They're Off

Those are two words I love to hear in person. I love going to the races. I'd REALLY love to hear those words at the Kentucky Derby some year. Watching it on TV can be fun, espeically with all the pre-race show stuff, but just once I'd like to experience it live. I didn't even know you could get tickets for the Derby, or any races, or sporting events online the same way you do other types of events like movies tickets, or concert tickets. The problem for me is that the Derby is run at the busiest time of the year here on the ranch--foaling and kidding season--some year though.

Spidey times 3

Spiderman 3 is opening this week. I usually am adamant about waiting for movies to come out on DVD because 1)ticket prices at movie theaters are outrageous 2)movie theaters are often dirty 3)audiences can be distracting.. but most of all you can't put the movie on hold while you go to the bathroom, or grab a snack. This may be the one movie this year that I break my determination on however. I can't wait to see it. The trailers look awesome.

Royal Service

Prince Harry is supposed to be deployed to Iraq shortly. Part of the cyincal 'me' says sure he won't get much real combat. I mean they're not going to risk a Royal son to real danger... yet many of the great leaders of both European countries including Britain and also here in the US have served real military duty, so perhaps he will. It's scary I'm sure for those he leaves behind. If he does real military duty his 'blood' is just like any others. His father, his grandmother are simply ordinary family worried over their son rather than Queens and Princes. Both of Diana's boys are handsome young men who seem to be fairly well-rounded and grounded in spite of the hoopla that surrounded their lives. I wish young Harry Godspeed and safe journey through his tour.

Searing Brand

Harry Potter, Harry Potter... you can't be alive anywhere in the world and not have heard that name. Talk about brilliant marketing. Way beyond the original books, the movies, the games, the toys, the lunchboxes... you name it, the Harry Potter brand is a marketers dream of genius. There are actually people out there that don't know the name of the author of the Potter series, but whether they know who J.K. Rowlings is, they KNOW who Harry Potter is. That's the kind of branding author's can only dream about.

A Sport Not Just For Kings Anymore

Golf is a sport I never really 'got'. I've played it. I've even enjoyed playing it. I just don't have the time and while it's enjoyable, I don't really see it as a 'sport'. Lots of people do though. I suppose it is since it involves varying levels of skill--as I said, I've played it... not well, but I've played it. There was a time when golf was the providence of the rich, at least here in America. Sort of America's 'sport of kings'. I'd have to say as a pure 'fun' thing to do I prefer miniature golf. I know a lot of people who just adore full-sized, country club golf though. It's amazing how many golf courses there. Not only huge, beautiful full-service country clubs like Callaway golf, but even out here in the country. Just a few miles north of us nestled in the midst of corn fields, and hay there is a huge green landscaped golf course. Very popular around here with the local farmers. It's even offered as a sport in the high schools and-- get this -- as a 4h option... yeah. So you can see how popular this sport is. Maybe I should give it more of a real try... really get into it. I'm not sure I need another time consuming hobby though. I don't think there are enough hours in the day. One thing's for sure, golf isn't the 'rich man's sport' anymore. It's a sport for everyone.

Got My Goat

I got a new goat yesterday... I swear this is the last one for awhile. At least until Polly has her babies and those will be home grown so not exactly like going out and buying another one. This one I didn't outright 'buy' I traded one of my mini foals for her. She's a 50 percent Nubian with the world's biggest Nubian mouth. I think the neighbors within a one mile radius are sure I'm performing some sort of weird goat ritual that somehow involves hanging a goat by it's feet. She's super sweet though and milks great. I'm getting just about 1 cup shy of a gallon a day from her already and I've only had her a day, and she's only two weeks fresh (meaning she just had her babies two weeks ago). Milk supply in any dairy animal is an arc. it builds up. So I think I'll easily see a complete gallon a day from her in no time at all. Maybe more. I'll post pictures on my farm blog when I get back in a little later. Be sure to stop by and see them.

Power Up

Big businesses, and even small businesses have a genuine need for power. For complex machinery, for accurate programs, and high-speed computers... all running on power sources that make it all work. Without the power, there's nothing. So what happens when the power goes out? You need a reliable power supply repair company to come to the rescue. Even big businesses and fortune 500 companies can't afford to just go buy new stuff when something breaks down... not all the time anyway. They need to be able to fix what they have... and fast. Makes me want to scream 'I have the power!' except that I need a power supply repair company too when things break down. I can't even fix a broken lightbulb on my own.

A Cup Of Laughter

What do you do when you have a friend who has been shunned by a priest, banned from IHOP and caused the collapse of at least one writer's group? You smile, give them a cyber hug, and a link from your blog because they're just that cool. I don't get to talk to my little 'cupcake' much anymore, but I still think she's such a fantastic writer, and all-around cool lady to hang with. Reading her posts makes me smile, and that's the genuine gift that she has... the ability to make you laugh.

