
or
"I feel the need.. the need for speed!"
or
"I will not be ignored Dan...."
or
"Hakuna Matata"
or
"Janet! Dr. Scott! Janet! Brad! Rocky! *silent stare*
Janet! Dr. Scott! Janet! Brad! Rocky! *silent stare*
Janet! Dr. Scott! Janet! Brad! Rocky! *silent stare*"
or
"Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn."

I think I have a theme for my next party. Because you all know we Southern girls have a theme to every party...

Source: FOXNews.com - New Game Shows Off Bar Dwellers' Acting Chops

More Gay Marriage Hub-bub

"Multnomah County cannot deny marriage licenses to gay or lesbian couples," said Commissioner Lisa Naito. "We will not allow discrimination to continue when the Constitution of the state of Oregon grants privileges equally to all citizens."

Naito was joined by fellow commissioners Maria Rojo De Steffey and Serena Cruz, and commission Chairwoman Diane Linn, at a county office where hundreds of people had already lined up to apply for their marriage licenses.

De Steffey added that the Oregon Constitution "and my Christian faith allow me no other choice."

Her Christian faith allows her no other choice than to permit gay people to.. to.. marry? Doesn't the New Testament forbid homosexuality along with theft, lying, murder, and sex outside of marriage? The Bible I have says it that way. Maybe the commissioner has one of the more liberal translations or goes to one of the 'reconciling' congregations where everything goes.

God loves all people - yes. God also hates sin. Christians are commanded to love all people but that does NOT mean we accept or endorse particular behaviors, particularly when they are blatently against scripture. Love the sinner, hate the sin.

Source: FOXNews.com - Top Stories - Gay Couples Line Up to Wed in Oregon

At the risk of sounding incredibly naive

Well, sheltered might be more appropriate.

Yesterday was a great day. Beautiful, a bit cool in the evening. Lots of sunshine. So, on my home, I lowered the windows and cranked up the Keith Urban cd.

I came to an intersection and was trying to turn left but a car was blocking oncoming traffic so other vehicles coming behind him had to pull around. This made that little bit of the street narrow enough for only one car at a time. Two men were out walking around the car.

Did I mention there were kids playing on the lawn opposite this parked car?

Then a red four door car pulled up along side and the passenger window went down, subjecting my delicate sensibilities to horrible rap music. Guy 1 leaned over and there was a conversation for like 30 seconds (or what felt like about 30 minutes). Guy 1 received at least $20 from the car, walked back to his, and gave the person in the car a little white packet. More words were exchanged and the car drove off.

As I watched this exchange, I first began to pray that God would get me out. I then thought I wish I had a gun to protect myself. Then I was wondering how the hell to get out of there. Eventually, I was able to get through and made it home safely without anyone following me.

When I got home and began to share this story, it's been interesting to note how surprised my surburban friends and family have been. Their reaction was the same as mine. We knew it happened but it only happened on Cops. Or we all know someone who did drugs but not witness the buying and selling.

So, my dad and I will be going shopping.. he recommended Sig Sauer to me. If you have any suggestions, please send an email to me.
My hand is too small for something full size.

Those tolerant loving Palestinians

In the short news item linked below, you may learn all about how Palestinian youth think it's ok to hit women (think NOW and other feminist organizations might drop their support?), deny them access to certain occupations or seats on local councils. They also do not want friends of the same religion or different skin color.

But it's Israelis that are the enemy... America is the intolerant one. The Palestinians are innocent and oppressed. Right.

Source: WorldNetDaily: Palestinian kids: Prejudice against women OK

6 years of Separation

I like Queer Eye for the Straight Guy. I think it's funny. I figured that it was only a matter of time before someone I knew popped up on there.

And next week...

Someone I know is the straight guy.

John Zimmerman - former US National Pairs Figure Skating Champion and Olympian. I knew him almost 10 years ago when he lived in Nashville for a year or two training. He's putting to rest the rumor that all male skaters are gay. They aren't. Come on... think about it. You get to hang around cute girls all the time...

Sure, there are the Rudy Galindo's (openly gay skaters) but most of the male skaters I knew worked hard to prove they were straight because of the stereotype.

I was surprised to see John in NYC. Last I heard, he was in California.

I wonder if they will do anything about the gap in his front teeth. Props to John - he's always had good hair.

Line from the preview (as skaters have feet about as ugly as ballet dancers)
"OH MY GOD! These toenails have not been cut since the Civil War" - Carson

How dare you try to get out of debt

Holly in Maryland Grrrs!: I called a lender to obtain a pay-off figure for a loan today. The lender's response? "I'm sorry to hear you want to pay it off early, is there a particular reason?" I want to get out of debt, and they try to make me feel like I'm making a big mistake! Grrrrr!

Source: FOXNews.com - Strakalogue

*is looking forward to the day when I can call Sallie Mae and say "What is the 10-day pay-off amount and be debt free! I'm free! Smeagol is free!!! Oops... channelling my inner Gollum again.*

Thank God for double stick tape

Nicole Kidman at the Oscars when the straps of her dress slipped off her shoulders.

More great music

Peter Cincotti "Come Live Your Life With Me" (Peter Cincotti, 2003)

It has that old 1930's/40's jazz feel.. think Casablanca.. Rick's.. black and white, the ceiling fan casting shadows as it spins around.. a sultry tune on the piano and a man with a smooth voice singing along.

I could listen to this song all day long.

Harry Connick Jr. wished he could sing like this.