denise

What Do You Do All Day?

This was one of the better “mommy” chicklit books I’ve read in awhile. Lots of mommies, working daddies, the token gay boy mommy and NYC all make it slightly predictable but still fun to read.

I have one complaint, it’s not a “chat board” it’s either a chat room or a message board. You’d think folks could get that right by now, wouldn’t you? Hmmm wonder when I’ll read a mommy chicklit book that includes mommy blogs instead?
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Low tide, boy is it ever

Okkkkk, I’m a little disappointed that my first book of 2006 was an evangelical novel set in the Carolina Lowcountry. I had no idea Grace at Low Tide was an evangelical novel. TW read it ages ago and I thought “Grace” was a reference to the dog-gone Grace Bridge!

When I started reading the book last night, after a couple of pages I turned to TW and said “ummm there’s a lot of God in here” and her reply was “not really”. Umm if that’s not a lot of God, I don’t want to know what is.

Totally not my cup of tea. Too sappy. To much God and Jesus and praying for me.

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Daily Dose of Music – MP3 Players

I mentioned in my ABC’s of 2005 that six MP3 players have come through our home this year and now you folks get my oh so knowledgable review. I know you’ve been waiting for this before buying your own MP3 players, haven’t you?

First, the iRiver H10. TW bought this for me for my birthday and at first I was just a wee bit disappointed because I really really wanted an iPod Nano. But within moments, disappointment was a distant memory and has never returned. The iRiver is easy to use, it’s quick and it’s sturdy. Love, love, love this little toy so very much. Loved it so much that I bought one for my oldest daughter for Christmas and I do believe she also loves it.

Next into our world was the Samsung YP-T8X purchased for the 10 year old for her birthday by her father and stepmother. It’s got a really nice display and it is shiny shiny. It plays video but she’s only got a 512mb player and that’s just not going to work. I don’t believe the display and shiny shiny is really worth the money money for that tiny player.

Oddly enough, TW and I had purchased a Creative MUVO for that same 10 year old’s birthday. Easy to use, batteries seem to last a pretty long time. The only problem is the buttons don’t feel “substantial”. They feel like they could be easily broken. But so far, so good. She likes the interchangeable color cases but seems to be sticking with the red. And, she’s had some fun with the voice recorder.

Next up, the iRiver T30 for Michelle for Christmas. Similar to the Creative but the buttons are more substantial. The menu navigation is a little tough to get use to at first (though that could be related to the fact that I’ve played with so many players in the last 3 months) but Michelle has it sussed and is thrilled with it. Nice loud sound, which she loves.

And last but certainly not least, Chris NEEDED the iPod Nano. He could not be persuaded otherwise. He’s an apple nut and loyal til the end. So, his father purchased the Nano. When it arrived, I did what I had done for all of the other kids, I started loading some music on it so they could listen to something besides the pre-loaded crud that arrives with these things. The nav wheel is sensitive! And there are soooo many menu options, I got lost quickly. Then the darn thing wouldn’t turn off and I had to reset it. Sheesh. (Did I mention my brief moment of disappointment at not getting a Nano never returned?) But, it is pretty and tiny and light and I knew he would love it – and he did. I just hope he doesn’t break it or lose it, he’s not the most ummm responsible of the six children… And, I surely hope iTunes is easier to use on a Mac than it is on a PC. What a pain in the rear that was.

There you have it, my MP3 player reviews. The one thing they all had in common was my pure HATRED for putting those little felty covers on the ear buds. That just stunk, with every single player!

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Daily Dose of Life – Plans, Goals, Scarey!

So I saw this on My Bountiful Life today and it scared me. As TW says making a list like this indicates I have plans for my future and I simply don’t do plans. Well I do but I don’t put voice to them. I don’t talk them out. I don’t even really think them out. They sit in the back of my head til I’m ready to carry them out and it seems to people around me that I’ve just made some snap decision or something.

So I posted a link to it for some friends and thought I’d leave it alone and carry on as usual. Status quo and all of that. But before I knew it, I was surfing the technorati tags for 101 things and 101 in 1001. Hmm interesting. Next thing I knew, I was making my own list.

