mindless morning mumblings

Well, here I am again, wide awake when I should be catching some elusive z's. I just watched The Pianist and I think that's what's keeping me awake. The horror, the shame, the guilt, the shock, and the fact that I can't breath because my nose is still stuffed from balling my eyes out. If you haven't seen the movie you should. In fact it should be compulsory viewing.

This week I made a new friend; I feel like I'm in Kindergarten. Thursday was a very enjoyable day; not only did I meet said gal-pal, but I had lunch with a couple of the old gang from you-know-where, then I made polite conversation with a bunch of people I'd rather not have talked to and a bunch of my favorite people in the world. It's nice to hang out with peers sometimes; but not being a very social person, sometimes it's just darn painful... Friday was a very enlightening day; I'm learning more and more that I know about 1% of what and who I need to know to do my job effectively. Trying to help someone else figure out where the opportunities lie is opening my eyes to what's going on out there too. It appears that not only does KG know his shit, he also know's who he needs to know, which is, as I suspected, much more important.

I purchased a wireless modem, money well spent I conclude as I can now lay on the couch at 1:30 in the a.m. instead of breaking my back in the dentist's chair at the desk. The only drawback is that I have to use that finger pad thingy instead of a mouse. I don't know who's smart idea that was, but if you ask me it wasn't so smart.

We made an equally important investment this week, we had a new roof installed. Funny, they haven't been back for the money yet. Something doesn't add up there (their checkbook, ha ha).

Young Wally was promoted into the Gifted and Talented class on the first day back at school. Seems like they had a spot open and his teachers from last year highly recommended him. Fingers crossed. That's all I'm gonna say.

I've decided Rachel Ray is a genius. I've recently cooked some stuff from both her 30 Minute Meals show and book. And while the rest of my family are about as adventurous as a panda when it comes to their diet, I enjoy something different when I have the opportunity. Go to www.foodnetwork.com and pull up her show to access recipes. I made the Cuban flank steak with all the trimmings - it was sooo good. Try the stuffed tomatoes too, I'm not sure if they are on the web though.

Went into work today, although it wasn't as bad as it could have been for a Saturday; Andres was there too, we were designing some boards to show off projects at our open house next week. and we got a paint high from the metallic paint being applied in the conference room (don't ask). There's still lots to do, not only to finish the boards but we have to purchase a fridge as the one we have is trekking up to UT. We also have to tidy up countless piles of drawings and sketches, file away numberous books, fill our ugly four-foot planters with fortune cookies (don't ask again) and buy food and bevs (some funky Japanese beer and Sake to wash down the sushi and wasabi peas. Yum).

Big Brother is superb this season - except that Kasar has gone for good this time - boo! And what is Janelle thinking? Stop acting like a b!tch and get on with the game, they're just not worth it Janey! Sorry, back to reality.

Why does leprosy keep cropping up on a day-to-day basis? I admit, for those of you who don't know, that I'm Michael Savage's biggest fan - Borders, Language, Culture - anyway, he was touching on the leprosy problem that is getting steadily worse in New York city, you didn't know about it? Well, that's because "they" are keeping it quiet. Just take a minute to figure out how such a disease can spread to NYC and why we're being kept in the dark. Come on, you can do it... The charming skin condition was also a heavy topic in The Motorcycle Diaries; a great movie, even if you don't happen to agree with Mr. Guevara's rantings, which, thankfully we are spared from in the 128 minutes... In India, leprosy is as much a problem today as it's always been. Can you fathom that people are lying on the streets dying, at this very moment, kicked to the curb and left for dead. No one will help them. It's tragic for sure. Read all about it in Holy Cow by Sarah MacDonald, it's truly riveting.

Just for you, Big Daddy

My first post in what, 3 weeks? It's going to be quick, but here are my thoughts for the day...

1) Damn, I blinked and Monday Night Football is back...that signals the beginning of the end. MNF leads to Texan's home games, which leads to football-widowhood for me for a while. That's okay, I have big plans to get involved and educated on some of the topics I need to help me in my new job: the Menil Collection; Redbuds; Precinct 2 parks; the war memorial; the list is endless. I'm going to be busy at weekends. Who cares about football...

2) Just to add...I don't mind you watching MNF Ali, but when I'm trying to brush up on some homework and am obviously engrossed reading the latest Bayou tid-bits, don't ask me if Ricky Williams still has what it takes. Do I look like I care? Especially when Ricky Baby doesn't even play for the Texans!

3) My son is a delinquent...when the pre-game introduction came on and the two old farts from the balcony and Kermit appeared, he said "Oh cool, the Muffets". As if that's not bad enough he then asked, "Who do we want to win, the San Diego Dolphins or China?" Wha...?

4) The treadmill is up and running. Well, speed-walking anyway. 40 minutes/260 calories/1 mile/speed: 3.5 mph/incline: 3. I'll make my marathon running friends proud, even if it kills me! Hey, at least I can do something productive now while I watch Big Brother.