The Quest

I think it's part of human nature to fuel the need for a 'quest' in life. While it's unlikely that I'll ever set out on a quest to conquer a great wilderness... not my style, or go on an Indian type 'vision quest'... more something I'd do, but still not likely, the quest for knowledge is a huge part of everyday life for me though. Every book I read whether it's fiction, or non-fiction brings some sort of new revelation, fact, or insight... if it doens't then I feel quite let down. Ultimately though, the origin of all quests for knowledge for me starts on a biblical level. Whether it's Catholic bibles, or a deeply mystic Eastern text I feel like it connects somewhere deep inside on a spiritual level and transends all other forms of knowledge. Books that help to provide insights to life, and the complexity of human nature not only make me think, and strive to understand myself more, they help me gain a better grip on people as a whole.

My Vacation Spot

While I've often rented homes, or condos while on vacation rather than staying in a little hotel room, I've never really considered the possibility of being the owner of such a place. We HAVE considered buying property in Florida, one of our primary vacation spots being so close to relatives, but since we have no intention of living in Florida year-round it didn't make sense to buy a home there... until now. If I hadn't come across this site I wouldn't have even made the connection between renting a condo or home, and the fact that SOMEONE owns them. Why not buy the home and then let others rent it throughout the year when we're not there? Condo hotels are all the rage now, and for good reason. It's a much more comfortable way to spend a vacation than in a boxy room. If you have a home anywhere near anything interesting at all, why not even list it for rent during a time you know you'll be on vacation as well? It might even be an idea for us here when we go away for a week or so... we could advertise it as 'live the farm life'... lots of city folks would probably love it.

The Last Frontier

I could easily be said that space really is 'the last frontier' as Star Trek so liked to call it. After all, there isn't much on our planet we haven't discovered, investigated, and moved into. Oh sure, there's oceans, but the likelihood of any humans actually building hotels, or condos underwater is pretty slim. Now, though, scientists think the may have found the next 90210. The next 'in' place to move... well maybe anyway. A new planet orbiting a dim star that resembles the sun but is less radiant (however, longer lived) than our sun. A planet that may contain water and rock... or it may just be a frozen ice ball with liquid water on the surface (ooohhh how inticing...not). Lots is unknown about this planet affectionately known as 'c'. Not even if there is residential alien life already on the planet. I mean if it is similar to Earth in atmosphere it would stand to reason life has formed in some manner already... what do we do then? Form a treaty with existing natives--didn't work to well for the American Indian.

A Brand New First

There are a lot of firsts in everyone's life and mine is no exception. Today I just made a video using my farm animals for an ad... this is a definate first for me. The perfect meld of both of my 'worlds' if you will. We'll see how it goes in the next post. It's loading now.

Memories and Great Vacations

Another great vacation place that we like to go once in awhile is Branson. One of my husband's sisters (meaning he has more than one sister, not I have more than one husband, lol) lives just outside of Branson Missouri. We don't get there as often as we go to Florida, but it's a beautiful place and lots of fun. There's quite a bit to do there and the atmosphere is so much to our liking. Very rural, very 'countrified' while at the same time offering up some great entertainment and shopping. The 'Roy Rogers/Dale Evans' museum is a lot of fun, complete with stuffed 'Trigger'. Having grown up watching them on TV seeing all the memorabilia is a walk down memory lane for us.

Gone Fishing

Hubby and I were on our way home from town the other day and happened to drive by one of the streams where local people gather to fish. It's such a lovely pasttime--fishing. Quiet, relaxing, soothing. It's not really about the fish. Well, it is--I mean you would like to catch a few, but it's more about the atmosphere. Sitting beside a lovely body of water and lazing around in the warm spring/summer breezes that come across the rivers and lakes. That's what fishing is all about.

As much as we both enjoy the time spent fishing, we rarely ever get to do it. We have most of the gear we'd need to go right now and spend the day by the stream. Some of the fishing tackle we'd have to get more of, or could use improving on, but it's more a matter of time. Even out in the country where life is much slower, there are still things to do that fill up days faster than should be possible. We smiled as we drove by the weekend fishermen the other day and looked at each other. We both knew what the other was thinking--it's time to take a day off and put up a sign that says 'gone fishing'.

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder for sure

I had to laugh at one of the yahoo articles this morning. It was a contest for the 'Beautiful Bulldog' competition. If ever there were an oxymoron it would be 'beautiful bulldog'. Truly those are dogs with faces only a mother could love. Cute, yeah, just cause they're so ugly. I'm not knocking bulldogs in the slightest. I've known quite a few loveable hams that were bulldogs, but beautiful? I'm not too sure about that. I guess that's where the old saying beauty is in the eye of the beholder comes into play. If you love one, I'm sure you would think they were just beautiful.

