As unfortunate as it is, the FBI had reason to believe that certain individuals in the area were planning to kill a local law enforcement official, and then attack additional law enforcement officials at the ensuing funeral with IEDs and such. There has been an awful lot of press on this subject on national networks, and even a few global ones such as BBC News out of the UK.
Here are the facts as they stand, because there is an awful lot of speculation on these matters floating around.
1. Nine people were indicted; six from Michigan, two from Ohio and one from Indiana; one from Washtenaw, the same one that resides in Manchester Township.
2. They were being held without bond and had arraignment hearings scheduled for a few hours ago.
3. The charges include seditious conspiracy, weapon possession while attempting to commit a crime, and creating weapons of mass destruction (technically IEDs count under the new definition of weapons of mass destruction...)
4. Those arrested are members of Hutaree, a Lenawee County based militia group that claims it is Christian-oriented.
That is basically all that anybody knows, unless you are an FBI agent or lawyer on the case. So why all the publicity?
Things like this have sensationalism written all over them. I don't want to name names but (who am I kidding... yes I do...) a certain "publication" in Washtenaw County has put together half a dozen stories on this topic. Only two of those were about the FBI raids and/or charges, which were in fact well done. This group used its resources well and got accurate information out to the masses quickly. The other published stories, however, were background on militia members (i.e. the reported leader), the response from residents in Adrian, background on whether or not this group is a militia or a "cult," and various other debauchery.
Any of you interested in why I have written just two stories on this subject? Here's your answer: I didn't think it was merited. First, I could very well go around Manchester asking strangers what they think of this whole mess, but A) I already know the answer to that question and so do you, and B) there is no way to know the background of even the people that I'd be interviewing. That in itself does not (in my humble opinion) merit a "news story." A blog post or a short video, yes, but not a story.
Second, the defendants haven't even seen the inside of a court room yet. Maybe I'm acting naive, but as the reporter of the region I don't think it's responsible to label a group as a cult or radical militia before the charges have been tried in court. I fully intend to cover the proceedings as they develop, but I do not plan to fan the flames any further. It is what it is; let's move on until we know more, shall we?
Third, I don't know of any contact that I've been given that I would trust at this point as an unbiased source. After all of this happened, I've spoken mainly with three groups of people: the police/FBI, other militia members and their families, and militia "experts" that want to share their knowledge. Sorry, but no. The police can't tell me anything and they were targeted, the militia members want to distance themselves from a group that was indicted, and the so-called experts didn't have anything constructive to say. I spoke with a man the other day who said he spent several years studying militias. When I asked him to describe his study, he used visiting Myspace pages as an example. I'm sorry, by Myspace profiling does not a study make. No can do. Plus, his people sought me out rather than the other way around. That smells like an agenda to me.
So in summary, this was a blip for the community. However, I'm not going to exaggerate what it was and churn out after-the-fact stories in response. If you want to read that kind of stuff, you know where to go. I don't really care to ask if someone "seemed off" beforehand, because that's hindsight now and it isn't news. If it's news, that's fine. If it's not, write about it on your blog. Trust me, you'll feel better. I sure do.
P.S.
Thanks to those who took the time to e-mail the Enterprise about what they knew. It really helped to get the story going, and we were the second news source to have an accurate story up on Sunday about the raids. That is exactly the type of thing I'm looking for. If you know something (good, bad, funny, cute, whatever), do let us know. Don't assume that we are already aware.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Testing, testing..
Ok, so we are giving a different blogging platform a test. And by we, I mean me, personally. If our work big whigs decide to change us over to Posterous instead of Blogger, I wanted to be prepared. Give my own blog a look and see how the formatting works for you. As a user, it's pretty neat.
Any comments can be made here, or on the posts themselves.
Check it out!
Any comments can be made here, or on the posts themselves.
Check it out!