5) Our company's open house is in a couple of weeks. I've spent the last few days updating our very out-of-date mailing list. Inviting 400 people seems particularly crazy to me. Especially when you consider that our office is, well, smallish. Anyway, I'm really looking forward to it: we've invited architects, artists, key non-profit people, city staff, county staff, politicians; you name them, they're invited.

Over and out.

Did you know...

...that Johnny Depp is sometimes credited in movies as Oprah Noodlemantra?

Johnny and the Chocolate Factory

The old man is out of town for the weekend, so the kids and I treated ourselves to a movie last night. I didn't really know what to expect from Tim Burton's 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'. Every photo I had seen showed Mr. Depp looking extremely weird, which is disturbing, because Mr. Depp is not supposed to look extremely weird, he's supposed to look extremely handsome. Anyway, when you expect a movie to be great (see Land of the Dead blog), it usually isn't. So I went in to this expecting to be slightly weirded out, slightly disappointed (I'm not a huge Burton fan).

The first thing that made me smile was in the opening credits: David Kelly, who plays Grandpa Joe has been in my life since I was a wee las. I was amazed that he's even still alive, but he didn't look a day older than he did when I was seven. Seeing David Kelly was like smelling freshly baked bread. He reminded me of my grandparents and my childhood. It was neat.

The second grin happened when I realized who was playing Charlie: Freddie Highmore who played alongside Mr. Depp in Finding Neverland. I wanted to scoop him up and eat him then, and even though I was full from my Red Robin chicken salad, I wanted to do it again the moment I saw him. He was perfect for the part. I hope we see a lot more of him as an actor.

My favorite part of the movie is the beginning; the whole lead-up to finding the ticket is so well done in the book, and it was so in the movie too. The scene with the squirrels is hilarious, and during the scene in the TV room, I had to contain myself from peeing my pants at them all in those white goggles. Little things often amuse me to the point of hysteria; Clutch the Rocket's mascot's stupid antics is a good example. The way they all looked in those wonky white goggles was almost too much for me to handle...

Mr. Depp stole the movie, his facial expressions and vocal tone where genius. I hate to say it, but when I think of Willy Wonka in the future, his 'extremely weird' face will pop up instead of Gene Wilder's.

It was refreshing to see a movie that contained such a strong message of family values. The original movie's director, Mel Stuart, let that message get lost during the factory visit, but Tim Burton kept it alive throughout. I'm still not a Tim Burton fan, but I'm sure glad Mr. Depp is.

Old Mother Hubbard

I think it's been over two-weeks since I went to the grocery store. My poor family have been living off of Kraft Dinner, as Ali calls it, Crap Dinner, as I call it, and whatever canned soup is in the pantry. Why have I been such a neglectful wife and mother you ask? Work. Late nights, weekends, industry related events, program training. That's what's been keeping me away from my family. I managed to catch up with Big Brother while scoffing down a What-a-Burger chicken finger meal before trudging to bed on Thursday (thank the Lord for DVR). And reading a couple of pages of Harry Potter before bed each night has not managed to stop me from a) lying awake trying to push QuickBooks out of my mind even though I'm dead-tired, or b) dreaming all night about how to link billable-hours to invoices. Ugh. Work sucks. I plan to do nothing this weekend. Well, okay, I have to do housework, buy groceries, and go into work on Sunday. But compared to last weekend that will still be doing nothing.

Morphing

The toadpoles have now all morphed into toads. The release into the wild will take place tomorrow evening - tickets available at the door. From 42 poles around 30 toads have survived. Parting will be such sweet sorrow...

I have decided to let them go for two reasons: 1) even though we have introduced mealworms and crickets as per instruction, the toads continue to grow but are not eating the food provided. This worries me, what are they eating, each other? 2) Wally Sr. is not particularly fond of them and wants them off the kitchen table.

Land of the Dead. Dead Boring That Is...

I told Jo-Nathan that I would share my thoughts on Land of the Dead. So, here they are: I immediately had doubts as to whether George Romero was even involved with this movie, apart from getting paid to put his name to it of course... I mean, there were zombies in it, yeah, but where was Bruce Willis? To sum up the movie, take one pint Independence Day, mix with 2 cups violence, 3 cups gore, and a pinch of humor. Stir thoroughly then throw in a token tough chick, a mentally-challenged nice-guy, and a badly-made-up lead zombie. Bake for 90 minutes then coat liberally with a batch of blood and guts. Sounds yummy? Not so much.

The premise seemed good at first: zombies evolve over time to become "intelligent". They learn how to hide out, sneak up on victims, and figure out how to get in to the meat market in the center of town. I may have been convinced if I'd seen more evidence of their brain-power. Big Daddy, the zombie leader seemed to be the Einstein of the bunch; roaring like a wounded dog he lead his herd of sheep around relatively few obstacles to their target: food. I figured that BD must have been a boy scout in his youth, for as well as leadership skills and a great sense of direction he even showed sympathy for a burning zombie by turning an oozie on him, why, I wondered, surly the screaming victim is dead, he can't feel any pain, can he? At this point I started to become confused. Did you know that while zombies usually like to stagger around in a slow, mindless manner like, well, zombies, they can in fact break into swift, decisive runs and chase down their prey at a whim? Hmmm.