I'm The Boss

It's kind of funny how some things in life just seem to pop up in conjunction with each other. Just last night I watched 'The King Of Queens'--no it's not one of my regular shows, I just happened to have the TV on and was too tired to change channels after a long day of fence repair work outside... I could barely manage to lift my arms enough to turn the TV on in the first place. Anyway, in the episode they had the main character going to his high-school reunion where he met an old 'trouble' buddy who was now vice-principle of the very same school. The VP character was played by a guest appearance of Adam Sandler (at that point I was glad I watched, I like Adam Sandler) and he after a bit he happened to grumble about the principle who just got a new car because of a bonus for all the reports he (Adam Sandler) did. I laughed and it crossed my mind that those kinds of things probably do happen. The business world is sharky no matter what business it is and bosses often take credit for the work done by underlings... what drove that point home even better though was just now looking at Yahoo's main page and seeing a leader for an article called 'The Idea Stealing Boss'.

Point taken and driven home--life is not fair, and, I'm glad I work for myself. If the My boss steals an idea--I still get the credit. I'm the boss! LOL

The Last Thing In The World You WANT to Think About...

...Is probably the one thing you should. Possibly one of the most distasteful things to contemplate is death--especially your own. It's natural to not want to think about it, or what it will mean to those around you if you're gone. It's a good idea to think about it just long enough to be sure you have enough death insurance should something happen to you that your children and family won't have to be burdened with the debt of taking care of your bills, and burying you as well. The costs of funerals is astronomical. That's the biggest reason we got death insurance. I don't want either of my kids to have to pocket the enormous expense. Everyone worries about not having health insurance... that's a cost that will get THEM if something bad happens... but death insurance will get those closest to you. I know I don't like to think about death, but I hate thinking about that even more.

47%

47%... that's the increase in foreclosures over last year. FORTY-SEVEN percent. An article on MSN.com states that mortgage companies are trying to stem the blood flow by helping borrowers make good on their loans by offering deals, and compensation if there were any deceptive lending practices used in obtaining the loan... a little late, don't you think guys? That's like trying to hold back a flood with a stick for a dam. They're also stopping sub-prime lending... hey, good move--now. Would have been a whole lot better several years ago had they never started such silliness. If you have to finagle and wiggle to get a loan, you probably can't afford the loan you're trying to get.

It's the American dream to own your own home and property--but I don't think anyone dreams with the intention of it becoming a nightmare they can't escape from without loosing everything. There has to be a realistic limit... oh, and developers need to stop building TajMahal and start putting up more realistically affordable homes. 47%... jeesh.

Mirrors, Crystal Balls, and The Future

Did you ever wonder how companies know what will happen before it does? How sales will go, how efficient their workload and schedules are? There isn’t some employee with a cape and a crystal ball behind closed doors. What there is, is a sound management system that employs accurate forecasting software. This is for existing companies to know what the trends are and how best to utilize their time, employees, and cash in a way to get the most sales and value for time and ad dollars spent. This program also allows a more uniform method of reporting for all involved so that more accurate forecasting can be achieved. Never mind mirror mirror on the wall… just punch in the data and let this program tell you what’s ahead.

Down And Out

I am so aggravated with my server. Usually it’s my husband who has all the trouble staying connected, or pages ‘zoning out’ because the speed slowed to a crawl and it wouldn’t open. Not me. Usually I just sit here and smile when he starts ranting about the crappy dial up service. Evidentially today is my turn. Pages start to open then go to the dreaded white ‘red x’ page. I’m afraid to reply to anyone, or post anything because it will get lost if the page goes down in the process of posting. I feel like my hands are tied. I’ve been doing a little research on a few sites and have spent almost an hour just getting one of them to open, and the other I can’t get to the second page. Steam is coming out of my ears. There’s nothing I can do about it. Dial up is the only option available to us out here. Well, except for satellite and I nearly did that just a week ago because Bob was insisting we do SOMETHING about our crappy Internet service. I called a couple places like Hughesnet and Wild Blue, as well as going to their sites. First I got aggravated because none of them would make it so both our computers would work at the same time, even though their systems support multiple computers. Support them yes… come prepared for them—no. It would be up to us to go and buy networking equipment (several hundred dollars worth) and hook it up ourselves. Now neither of us has ever done that, and I’d heard horror stories, there was no way I was spending all that money just to have something that didn’t work. Finally Wild Blue said yes, they would bring the networking equipment and install it along with the dish system. We would have to pay for the additional equipment (understandable—not the problem). I started doing some research though, mostly because of my anger at Hughesnet for their even higher cost service that wasn’t even ‘full serve’ in my opinion, and found out that BOTH companies have horribly dissatisfied customers… really dissatisfied…mortified…changed mind. Sticking with crappy dial up… but I still reserve the right to fume about it.