"Remember Me" film misunderstood
Like most every other female between the ages of 10 and 60, I am familiar with the name Robert Pattinson. Most people know him as the brooding vamp from the Twilight series. What people know less of is whether or not he is just another teen idol or if he's a true-and-true Hollywood movie star. It was assumed that his new film Remember Me would answer that question. This topic has been dominating the movie airwaves as of late.
However, interestingly enough, the screenplay for this particular film was the thing that got the critics talking (or should I say yelling and screaming). It had an ending that was so polarizing that after watching about two hours of footage of Pattinson, co-star Emilie DeRavin (Lost) and Pierce Brosnan (Bond series)... the actors were the least important thing on everyone's mind.
Warning! SPOILERS! I'm going to attempt to break down why I believe this script is one of the more thought out pieces we've seen in a while, and why reading reviews on this movie makes me take the cliched response of, "they just don't GET IT!"... which I say petulantly and with great fervor. If you are interested in seeing this movie and haven't, I would advise skipping this post altogether.
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Ok, so what's with the ending anyway?
I should say ahead of time that I read the script for this movie prior to its release in theaters. That happens a lot, actually. So I went into this movie knowing what was going to happen and taking note of all the foreshadowing. My first reaction after reading the ending was this is either the most offensive or the most brilliant ending I've ever read. I'm going to assume that my reading reaction is the same as people's viewing reaction. So why was it offensive?
Critics that hated the film are saying they felt cheated. I think that's an ironic choice of words, considering that it proves the film accomplished exactly what it intended to accomplish. This movie was about 9/11 from the beginning. In the opening shot when you see Ally and her mother with the two towers in the background, there aren't two characters in that scene... there are three. New York City is treated as a character element throughout. There are other elements as well that foreshadow Tyler's eventual death (i.e. Greek Mythology book = Greek tragedy parallel). But the point is, none of the foreshadowing is obvious enough to an unknowing viewer to make them aware that Tyler will be in the WTC when the planes hit. They will be shocked, angry and surprised.
But here's the thing... those are the very same emotions that people felt on Sept. 11. They were shocked, angry and surprised. In fact, they were CHEATED. We as a viewer come to care for Tyler. We want him and Ally to work out and we want his relationships with his parents to continue to improve. That is essentially the purpose of every film, to create an emotional attachment to the characters. Usually when you kill that character, there is a negative response from the viewer who believes he is in good hands and then loses their tie to the movie. Audiences and critics felt cheated when they suddenly had to deal with the unexpected death of Tyler... just like thousands of New York families were cheated out of the lives of their dead loved ones.
So was it the right thing to do? Who knows. But the point I'm trying to make is that liking or hating it shouldn't be about whether the ending "makes sense" or is "fair." No, it isn't fair, and it was an unfair surprise. In doing that, though, the writer perfectly recaptured the feelings of the day and paid a tribute to what Gen. X and Y went through on that day. Sure, there were parts in the dialogue and the romance section that felt contrived and cliche. But to me, even that feels OK because in the high teens and low 20s, most students ARE contrived. Before 9/11, the youth of America felt untouchable, safe, bored and (for the most part) predictable. The dialogue could have improved, but it also served its purpose for creating a seemingly untouchable 20-something romance ready to be destroyed, true to a real Greek tragedy.
Unfortunately, even understanding that fact doesn't guarantee that you like it. You can get the point of the script and understand what it's doing and still hate having to be there. That's understandable too. There were people that turned off the news that day and people who kept it on all week. In a way, being a successful script in this case is almost a detriment to its box office staying power.
When I walked out of the movie (even knowing what had been coming), I couldn't help but think... but this could have been so much better if he had died some other way/if 9/11 hadn't been involved/if he hadn't died/etc. But by better, of course, I meant happier and something I would want to watch over and over. I don't want to watch this over and over. But I don't want to watch YouTube videos of the WTC crushing to the ground either. Only a few days after watching the movie, I revisited the script I had read months in advance and remembered how it made me feel that first time. I even remember looking up news coverage from that day on YouTube after I finished reading.