I’m not sure I like it. TW asked me why and I said I wasn’t sure. She asked if they were things I wanted to do and I said I wasn’t sure. Typical me. I’m not sure which is why I don’t voice my plans. I like being able to change my mind, change my direction, without having to explain to anyone why.

But here it is. My 101 things to do in 1001 days. Tuesday, September 27, 2008 is my “due date”. That in itself feels like enough for me to wipe this post clean and pretend like I never even heard of the idea…

Books
1) Read 25 classics. 11

2) Read 25 Non-Fiction 25

3) Listen to 20 books on CD/Tape. 16
4) Read The Moonstone.
5) Sit in a bookstore for an afternoon and just sift through books.

Computing
6) Submit a blog entry to 5 blog carnivals. 3
7) Try a “family podcast”.
8) Clean out my RSS feeds 10xs. 10
9) Update my blogroll 10xs. 10
10) Clean my spurls/bookmarks 10 times. 8
11) Blog everyday for a month.

Friends & Family

12) Help Michelle create her Cafe Press store and motivate her to keep it going.Now the motivation part.

13) Take Leona for coffee 10xs. 2
14) Call my brother 5xs for no good reason. 1
15) Teach the little kids how to do lanyards. 1
16) Call everyone on smiel ONCE just because.
17) Spend a day having fun with Bethy!
18) Have a mommy & me day with Chris 5xs.
19) Have a mommy & me day with Jenn 3xs.
20) Have a mommy & me day with my mom once.
21) Have a mommy weekend with TW 5xs. 4
22) Have 5 mommy and me days with Michelle. 1
23) Help Michelle create a good recipe book/box. book purchased…

Health
24) Drink only water 10xs.
25) Quit smoking.
26) Have a mammogram.
27) Run 3 days a week for a month.
28) “Drink the Vos Water” everynight for a week 10xs. 😉

Home
29) Get my piano moved from SC to FL.
30) Clean out the clean sweep pile in the garage.
31) Empty out the coat closet so that only coats are in there!
32) Clean out the cabinets and shelves in the living room.
33) Paint RJ’s room.
34) Buy RJ a dresser.
35) Buy RJ a new bookshelf.
36) Paint J’s room.
37) Clean out the cat closet bins.
38) Get TW’s clock fixed.

39) Put away the laundry as soon as it is folded for a month.

40) Cook/eat at home everyday for a month.
41) Bake bread once a week for a month.

42) Clean out the freezer.

43) Get the cats spayed.
44) Do 30 minutes of housework everyday for a month. Darn! 20 of the 30 days!

45) Get Chris’s car towed away.

46) Refinish the grandma furniture.
47) Refinish TW’s antiques.
48) Hang pictures on the wall.
49) Scan family photos.
50) Organize photo albums.
51) Clean out the gardening supplies. working on it now
52) Organize files.

Life

53) Try 10 new restaurants. 10

54) Download new music once a month 10xs. 10
55) Have a Mrs Peel Marathon.
56) Family Game Day once a month 10xs. 2
57) Sit in the hot tub once a week 10xs.
58) Go to church every Sunday for a month 3xs.
59) Watch all of the Star Wars Movies without falling asleep. 6 of 6
60) Take one photo a day for a month.
61) Complete the poetry memorization series with the children.
62) Go to the ballet.
63) See 2 plays. 2
64) Visit a new museum 5xs
65) Go for a bike ride.
66) Go horseback riding.
67) Make a kids cooking scrapbook for TW’s mom.

68) Have a “family portrait” made.


69) Send birthday cards to all family members at least once.
70) Send Christmas cards.

71) Use my tanning gift certificate.