All in all I was extremely disappointed. Shawn of the Dead is way scarier. And while the good guy does, predictably save the day, the real hero of the story is some garbage truck turned Armageddon vehicle that looks more like something Wally would make out of a couple of cardboard boxes on a rainy day.

It turns out that George did more that put his name to this movie, he wrote, produced and directed it. He is also particularly proud of it as I found out when I watched the A&E 'making of' show, he was just beaming as he explained how 9/11 had delayed its release, but he's so happy because now it makes even more sense today as it parallels the country we now live in. Well good for you, George, it's great to see those lives were not lost in vain. Pig.

I did however enjoy the performances, not to say the acting was good, but both John Leguizamo and Dennis Hopper made the movie bearable. The action based plot however did not. As you would expect, there is lots of violence, blood and gore in this flick, including some up-close and personal suicide action which particularly offended me. In seven words - don't take your kids to this movie - tots and pubescents were dotted around the theatre: I seriously can't believe people can really be that brain dead.

Just very quickly...

I TOOK the pooches to the vet today. Man, do they have some get-rich-quick scheme going on! $512 for two examinations w/shots, one dose of anti-biotics for some itchy back-scabs, one dose of worming medicine, and six-months each of flea/worming prevention medication. If they weren't so darn lovable...

I RECENTLY received a new mentor. It's a great opportunity to learn business development from someone with mucho experience. But. Now I have to answer the following:
Why are you here...and WHO ARE YOU?
Personal and professional statement of purpose
Personal and professional vision and mission statements
List of personal goals for the next 12 months
List of professional goals for the next 12 months
Pressure. Help!

I'M CURRENTLY reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. I thought I'd better get it finished before The Half-Blood Prince comes out. So far it's good. I think each one is a little more enjoyable than the last. Maybe it's because you get to know the characters so well; each time feels like coming home.

THE NEW job is...well, I don't really know what to say. It makes a nice change to be away from you-know-where. And I did expect it to be chaotic and frustrating at first. So let's just say, it is. There is hope on the horizon though. I see things shaping up nicely. And now that Andrés and I have been reunited, all smells rosy.

THAT'S MY news de jour.

THAT'S IT...IT'S OVER!

AmericanIdol-Survivor-RealWorld-RealWorld/RoadRulesChallenge-AmazingRace-BigBrother, and those are just the ones I'll admit to watching...

NO MORE

It's a medical fact that you don't learn anything from watching TV... Actually, that's not true: I learned how to get my own way from Anna Nicole... That's besides the point, TV does nothing to stimulate the brain, in fact it does the exact opposite. While Veronica and Rachel are squeezing into their "Future M.I.L.F." t-shirts, my cranium cavity is being cleaned out! I vow, to no one in particular, that this summer there will be NO TV for me. ("House M.D." doesn't count, it's educational)

This could be hard. I'll do my best. Big Brother starts on July 7th by the way...

Recovering TV-a-holic

Houston Artist, David Adickes' Presidents Heads

Oh, the Power of PhotoShop.

All the Presidents. Men.

Traffic Jam

A construction-induced coma is never a pleasant thing. Sitting in one spot for twenty minutes for no apparent reason when you only need to travel several feet to the mirage that is the distant junction is not my idea of entertainment. That is, until I glanced in my rear view mirror and spotted - you'll never guess - that the guy behind me, the driver, not the passenger, had decided to put his vehicle vexation to use. HE WAS PLAYING THE TRUMPET!

Picture it if you will; imagine trying to squeeze a trumpet between you and the steering wheel: It won't fit. Well, it's important to keep an eye on traffic, I mean, you don't want to get honked while you're honking, honky. You have to kind of cock your head while simultaneously keeping eyes front and center. I'm sure he caught me watching him in my mirror but it didn't seem to phase him. I just couldn't help it. I couldn't drag my eyes away. What made it worse was that I even sacrificed Rush Bimbo to try and hear what he was playing. I turned that sound way down, I even opened my window a crack - I know, I was risking it; carcinogens and everything. But I couldn't hear a peep. He wasn't faking. His cheeks were puffed right up, there was definitely effort being put forth. Maybe he had one of those muffler things up the bell (that's the correct terminology, I looked it up).

They're coming to get you, Barbara...

I'm so excited! George A. Romano's Land of the Dead will be out in a couple of weeks. My old PDG buddy, Jonathan, and I have been anticipating this for a long time! Dennis Hopper and John Leguisamo - should be good. I can't wait!

Although nothing beats the original Romano trio I did enjoy the latest remake of Dawn of the Dead (great chainsaw scene), and something that really scares the pants off me everytime I watch it is Shawn of the Dead. Yes, I know, it's meant to be a comedy. I think that's why it's so scary. It's very true to the English sense of humor and habits. It really is realistic and that's why it freaks me out. I have to check the closet before I go to bed after I watch it. Call me weird.

We have legs!

Frog's legs, well, technically toad's legs. I thought it was a poop, but no, it was actually the beginnings of little legs which are now fully formed but still tiny...