This film is unlike any other 9/11 film that has been made. Unlike World Trade Center and United 93, the viewer doesn't necessarily know what they are getting into. It isn't a tribute to the firefighters, deaths, heroes, etc. It's a tribute to the emotions and the lessons we learned. I learned my lesson, and whether you like or hate the movie you re-learned yours too.
However, interestingly enough, the screenplay for this particular film was the thing that got the critics talking (or should I say yelling and screaming). It had an ending that was so polarizing that after watching about two hours of footage of Pattinson, co-star Emilie DeRavin (Lost) and Pierce Brosnan (Bond series)... the actors were the least important thing on everyone's mind.
Warning! SPOILERS! I'm going to attempt to break down why I believe this script is one of the more thought out pieces we've seen in a while, and why reading reviews on this movie makes me take the cliched response of, "they just don't GET IT!"... which I say petulantly and with great fervor. If you are interested in seeing this movie and haven't, I would advise skipping this post altogether.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Ok, so what's with the ending anyway?
I should say ahead of time that I read the script for this movie prior to its release in theaters. That happens a lot, actually. So I went into this movie knowing what was going to happen and taking note of all the foreshadowing. My first reaction after reading the ending was this is either the most offensive or the most brilliant ending I've ever read. I'm going to assume that my reading reaction is the same as people's viewing reaction. So why was it offensive?
Critics that hated the film are saying they felt cheated. I think that's an ironic choice of words, considering that it proves the film accomplished exactly what it intended to accomplish. This movie was about 9/11 from the beginning. In the opening shot when you see Ally and her mother with the two towers in the background, there aren't two characters in that scene... there are three. New York City is treated as a character element throughout. There are other elements as well that foreshadow Tyler's eventual death (i.e. Greek Mythology book = Greek tragedy parallel). But the point is, none of the foreshadowing is obvious enough to an unknowing viewer to make them aware that Tyler will be in the WTC when the planes hit. They will be shocked, angry and surprised.
But here's the thing... those are the very same emotions that people felt on Sept. 11. They were shocked, angry and surprised. In fact, they were CHEATED. We as a viewer come to care for Tyler. We want him and Ally to work out and we want his relationships with his parents to continue to improve. That is essentially the purpose of every film, to create an emotional attachment to the characters. Usually when you kill that character, there is a negative response from the viewer who believes he is in good hands and then loses their tie to the movie. Audiences and critics felt cheated when they suddenly had to deal with the unexpected death of Tyler... just like thousands of New York families were cheated out of the lives of their dead loved ones.
So was it the right thing to do? Who knows. But the point I'm trying to make is that liking or hating it shouldn't be about whether the ending "makes sense" or is "fair." No, it isn't fair, and it was an unfair surprise. In doing that, though, the writer perfectly recaptured the feelings of the day and paid a tribute to what Gen. X and Y went through on that day. Sure, there were parts in the dialogue and the romance section that felt contrived and cliche. But to me, even that feels OK because in the high teens and low 20s, most students ARE contrived. Before 9/11, the youth of America felt untouchable, safe, bored and (for the most part) predictable. The dialogue could have improved, but it also served its purpose for creating a seemingly untouchable 20-something romance ready to be destroyed, true to a real Greek tragedy.
Unfortunately, even understanding that fact doesn't guarantee that you like it. You can get the point of the script and understand what it's doing and still hate having to be there. That's understandable too. There were people that turned off the news that day and people who kept it on all week. In a way, being a successful script in this case is almost a detriment to its box office staying power.
When I walked out of the movie (even knowing what had been coming), I couldn't help but think... but this could have been so much better if he had died some other way/if 9/11 hadn't been involved/if he hadn't died/etc. But by better, of course, I meant happier and something I would want to watch over and over. I don't want to watch this over and over. But I don't want to watch YouTube videos of the WTC crushing to the ground either. Only a few days after watching the movie, I revisited the script I had read months in advance and remembered how it made me feel that first time. I even remember looking up news coverage from that day on YouTube after I finished reading.