The 'I didn't know this' file

Here's a new one from the 'I Didn't Know That' file. According to an article on Yahoo, most major computer companies will pick up your old computer and dispose of it/recycle it. Many of them for free. They say they'll shred the hard drive so there's no worries over someone stealing your info, but that it's still a good idea to erase vital information. I just traded my old computer to someone else for something I wanted, so it wasn't an issue, but this is a great thing to know for the future. Some companies charge a nominal fee, but Dell will take it for FREE. Yay Dell.

Home At Last

We are HOME. What a long, wonderful, exhausting, exuberant day yestday was. Bob and I made the long trip to Iowa (okay, it's only the neighboring state, not the other side of the world, and not even much more than a few miles into Iowa, lol) yesterday. Our old truck (eleven years old, 240,000 miles) made the trip like a trooper pulling that big heavy trailer. Best of all, we finally met Sherry and Brant Anderson and got to pick up the goats we'd purchased last month, lol. What fantastic people Sherry and Brant are. I can't thank them enough for their wonderful hospitality and the great time we had there talking and joking around. See my farm blog (later lol) for new pics of the recent additions to the farm.

This Year's Vacation

Since I don't go on many actual vacations, when I do I usually go down to Florida in the fall to visit relatives. Like I said in a previous post though, that's nice once in a while, but it's getting a little old because it doesn't really turn out to be a real 'vacation'. When I do go to Florida next time, this fall, I'm not only going to NOT tell any of my relatives I'm there, I'm going to look into getting an Orlando vacation home that are available just a short hop from Disney Land and places like that. I want a real tourist vacation with all the stops, but I want to stay in a luxurious home, not a tiny cramped hotel room.

I watched 'Two and a Half Men' last night. It's one of the few weekly shows I watch, but I like it. It's silly and inconsequential, but it makes me laugh. Sometimes that's all a show needs to do to be worthwhile. We don't often get enough in life to laugh about and we all need to.

The Right Battery Is Just a Click Away

Now days you need a battery to run just about everything from your car to your cell phone. I have a cordless phone in my house though that getting batteries for can be tricky. Finding a cordless phone battery isn't as easy as running to your local store and picking up a double A though. It's easier on line anyway to buy any kind of battery. No need to go muddling through aisles upon aisles of different kinds of car batteries, going to a specialty shop for a laptop battery, just point and click and get exactly what you need right from your desk. That's my kind of shopping for everything. Especially since stores are such a long drive for me.

He's Comin' Home.

Just two more days until I get to go pick up my new Boer buck in Iowa! I've been waiting patiently for over a month because it had to be on a day when Bob could drive. I'm so excited to be bringing this big boy home for my girls this summer.

I'm also bringing home four of his daughters! Wednesday is going to be a long, exciting day.

The Sun is Here And It's Time To Think About...

...motorcyles.

Hubby rides a motorcycle in the summer and has had all kinds of trouble with glasses and helmets etc. And that doesn't even account for being blinded by the sun. Finding the right pair of motorcycle sunglasses has been a bit of a challenge, but I've found that you can even get them made with prescriptions which is what he needs. They're super stylish too. I'd even like a pair and you wouldn't catch me on a motorcycle for anything.

More Power

Upgrading your computer memory can greatly increase its spead and ability to handle multiple projects. That's essential for me since I almost always have six browser windows open at once, and anywhere for four to five programs running at the same time as well. That occassionally causes quite a traffic jam. When it starts to slow down too much--it's time to put more power in the system. It can be scary though. The Memory Store makes it a lot less scary by helping you through the process and getting exactly the right chip for your computer. For us non-geeks, that's essential in a happy outcome.

Hot Royal

Wow, caught a glimpse of Prince William on Yahoo's cover page this morning. What a hottie that boy turned out to be. All of the good points of Prince Charles without the bad. The Diana/Charles nick really turned out some gorgeous boys. Never mind the playboy on again off again relationships that come with young adulthood--and especially if you're a young adult with money, and a kingdom at your feet--he's a really good looking young man.

Take A Real Vacation

Here's a wonderful vacation spot. Lovely, warm, beautiful Florida. I've spent quite a bit of time in Florida but never went on a Kissimmee vacation. I have relatives in Florida so that's how I spend most of my time. I'd really love to go down there 'igcognito' though and not let anyone know I'm coming. Just spend the time like a real tourist at a 'real' vacation spot like Kissimmee. I love my family, but that's not really a vacation, you know?