Money
72) Buy the “perfect house”.
73) Buy a whaleyboy car.
74) Go 2 weeks without Starbucks.
75) Don’t order from Gatorfood for six months in a row. 6 months!
76) Save 10% of my paycheck 12 times. 10
77) Donate another 10% of my paycheck 12 times. 7

Travel
78) Convince Michelle to visit 3 colleges she has not considered attending.
79) Visit Mona!
80) Visit the Hunley.
81) Take TW to Edisto.
82) Take Michelle swimming with dolphins.
83) Go and visit my mom in Charlotte.
84) Visit TW’s mom and sister.
85) Go to NYC with TW.
86) Go to DC with the entire family.
87) Spend a weekend at Isle of Palms.
88) Take the kids back to St Augustine.
89) Go camping, in a tent.
90) Go to Michigan.
91) Go to Panama.
92) Visit 5 unusual roadside attractions. 2
93) Go to longest yard sale event (127 corridor).
94) Attend Blogher.
95) Attend SXSW.
96) Go to Vancouver.
97) Go to Hawaii.

Work

98) Create good WLC templates.


99) Answer 5 posts a day on “core” 10xs

100) Take 10 real days off from work. 9

101) Keep records for performance appraisals.

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Marley & Me

I’m finding it a little weird that my last book in 2005 is a dog book. A really good “bad dog” book but still a dog book. I am sick to death of dogs. I’m sick to death of my “bad dogs” and constantly rant and rave about these dog gone dogs. And yet… I totally, completely, thoroughly enjoyed Marley & Me. I’m not sure I have laughed my way through any book I’ve read this year the way I did with this one.

I’ve had a lab, (mine was black though), and while he was “a bad dog” he wasn’t Marley bad. I’ve got two cockers at the moment who are definitely “bad dogs” but they aren’t Marley bad (well Jake is worse in some ways since he’s actually BIT people). And as much as I rant and rave about all of the bad dogs I’ve had in the past and have right now, I can completely understand why people keep their bad dogs and love them to boot.

Marley & Me – great dog book. Funny and then sad at the end. I’m glad it was my last book of 2005 and hope I find one I enjoy as much in 2006.

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Daily Dose of Life – Reflection

A – Animoprhs reigned again this year as the series of choice for RJ. Barely beating out HP and the Half-Blood Prince. Here’s hoping she moves along in the new year.

BBlogs, Blogs and more Blogs. They defined the year for us in ways I cannot even begin to explain. And I suspect they’ll be on any reflecting over 2006 list we may create next year.

C – Melissa got off the boat but TW and I stayed on the cruise in January. I don’t want to cruise again and TW doesn’t either but we oddly spent some time pondering queer family cruises and author cruises and Panama Canal cruises. Weird what cruising does to you. It’s something they put in the water or the food or something. My mom, aka sockmouth grandma, has moved part time to Charlotte to be closer to the Heir to the Throne.

D – My old Dodge Caravan no longer lives in the driveway. I signed it over to Chris when his Camry died in January and then he traded it in for a Tercel at the end of the summer. E and I miss the Caravan quite a bit. It was part of our history and it was sad to let it go.

E – A very large elephant has been purchased in the hope of having a grandchild to give it to next year. Jenn & Ronnie are officially “trying” (though have not yet succeeded).

F – Who’d have thunk Prince Joe would choose to play the flute… and almost enjoy it for more reasons than practicing has the potential to drive his family insane? Who also would have guessed his weird FCAT testing science fair project would net him a ribbon and inclusion into the regional science fair? Educational standards are weird.

G Gamecube was purchases, as promised, when the Prince held up his end of the bargain and our lives have not been the same. Unfortunately he is no longer holding up his end of the bargain but the Gamecube remains. We need to work on that. E became Gameboy crazy, as well and the Grace Bridge is no more.

H Homeschool or school at home? Whatever, we’re still doing it with Michelle. Speaking of Michelle, hair color and style changed and changed and changed. 2 of the 3 Hermit Crabs live on! Hazel the pink roomba has been a much loved addition to our lives.

I – My iRiver birthday gift is the BEST! 6 MP3 players entered our lives and the iRivers beat the iPods and the Samsung and the Creative hands down! TW and I enjoyed our first (and so far only) trip to IKEA in October. We need an IKEA!