This film is unlike any other 9/11 film that has been made. Unlike World Trade Center and United 93, the viewer doesn't necessarily know what they are getting into. It isn't a tribute to the firefighters, deaths, heroes, etc. It's a tribute to the emotions and the lessons we learned. I learned my lesson, and whether you like or hate the movie you re-learned yours too.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Early Childhood Extravaganza, pharmacies, and more!
Thursdays are always the start to my week. You see, when you work in newspapers, deadlines and what have you generally shift things. So a typical "Monday" experience for most people might actually be what Thursday experiences are for me. They kick-start the next paper period and I start the process all over again.
I think I kicked this one off pretty well, considering I conducted several interviews downtown, got pictures and video of the Early Childhood Extravaganza, assigned story leads to my employees, had a productive meeting with both our Heritage president and our staffers, and managed to cook a steak at the end of the day. Good times.
The Early Childhood thing was pretty sweet. There were a lot of booths, like with most informational fairs. Plus the Masons were doing the Michigan Identification Program things with help from high school NHS members. It's basically a spit swab, dental mold, photo and fingerprint all saved on a CD in case one day the parent needs that information (should something happen to the child). The Lions were doing vision testing for various eye issues. Free clothes lined several cafeteria tables, and the local girl scouts were babysitting in the play area. Oh, and there was a popcorn machine! Love popcorn!
I also met with an employee of the Flower Garden, as well as the regional manager of Manchester Pharmacy. First, the pharmacy is NOT closing. Apparently there are some rumors going around that the pharmacy is going out of business, which is actually starting to negatively affect their business. I would encourage those who are unknowingly spreading the rumor to stop doing so. Also, the Flower Garden is downsizing into the back portion of the pharmacy. Starting on March 21, the Flower Garden can be accessed from the back, or at the glass doors at the back of the Hallmark portion of the pharmacy. It will be a nice little union, and a more manageable situation for the Flower Garden owners.
I managed to shut my cat up by getting her a heating pad. I have a new kitten, which happens to be a Savannah (17% serval), and she has some new aches and pains. I woke up like a startled, terrified mother the other day at about 7 a.m. when I thought I heard her choking in the next room. She wasn't choking; she was grinding her teeth. Apparently she is teething. Great. But I noticed that she only does it when she isn't playing, eating or sleeping. So I play with her until she can no longer stand, then I put her on a heating pad so that she'll sleep forever. It seems to be working.
Also, our coworker Lisa Allmendinger got the star of the month award from our publisher and president Jim Williams today. She is a bit of a go-getter and super energy charged in the journalism field. It was nice to see her get some recognition from her peers. She sets the standard very high for the rest of us.
On a less work-related note, I cooked steak tonight. After stocking up for the week at the grocery store (I love to cook and have some excellent meals planned for the week), I managed to cook some prime, garlic bread and broccoli for dinner for BOYFRIEND and I. I realize you probably don't care about any of this, but the reason I'm mentioning it is because they have some pretty good sales on meat right now. It might not be a bad idea to check out the local grocery stores, because they probably have some decent beef left over after St. Patrick's Day.
Tomorrow I'm going to post a movie review. I was going to tonight but I'm tired now and it has to be perfect. Otherwise that 13-year-old movie critic will appear to be better than me, and I can't let that happen.
I think I kicked this one off pretty well, considering I conducted several interviews downtown, got pictures and video of the Early Childhood Extravaganza, assigned story leads to my employees, had a productive meeting with both our Heritage president and our staffers, and managed to cook a steak at the end of the day. Good times.
The Early Childhood thing was pretty sweet. There were a lot of booths, like with most informational fairs. Plus the Masons were doing the Michigan Identification Program things with help from high school NHS members. It's basically a spit swab, dental mold, photo and fingerprint all saved on a CD in case one day the parent needs that information (should something happen to the child). The Lions were doing vision testing for various eye issues. Free clothes lined several cafeteria tables, and the local girl scouts were babysitting in the play area. Oh, and there was a popcorn machine! Love popcorn!