James Bond Is Dead

Okay not really because the 'powers that be' were smart enough to incorporate the idea of multiple leading men portraying the action-lover from the get-go rather than typing one male personification...

but the original James Bond who many may not remember from the very beginning of the inception of the character, Barry Nelson, died at the age of 89. He played Bond in the very first rendition of the current Bond hit 'Casino Royale' and had quite a few roles in many movies and television series over the years. Overshadowed in his Bond role by the likes of Moore, and Connery, Nelson still had a wonderful career. He'd planned to write some books on his life in Hollywood before he passed away but hadn't gotten to it. It's too bad too. I bet they would have been good reading.

Izabael's New Book

I want to start off with I just LOVE the icon for Izabael's Home. That cute little genie is just the cutest little thing.

Izabael has a new home page that will funnel you directly to her blog, her MySpace, or info on her wonderful new book titled "Moon Age Daydream".

I love Izabael's blog. The current post on there explains how to invoke the genie. All the theory, and practice involved in summoning Izabael. An important first step is to take a nice relaxing bath to relax yourself and clear your mind--I like that one.

More importantly Izabael DaJinn (aka: Shaun VonDragen is a new young writer from LosAngeles, California. Fresh and nubile at 22 she has an invigorating outlook and fun style. Her blog is more than just about an insight to her character--Izabael, but also about a young woman's viewpoint on styles, movies, and entertainment. You get a good feel for how she writes just from reading her very cohesive and well-thoughtout posts.

"Moon Age Daydream" has a very compelling website as well, with very provocative artwork and quite a compelling tag line: Once upon a time there was a lovestruck hacker with a penchant for black magick... here you can find out all about the priciple characters and get a real feel for the book itself.

"Moon Age Daydream" is set to be released as a hardcover in October of this year and looks like it will cause quite a splash when it does.

Scientist's New Baby

God I love getting up in the morning and booting up the computer to find an article that just blows my mind. Researchers are now saying they want to totally scrap the Internet as it exists today and start over.

Yeah, START OVER.

From scratch.

They want to rebuild the way the Internet works to provide higher security and better speed. Well that's all good and dandy, but when and if that ever happens when they want to totally change over one of two things is going to happen. They'll be completely sucessful in shutting down the existing framework and everybody will have to buy new, and quite possibly (because its new) very expensive equipment (remember back when PC's were brand new and virtually no one who wasn't a geek or scientist had one in their home? People started buying them, those slow old dinosaurs that weren't anything like what most of us have today, and they cost thousands of dollars). Lots of folks who can afford today's four or five hundred dollar computer buy scraping a bit won't be able to opt into the new system. Good way of promoting elitism once again. Or two--they won't be able to comletely shut down the behemouth that is the current world wide web and only the very elite will be able to afford to opt into the new improved system--so in effect there will be a divided cyber space.

I understand the need for improving, but once you have something as wildly successful and heavily used by probably 80 percent of the world's population I think you should work on improving the current structure, not throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

Winter Blahhhhh

I've been kind of off in my own little world for the last week or so. It's that danged deep freeze we got. While I managed to get what work I NEEDED to get done, done, both online and off, the cold just depressed the heck out of me. I deal with winter but when spring finally arrives like it did in such grand fashion late March and early April my body rejoices--then we got that cold front that lasted almost 2 weeks! Talk about plummeting into the winter blues. It was such a shock. It really looks to be mostly over and I'm very grateful for that. Today is quite lovely out, and tomorrow is supposed to have a few possible flurries but then from Sunday on is supposed to be back in the 50's and 60's again. Hurray!!!

Another One Bites The Dust

That's such an irreverant way to put it, but it's about how I feel. Some of my all time favorite writers are gone from this world and it feels that much emptier for it. Kurt Vonnegut has joined the long list of authors who have passed away now at the age of 84. He was one of my favorite 'thinking' writers. I love all kinds of novels, movies, etc, and some I like to read simply to relax and I don't want to 'think' about issues. But with Vonnegut you simply had no choice but to come to grips with the world around you, and how you feel about the subjects of his work.

Tommy Boy is Coming Back

I didn't get to watch any movies last night, but I did hear on the news this morning that former Magnum P.I. star, Tom Selleck is going to be the new lead in the current series Las Vegas. Actor James Caan apparently is stepping down and Selleck is going to take his place. I'm kind of anxious to see him again in a role. I wonder what he looks like now. I remember him being quite the 'heartthrob' back in the 70's and 80's. I hope he's aged well.