J – RJ has discovered Practical Jokes, thanks to Nick magazine. She’s not very good at them but she tries hard and it’s amusing.

K Keep, Sell, Trash! The fixation TW and I have acquired for Clean Sweep resulted in a Clean Sweep Birthday for me! We’ve not really been all that successful at following through but we’ve made some attempts and that counts for something, right?

L – Chris moved out of the house and in with his g/f and her mom in LaCrosse. We thought he would be moving back in before the end of the year but the move back home date has moved to February. The lemon tree finally produced lemons! 4 NEW laptops came into our home, 3 have survived!

MMiddle School for his highness, Prince J and magnet school for RJ and E. This means a lot of driving and a lot of pretty tough homework for all three.

NNeopets have lost their lustre, a little. But our pets haven’t died!

O – TW got an office! With a Window! Joy!

P – Jenn and Ronnie PCS’d to Charleston and that makes me happy, happy, happy! PRIUS aka whaleyboy car! TW got me a PRIUS, for CHRISTMAS! And she didn’t really violate any Denise rules to do it.

Q Qatar was on our radar and will be again next year.

R Riley aka Heir to the Throne joined the family in July. I still say my sister should go back to being Childfree By Choice… and give me the baby!! The dirtbag retired after 25 years in the USAF. And, E is still rat crazy and created a rat sun bedroom to prove it.

S – RJ is still synchronized swimming. Though she seems less enamoured than in previous years. In fact, “oh man do I have to go?” is frequently heard when she’s asked to get her suit on and find her goggles and nose clips.

T Tree work was finally authorized and accomplished. Good for the backyard and our electric and cable wires. Not so good for the front yard where the much loved tree in front is less loved because it is not so cool. Three turtles remain and are threatening to take over the living room.

UUlcerative Colitis is out, Crohn’s is in. Whoopeee.

V – We three women, (TW, Michelle and I), finally saw the Vagina Monologues at UF, together.

W – “My girlfriend the webmaster” is a phrase often heard around here. TW got a maddening nice new job in her department.

X – RJ’s x-rays after a skating incident led to a cast over the summer. Not so fun when you love to swim and scooter.

Y – My yellow smiely coffee mug lives on, who would have guessed it would have survived this long (10+ years).

Z – Chris is pondering life as a zookeeper, veterinarian or some other animal type handler. This means he’s going to have to go back to school, doesn’t it? And stay in, doesn’t it?

Originally seen on Underpaid Kept Woman!

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Daily Dose of Confusion – Cars

Trying to drive a whaleyboy car is confusing! Wait, you’re probably confused about what a whaleyboy car is, aren’t you? Around here we call the Toyota Prius a whaleyboy car. We do that because TW made fun of me when I finally voiced my desire for a Prius. She says it’s ugly and looks like a whale. Fine by me, I can be a whaleyboy, the guys who drive the whales according to Chris Moore’s FLUKE (a really great book, by the way).

Priuskey

Anyway, those things are confusing! First, there is no key. There is a little square box that looks like any normal remote locking thingy for a normal car. You stick that thing in the slot and you push the power button. But you have to have your foot on the brake or pushing that power button is going to get you nothing but a few lights on the dash.

After you’ve pushed the power button, the only way you know for sure the darn thing is “running” is you see a READY light up on the dash (which is really FAR away from where you’re sitting compared to regular cars). The thing is so quiet, you truly do not know it is on.

PriusshiftThen there’s the shifter. One little knob and when you push it into “gear” it hops back into it’s “resting position” and stays there til you shift into some other gear. Scared the heck out of me. I thought I didn’t do it right and was trying to force it to STAY in the reverse position. While you’re backing up, it’s helpful that there is a constant beep beep beep til you shift into another gear. This helps you know for sure that it really is running because that READY light just didn’t feel like enough proof to me.

Confusing!