I also met with an employee of the Flower Garden, as well as the regional manager of Manchester Pharmacy. First, the pharmacy is NOT closing. Apparently there are some rumors going around that the pharmacy is going out of business, which is actually starting to negatively affect their business. I would encourage those who are unknowingly spreading the rumor to stop doing so. Also, the Flower Garden is downsizing into the back portion of the pharmacy. Starting on March 21, the Flower Garden can be accessed from the back, or at the glass doors at the back of the Hallmark portion of the pharmacy. It will be a nice little union, and a more manageable situation for the Flower Garden owners.
I managed to shut my cat up by getting her a heating pad. I have a new kitten, which happens to be a Savannah (17% serval), and she has some new aches and pains. I woke up like a startled, terrified mother the other day at about 7 a.m. when I thought I heard her choking in the next room. She wasn't choking; she was grinding her teeth. Apparently she is teething. Great. But I noticed that she only does it when she isn't playing, eating or sleeping. So I play with her until she can no longer stand, then I put her on a heating pad so that she'll sleep forever. It seems to be working.
Also, our coworker Lisa Allmendinger got the star of the month award from our publisher and president Jim Williams today. She is a bit of a go-getter and super energy charged in the journalism field. It was nice to see her get some recognition from her peers. She sets the standard very high for the rest of us.
On a less work-related note, I cooked steak tonight. After stocking up for the week at the grocery store (I love to cook and have some excellent meals planned for the week), I managed to cook some prime, garlic bread and broccoli for dinner for BOYFRIEND and I. I realize you probably don't care about any of this, but the reason I'm mentioning it is because they have some pretty good sales on meat right now. It might not be a bad idea to check out the local grocery stores, because they probably have some decent beef left over after St. Patrick's Day.
Tomorrow I'm going to post a movie review. I was going to tonight but I'm tired now and it has to be perfect. Otherwise that 13-year-old movie critic will appear to be better than me, and I can't let that happen.
Friday, March 12, 2010
My new cat has herpes...
And no, I'm not joking.
Disclaimer: This post also was originally posted on my own blog, but it is pertinent to my life, so I'm sharing. Back to the post...
I consider myself a fairly intelligent human being. Typically when I get gut feelings about things, I follow my instincts and I have a good grip on common sense.
Boy oh boy did I drop that ball this week.
The two new kitties I got were both so cute and fuzzy that I wanted them to be cute and fuzzy together. The trouble with that is... I was so eager to make them buddies4life that I sort of didn't stick with my initial thought to get Rhea at the vet beforehand. Rhea, by the way, is the 6-month-old rescue kitten from the Humane Society. Nyx is the uber expensive Savannah breed and the only reason we bought Rhea (Nyx is part wild and needs attention like whoa). Yeah... you can see where this is going...
So what do we do? We put them together. It goes great. They touch noses. They don't scuffle. They get into pee and poop wars. Everyone is happy. Then the sneezing starts....
A-choo! goes Rhea. Over and over again, prompting me to coo and say things like, Oh, poor baby, what's wrong with you? probably nothing serious considering the humane society gave you a clean bill of health...
A-choo! A-CHOO! Hmmm... maybe you should go to the vet...
A-CHOO! RAWR! A-CHOO! Oh my god my cat is going to die, we're going NOW! (let's bring Nyx too for good measure)
So the vet basically tells me that my cute little fuzzy kitten from the humane society has respiratory herpes. I didn't even know that there was such a thing, but according to VETLADY, a majority of the humane society's cats have this virus. That's funny since that little gem didn't come up in our adoption interview. Nope. Not once. And just like human herpes, it stays with you. foorrreeevveerrrr. Oh, also, it's major contagious, which means that there's no way Nyx isn't going to get it living with Rhea.
So then I'm on my way out and things are sort of OK because Rhea has no secondary symptoms, her lungs are clear, and basically it will clear itself up and disappear and be dormant until her next psychological meltdown (aka moving and or new children/dogs/cats). Of course vet tells me to bring in stool samples for both in the next couple of days, you know, for good measure. (i'm starting to learn that phrase typically leads to bad things.) I do as I'm told, and a few hours later I get this phone call:
Vet: Ms. Miller?