Bad Business Weather

Wow is it ever going to stop? It feels like we had about 2 weeks of summer and then plunged headlong back into winter again. I know that April is still a tricky month as a rule, but this is rediculous. As many of you know, I have two seperate businesses. One is conducted in the nice warm back bedroom of my house that is now my writing office, but the other is mostly conducted outside. Our farm business can't as a matter of course be worked on in the house. Oh sure the occassional kid comes in when it's born and stays for a week or so, but for the most part, horses, sheep, goats, and the like don't make good house pets. So fifty percent of my day is spent outside. That's the main reason really that I hate winter and snow and all that goes with it. When I was younger and lived in the city I liked winter just fine. Even enjoyed many winter sports. Now winter just means going out and doing the work that needs to be done is going to take longer, and be unpleasant. I sure did enjoy those few weeks of 70 degree weather we had. The bad part of the deep re-freeze is that it really depresses you. Kind of throws you right back into the winter blues right when you were feeling so good about spring... ah well, it can't last forever--can it?

Get What You Call For

Are you wondering if your employees are spending too much time gabbing on the phone with prospective clients? Maybe they're making more personal calls than professional ones. These are all things businesses have to think about. The little things all add up to effect the bottom line. Telecom Consulting can help by analyzing phone patterns, costs, even if the routing in your systems is as effective as it should be. They'll even make sure the phone company isn't charging you more than they should be by tacking on extra charges and expenses that might go unnoticed in a big business billing account. Whether a business is big, or small, one unnecessary charge is one too many.

First Impressions Are Lasting Ones

House painting is something I prefer to not 'do it myself' on. Interior is a big hassle and making sure not to get paint on everything ACCEPT the walls is more than I care to mess with. Outside is an even bigger issue. Not only messy but can be downright dangerous, especially if you have more than a single floor home. I have a ranch house, but exterior painting is one of the most important aspects of 'curb appeal'. They say you only get one chance to make a first impression--that isn't only true about yourself, it also pertains to your home. When someone drives up they get an immediate impression. Okay, it's not fair, but it's only human nature and no matter what they say, or even want to believe as far as they 'don't care' what the house looks like--they do. Somewhere in their subconcious they are making a mental note--make it a good one.

You'll Never Believe This

I think I can now safely say that I can beat anyone in the 'you'll never believe this' catagory. I was down for the count for a couple days because I sprained my ankle. Big deal right? Lots of people sprain their ankles it's not that big of a deal... but ask me how I sprained it? That's when I say: You'll never believe this.

I sprained my ankle IN BED.

Now don't get all kinky, it wasn't anything like that. In fact, I kind of wish it was because then it would have at least been fun, or even interesting.

No, I was simply laying in bed and the covers were wrapped around my foot and I don't like covers on my feet. I HAVE to have covers on, even in the warmest of weather, but not on my feet even if it's 20 below. So I twisted my foot to get it out from the covers and POP.

I felt the muscle, or tendon, or whatever it was pop over the bone, and it hurt like heck, but I figured it was just a temporary thing... not so. The next morning I could barely walk. I hobbled the whole day while doing chores, cursing and screaming at the pain. The next day it was better but still really sore. Today it's just a minor aggravation, but jeesh. IN BED. I still can't get over that. I've sprained ankles, and done all sorts of painful stuff to myself, but not usually as I'm drifting off to sleep.

Getting Pounds Off The Safe Way

Tenuate is another appetite supressant on the market, this one a prescription strength drug that you don't need a prescription for. There are scary aspects of taking pharmecudical drugs and the possible side effects and long-term findings that may occur as a result of taking such drugs, but there are also benefits. Being stronger than the average over-the-counter, or holistic type drugs they can acheive faster results in a shorter time frame. Many people taking over the counter medicines to help them battle the buldge don't bother going to a doctor first, or ever in relation to their weight problem. That can be a serious problem in itself. Having a doctor go over your prescribed plan of action in your weight loss plan as well as keeping track of your general health as you go about following it can help avoid many hazards along the way. Blood pressure, cholesterol, and many, many other factors all should be monitored as you lose weight to be sure your health is not being adversly effected by your program in ways you can't easily see, or even feel until it's possibly too late. So see your doctor before starting any weight loss plan, and ask him if Tenuate is right for you.

A Nice Pursuit

FINALLY got to sit down and watch 'The Pursuit of Happyness' with Will Smith and his adorable son last night. I've had it on my shelf, and 'to watch' list for a couple weeks now, I just haven't had time to really get to it. What a wonderful and inspiring movie! If there ever were an inspiration to 'never give up' this movie is it. The fact that it's based on the real life of Christopher Gardner and that this man really did go through all of what the character in the movie went through to accomplish his goals and pull himself out of some very horrible situations is just amazing. I think we can all say we've had some hard times, maybe even be proud of the fact that we haven't given up in the face of adversity, but I wonder how many of us have gone through THAT kind of adversity? I know a couple times during the movie I was like 'oh I would have just thrown in the towel right there'. Christopher Gardners determination was inspiring, but his love and devotion to his son was more than admirable, it was heart-wrenching. I don't know why reviews were so mixed on this movie really. It was a tear jerker that could provide a well-spring of hope in the most cynical of hearts in my opinion.