Shifting into DRIVE was no big deal, once I got use to the shifter bouncing back to it’s resting position. Parking was something else entirely. The shifter indicates NEUTRAL is directly to the left of the resting position. It isn’t. It’s left and a wee bit UP but not too far up ’cause that drops you into reverse. I never did master neutral but I came close doggone it. After it’s in neutral you push a button with a big P on it, which means park. Not to be confused with the POWER button which has to be pressed after you push P for park to shut down the magic, errr engine.

And if all of that isn’t confusing enough, there’s a gear marked “B” – what the? I got my driver’s liscense when I was 15, almost 30 years ago, and nobody ever told me there was a gear called “B”. According to the user manual, it’s what you use if you feel like the regular brake isn’t giving you enough “braking power” – my dad said, oh like a downshift. I don’t know. I was afraid to try it.

Weird!

PriusdashAnd then the display, wow. This really big computer screen that tells you how much gas you’re using, (when it says 99.9mpg while you’re driving it is really sort of freaky), tells you how much battery you are using and has little cars to indicate how much you’ve recharged since drving. You can make it display everything in English or French (hmmm no Japanese, odd eh?) and you can change the display colors from green to blue to beige to something else I can’t remember. (I chose green ’cause it’s Christmas ya know) And there are a zillion buttons for air conditioning, which is also the heater, and a zillion more buttons for the sound system. I shudder to think how many more buttons would have been there if we’d rented the one with the DVD screens in a zillion locations in the car! Did I mention these buttons are all on the TOUCH computer screen and not normal dash buttons????

FUN!!!

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The Lightning Thief

TW, Michelle and I really enjoyed listening to The Lightning Thief on the way to Charleston and back again this weekend. Michelle seemed highly disappointed when it was over. She’ll be glad to hear the next book in the series is coming soon – though April seems a long time to wait, at least it’s not like waiting for the next HP book.

Percy Jackson is a troubled 12 year old who finally discovers just WHY he’s troubled – he’s a half-God, son of …. I won’t tell you whose son he is because that would ruin a good part of the book for you. Imagine being half mortal and half God… and having monsters sniffing around after you to try and kill you for being half-God. Troublin, troubling, troubling!

A quest, lots of monsters, lots of Greek mythology presented in a fun way.

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Cookbooks for Christmas

This was a big Christmas for cookbooks at the Flamingo House. Here’s scoop:

Elaine Magee, who I adore and have the pleasure of working with sent me her new Comfort Food Makeovers cookbook. I read the introductory pages and sifted through the recipes on Christmas Eve. Awesome, as are all of Elaine’s books.

Speaking of Elaine’s books, I gave the Fry Light, Fry Right cookbook to my mom, my ex mil and TW’s mom. I have a copy for Jenn but seem to have left it at home so I guess she’ll get it for her birthday or something.

I gave TW and prince Joe the Grilled Cheese: 50 Recipes to Make You Melt cookbook that I saw mentioned in the Village Voice cookbooks for the holidays article. It’s a foofy little book with lots of interesting (and impossible to find in our little college town) ingredients. I bought it because Joe loves grilled cheese but he doesn’t love his mother’s grilled cheese. He loves mine.

Michelle and TW got Shakespeare’s Kitchen. Lots of yukky meat recipes but interesting all the same for the Shakespeare effect and it will be interesting for them to play with.

Oops, forgot I also bought my Son In Law the Weber’s Real Grilling. He seemed pretty excited about it.

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Trolls and Gay Boys???

Troll: A love story – now that was a weird book! I can barely believe that I spent time on this little bit of fantasy but on the other hand it was oddly endearing. Weird but endearing? So that’s why I spent time on it!

A gay man and those who love him (which include a veterinarian, a Filipina mail order prostitute bride, a not-gay man who is really gay, some other really smart dude with a lot of books and a troll cub). WEIRD, WEIRD, WEIRD.

Really short chapters with bits of troll lore and news articles and stuff tossed in between the chapters. Weird, weird, weird.

I mostly didn’t understand the abused Filipina prostitute mail order bride bit. Was that really necessary to the story? I mean really.

I don’t think I can actually recommend this but if you’re looking for weird gay boy troll stories, this is a good one.

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