Me: Hi, vet lady! How are my perfect poop samples? (I already know something is wrong because the receptionist told me that no problems = no follow-up call)
Vet: Nyx checked out great and her poop was perfect.
Me: Well that's nice. She's lucky that way I guess.
Vet: Rhea, not so much.
Me: You mean my herpes-laden cat has something ELSE that the humane society failed to "screen"?
Vet: She has toxidia and roundworm in her stool.
Me: ......
Vet: But they can be treated.
Me: ......
Vet: Just come by and get meds. And you'll need to treat both cats because it is incredibly contagious, so your $55 cat will give it to your $2,000 cat really quickly.
Me: .......
Vet: Oh, and they're contagious to humans, so hopefully if you are the one scooping the poop, you are washing your hands after.
Me: .......
Vet: But other than that everything is cool.
Me: Is there any chance my cat has AIDS?
Vet: What?
Me: Nothing.
So QED, had I listened to my inner voice and taken Rhea for a check-up PRIOR to getting the two together, I would be 50% less peeved. As it is, I get to be 100% peeved. So I squirted two different meds into each of their mouths with a plastic syringe thingy. They both got one more squirt for the next two days. Then in a few weeks I get to gather poop like a crazy cat lady all over again. By hey, I guess if I end up getting roundworm too, it will be super easy to lose those 10 pounds I've been wanting to drop. Or Rhea could get AIDS and then we'd all lose weight MUCH faster.
On a brighter note, I managed to get around having to get another yearly eye exam. I love my optometrist TO DEATH, but she is pricey. Heck, they all are. So when I discovered that my contacts supply was dwindling, I did the next obvious thing.... I refused to make a doctors appointment and stayed in denial until it was clear that there was no way I wouldn't run out before I had time to set up an appointment with the doctor and order more. So I talked to a friend at work and she told me how to trick the system, aka buying lenses with your prescription from 1-800-lenses or golenses.com or similar places. It worked. I have purchased two new boxes, giving me enough time to schedule an appointment... which I need to do because I think my eyes are worse.
Here's the thing though with me and optometrists. They blow high-powered wind into my eyeball and I don't appreciate it. The glaucoma puff test is basically my worst nightmare. I hate doing it and thinking about it. Plus the fear worsens every time because it takes like five tries of them puffing my eyeball before they get a good reading, due to the fact that I'm flailing too wildly. First try, my eye is typically cooperative, but the tech takes too long and I jerk uncontrollably. Second try, I starting blinking faster and more often. Third try I'm tearing up and drying out at the same time and they're asking me to please cooperate and stop being a baby. (easy for them to say... they aren't waiting silently and without warning to be jet streamed with air to a place that likes moistness.) By the fourth and fifth tries, my eye is officially shut for good and you'll have to pry my eyelids open with a crowbar if you think you're going to puff me again.
On another happy note.... Ah, sweet bothered bliss.
And now, your moment of zen: prrr
Disclaimer: This post also was originally posted on my own blog, but it is pertinent to my life, so I'm sharing. Back to the post...
I consider myself a fairly intelligent human being. Typically when I get gut feelings about things, I follow my instincts and I have a good grip on common sense.
Boy oh boy did I drop that ball this week.
The two new kitties I got were both so cute and fuzzy that I wanted them to be cute and fuzzy together. The trouble with that is... I was so eager to make them buddies4life that I sort of didn't stick with my initial thought to get Rhea at the vet beforehand. Rhea, by the way, is the 6-month-old rescue kitten from the Humane Society. Nyx is the uber expensive Savannah breed and the only reason we bought Rhea (Nyx is part wild and needs attention like whoa). Yeah... you can see where this is going...
So what do we do? We put them together. It goes great. They touch noses. They don't scuffle. They get into pee and poop wars. Everyone is happy. Then the sneezing starts....