Great movie Will, and what a cute and wonderful son too.

The Guardian

Hubby and I watched 'The Guardian' last night with Kevin Costner. It was really good. A bit of a tear-jerker. A little 'Top Gun'ny but very nice none-the-less. I like a movie that will make me tear up. Alright, outright cry. I can't help it, I'm a softie.

Die Harder Still

Bruce Willis has another Die Hard movie coming out. I've enjoyed the others just like I've enjoyed all the Rocky's and Rambos... but with these action hero movies they start to get a little ridiculous as their heros age into ... well, old men. At least the James Bond series creators had enough sense to change out their 'Bonds' for realistically aged prototypes as time went on. Love Ya Brucie, it's not going to be attractive watching you literally Die Hard on screen when you have a heart attack chasing the bad guys.

Arctic Blast

Oh my goodness where did this come from? It is so cold outside I'd almost swear it was Novemeber or December not April. Oh, I know the weather is tricky at this time of year, but to go from mid-70's to mid-30's is crazy. I'm even shivering in my office here, although I think it's just the after-effects of the bone chilling wind and cold from being outside milking.

No More Morning After

This one is for my son. He gets the most hangovers. I could have used it on New Years day too though. I don't drink often, but well, when I do I tend to really get hit with it. There are all kinds of old fashioned home-made hangover cures but none of them ever seem to work. I've seen some on the market now that are sold over the counter and wonder if they work better. I'll have to try one... maybe next New Years. Or better yet, ask my son. I'll probably only have to wait until the weekend then.

Not Tonight Dear, I have a headache

Actually I've never said that to my husband, but I do regularly get really bad tension headaches. The kind that are created by huge bunches of knots in your shoulders and back, but make your head pound right behind your eyes. In a lot of ways I think they're almost as bad as migrane headaches. They just hang there and create a dull pain that makes you miserable all day long. Migranes are stronger, and more painful, but don't seem to hang around as long, or happen as often. Tension headaches, at least for me happen at least once a week. Maybe I need more warm baths and chocolate. Seriously though, there is a product called Fioricet that I have to ask my doctor about. It takes away the pain of tension headaches.

The Real 'Good Deal'.

Okay, I'm not going to complain anymore. Here's an article on Yahoo that was really good. I so agree with everything they said, and then some in 'Five Ways You're Wasting Money'.

It always makes me laugh when someone says they saved a penny per gallon on gas, but the station they went to was three miles out of their way. Add the mileage, and their time going out of their way and they're way behind--most of all, in my experience when driving limosines where I had to keep track of my gas and mileage those cheaper stations are no bargain. You actually get less miles per gallon than with the 'brand name' gas stations. It wasn't just me 'thinking' that. I had documented proof of it.

Coupons--great if it is something you would normally buy. But buying something just because it's on sale, or you have a coupon to save ten cents when its something you probably aren't going to use, or like.

There are other things on the list too that I agree with, but those have always been things that have made me laugh. Sometimes we get an idea in our head that something 'sounds good', but really if you think about it, or look really hard at the figures that are facts,-- they're not.

Tame Unruly Hairs

I've had ingrown hairs in the past and nothing is more painful... well maybe a papercut, but ingrown hair ranks right up there. They always seem to get infected and the small reddened eruptions are too sore to touch. You can get them anywhere, and are commonly caused by shaving, waxing, or things like that. There's a product you can get to tend skin where these painful ingrown hairs occur. It helps to have a product that can cleanse and penetrate those unruly hairs while still being gentle enough to use on the most sensitive parts of your body.

Yahoo had a great article... I just couldn't see it.

Okay, today seems to be the day for me to list my pet-peeves. I like Yahoo's main page. It is set as my opening page when I get online and I like seeing the articles they have. I learn a little bit each day... I REALLY wanted to see one of them today about making pizza on the barbeque. What an excellent idea! I love pizza, and in the summer we love to barbeque... but it was a video clip! Why couldn't they write an article about it? The video could have been extra. Not only do I have trouble with video clips sometimes on my slow dial up, but I can't share them with you guys either because their video pages don't have 'urls' it's just a pop up window.

I still don't know how to make pizza on the barbeque... bummer.

Getting Paid To Blog Just Got Easier

Lately I've been really short on time available to be spending at the computer. I certainly manage to get time in, but not nearly what I usually do unless it's a really icky day outside. That makes it hard though to do some of the get paid to blog things I've been doing as many of the companies are set up where you have to grab an opprotunity before anyone else does, or at least before all of the opprotunities are taken if there is more than one slot for it.

One company takes all the tension out of getting paid for blogging. Besides being a really great company to work for with fantastic staff working for them, PayU2blog is great on another level. You are assigned your posts every week and you do them as you can, when you want, not drooling at your keyboard waiting for an opprotunity to pop up, or praying that you click in time to grab one. It has been a real God-send for me, and I am thrilled to have found them.

Re-re-re-runs

Lately I've been getting really bugged by the television 'seasons'. I remember growing up and even in later adult years when a show's season lasted about 20 or so episodes. Now, you're lucky to get 8 weeks for a 'full season'. Just recently a sit-com came on that I was enjoying called 'Rules Of Engagement'. Well, last week was a RE-RUN already. It had only been on a few weeks. I couldn't believe my eyes, and then last night which would have been it's night it wasn't even on... pre-empted by college basketball (yuk). Probably would have been a re-run anyway.

Another Addition

Yep, you guessed it. I'm getting yet another goat! Don't look at me that way, let me tell you why. You all know about the four little bottle babies I have and how their breeder was supposed to supply me with the milk to bottle feed them in exchange for me taking them and keeping them alive-- well her goats aren't producing, or whatever, and there just hasn't been enough milk. So I've been supplimenting with whole cows milk from the store (the next best alternative, but VERY expensive when the kids are going through about 6 gallons a week), or goat milk replacer. The only goat milk replacer around here is Uni-milk from Manna Pro and they just did recalls because a lot of kids (baby goats) have died from bloat from some bad batches they recently had. Well none of my milk replacer has been from those batches, yet I had two of the kids go through two seperate incidents of mild bloat (probably only mild because I was cutting the milk replacer with what little goats milk I was getting from my friend the breeder). Okay, so I called the person I recently bought a beautiful Alpine doe from (you can see about her on my farm blog) to see if she had any does milking that I could lease for the two months left of bottle feeding. Polly the Alpine is bred, but not due until the end of May, so she won't have milk until then... which just happens to be right when the four babies I have now will be ready to quit bottle feeding.

I told my husband about it when he got home (now you can give me 'that look' because he did -- not because of the idea of another goat, but because I even thought about leasing. 'Why not just buy her?' he asks.. 'you know you'll get attached' he says... and on and on. Hey, I thought I was doing a good thing by not buying another goat, only solving my milk shortage dilema). So I called the goat's owners back and asked if she would be for sale rather than just lease and they said, yes, they'd sell her to us. So...

I'm so excited, I'm getting another goat tomorrow. :)

I'll post pics when she gets here.

The End--almost

Wow, the wind is so bad here today that it blew one of my evergreen trees (big mature tree) in half. Thankfully it's warm enough otherwise, but just going outside to do minor chores makes you tired from fighting the wind. These kind of days are perfect for sitting inside and working on marketing plans and just plain old writing. I got a lot done today on my latest WIP that's nearly finished thanks to the rainy weather on Friday, and then this hellacious wind today. I only had about four chapters or so to go (as I had it planned out) but it is working out more like six, but I got most of it done with only about one and a half to go. I'm in the final stretch and am just tying it all together in a neat little package now. There's something about being in the homestretch like this. It's such a good feeling. A mighty sense of accomplishment. A fun sense of hope. A thrilling sense of getting ready to market it. Everything is on the cusp and it's like standing at the finish line in victory and standing at the starting line with muscles bunched to run all at once.

Acting Up

I sat and watched TV with Bob last night. He purchased season two of his old favorite 'Miami Vice' on DVD. We watched season one a few months ago. A little while back I moaned about the new Miami Vice movie just not being Miami Vice without the music, and that's true. Watching the old series still gives me a little thrill when I hear that theme song... but boy were the actors bad. Not the regulars really, but all the supporting part actors that had a one time appearance for that week's 'bad guy(s)' or even a one-shot role as a good guy. The recent new movie had it all over the series when it came to acting.

Take Me Back

Have you ever found that a sound, or smell can take you back to a particular time in your life? Whenever I hear the chimes of grandfather clocks it takes me back to when I was very young. My grandparents had a beautiful, big old grandfather clock in the living room and when it would chime it would send its deep, rich peels through the whole house, but when I hear them now it takes me back to when I'd lie in bed at their house and in the middle of the night the clock would chime--it was a comforting sound. The chime of a grandfather clock now brings back that warm, cozy, snuggled in bed feeling that I'd get when sleeping at grandma and grandpa's house on a warm summer night. There'd be a light breeze coming in from the window and all was well with the world.

New Toy Blues

Well so much for my new toy. The new wireless mouse my hubby bought me died an early death. No idea why it just stopped working. Suddenly I had two flickering pointers. It stopped when I pulled the USB for the wireless mouse and works fine without it. It had been working fine up until then. Not sure what the cause of death was, but hubby was very disappointed. Poor guy, he had been so sweet to just up and buy that for me 'just cause' lol, and it was defective.