A-choo! goes Rhea. Over and over again, prompting me to coo and say things like, Oh, poor baby, what's wrong with you? probably nothing serious considering the humane society gave you a clean bill of health...
A-choo! A-CHOO! Hmmm... maybe you should go to the vet...
A-CHOO! RAWR! A-CHOO! Oh my god my cat is going to die, we're going NOW! (let's bring Nyx too for good measure)
So the vet basically tells me that my cute little fuzzy kitten from the humane society has respiratory herpes. I didn't even know that there was such a thing, but according to VETLADY, a majority of the humane society's cats have this virus. That's funny since that little gem didn't come up in our adoption interview. Nope. Not once. And just like human herpes, it stays with you. foorrreeevveerrrr. Oh, also, it's major contagious, which means that there's no way Nyx isn't going to get it living with Rhea.
So then I'm on my way out and things are sort of OK because Rhea has no secondary symptoms, her lungs are clear, and basically it will clear itself up and disappear and be dormant until her next psychological meltdown (aka moving and or new children/dogs/cats). Of course vet tells me to bring in stool samples for both in the next couple of days, you know, for good measure. (i'm starting to learn that phrase typically leads to bad things.) I do as I'm told, and a few hours later I get this phone call:
Vet: Ms. Miller?
Me: Hi, vet lady! How are my perfect poop samples? (I already know something is wrong because the receptionist told me that no problems = no follow-up call)
Vet: Nyx checked out great and her poop was perfect.
Me: Well that's nice. She's lucky that way I guess.
Vet: Rhea, not so much.
Me: You mean my herpes-laden cat has something ELSE that the humane society failed to "screen"?
Vet: She has toxidia and roundworm in her stool.
Me: ......
Vet: But they can be treated.
Me: ......
Vet: Just come by and get meds. And you'll need to treat both cats because it is incredibly contagious, so your $55 cat will give it to your $2,000 cat really quickly.
Me: .......
Vet: Oh, and they're contagious to humans, so hopefully if you are the one scooping the poop, you are washing your hands after.
Me: .......
Vet: But other than that everything is cool.
Me: Is there any chance my cat has AIDS?
Vet: What?
Me: Nothing.
So QED, had I listened to my inner voice and taken Rhea for a check-up PRIOR to getting the two together, I would be 50% less peeved. As it is, I get to be 100% peeved. So I squirted two different meds into each of their mouths with a plastic syringe thingy. They both got one more squirt for the next two days. Then in a few weeks I get to gather poop like a crazy cat lady all over again. By hey, I guess if I end up getting roundworm too, it will be super easy to lose those 10 pounds I've been wanting to drop. Or Rhea could get AIDS and then we'd all lose weight MUCH faster.
On a brighter note, I managed to get around having to get another yearly eye exam. I love my optometrist TO DEATH, but she is pricey. Heck, they all are. So when I discovered that my contacts supply was dwindling, I did the next obvious thing.... I refused to make a doctors appointment and stayed in denial until it was clear that there was no way I wouldn't run out before I had time to set up an appointment with the doctor and order more. So I talked to a friend at work and she told me how to trick the system, aka buying lenses with your prescription from 1-800-lenses or golenses.com or similar places. It worked. I have purchased two new boxes, giving me enough time to schedule an appointment... which I need to do because I think my eyes are worse.
Here's the thing though with me and optometrists. They blow high-powered wind into my eyeball and I don't appreciate it. The glaucoma puff test is basically my worst nightmare. I hate doing it and thinking about it. Plus the fear worsens every time because it takes like five tries of them puffing my eyeball before they get a good reading, due to the fact that I'm flailing too wildly. First try, my eye is typically cooperative, but the tech takes too long and I jerk uncontrollably. Second try, I starting blinking faster and more often. Third try I'm tearing up and drying out at the same time and they're asking me to please cooperate and stop being a baby. (easy for them to say... they aren't waiting silently and without warning to be jet streamed with air to a place that likes moistness.) By the fourth and fifth tries, my eye is officially shut for good and you'll have to pry my eyelids open with a crowbar if you think you're going to puff me again.
On another happy note.... Ah, sweet bothered bliss.
And now, your moment of zen: prrr
In 1892, Proust sailed the survey ocean blue
Since I was on blogging hiatus, you get several posts today...
Oh man, have I got something epic for you. The very first official chain survey of any significance dates back to the 19th century. The Proust Questionnaire has its origins in a parlor game popularized (though not devised) by Marcel Proust, the French essayist and novelist, who believed that, in answering these questions, an individual reveals his or her true nature. It is, in essence, the most awesomest of awesome surveys ever devised. Vanity Fair uses this interview in almost every major interview they do, and James Lipton of Inside the Actors Studio rambles off a shortened version on his wonderful show. The basic Proust Questionnaire is below.
Disclaimer: I will attempt to answer these questions as honestly as possible without acting like a show pony. If and when a joke is inserted, it is only because it seemed appropriate at the time, not in order to amuse you. Let’s see my nature REVEALED! (magic!)
1.What is your idea of perfect happiness? A river cottage in upstate New York where I write my bestselling novels and play the part of sexy, gardening mom.
2.What is your greatest fear? Failure
3.What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? Deplore is a strong word. I don’t know that I deplore anything about myself. I’d be my own friend. But I guess in some ways, my tendency to analyze and analyze and refuse to classify things as black or white (which also happens to be one of my favorite things about myself) can be somewhat debilitating when I’m trying to make a quick decision.
4.What is the trait you most deplore in others? Apathy and ignorance together are the perfect storm for me. I will give you a 20-yard stare until you are no longer in my presence. I’ve heard my looks of disgust are also fairly obvious.
5.Which living person do you most admire? Good question. What’s unusual about me is that I spend very little time admiring actual people, unless it is for something simple like managing to be hot and intelligent at the same time. I prefer to admire works in and of themselves, rather than the people that put them together. I guess I admire really talented writers the most, but the fact is that no one was able to do anything without the help of someone or something else.
6.What is your greatest extravagance? I tend to let myself go when it comes to being introverted. I forget to remind myself to do things that I need to do, because I’ve grown up with this idealistic view of what it is to enjoy life. I end up spending a lot of my time and energy cooking or sitting alone with a coffee and thinking. If I were to cut that time in half and spend it working on my current stories in progress, I’d be done by now.
7.What is your current state of mind? Relaxed, but edgy. I’m very much aware that this the weekend is upon me and yet I have 5,000 things to do. I’m not very good with down time, and I seldom know how to handle it properly.
8.What do you consider the most overrated virtue? I'm not going to say, because I don't want to be burned at the stake. That's what my other blog is for.
9.On what occasion do you lie? When I haven’t sufficiently figured out how to handle the ramifications of telling the truth, which is a seldom case, but occurs from time to time. Usually I lie by keeping my mouth shut until I’m ready to debate.
10.What do you most dislike about your appearance? I wish I was taller with longer legs. I have a long torso that makes my legs look stumpy.
11.Which living person do you most despise? You know, I bet a lot of people would put down actors or rude people they know, but I have more of an issue with people that knowingly misuse their power. A lot of people out there aren’t intelligent enough to be fully aware of their power of influence, but those that are and misuse it (to me) are deplorable.
12.What is the quality you most like in a man? Variety. I feel like most positive traits that I would say (such as confidence, opinionated, being considerate, honest, romantic) have a breaking point. There’s always a tipping point where too much of a good thing turns into the reason I can’t stand you. I need a man that knows when enough is enough and can juggle several positive traits and interests.
13.What is the quality you most like in a woman? Camaraderie. People can say “everyone is an individual” as much as they want to, but there is a profound difference in the way women and men think. I really appreciate my female relationships, and I’m very much aware of the uniqueness of those feminine qualities.
14.Which words or phrases do you most overuse? I say “sir” when I’m mad at someone, and I really like British slang, which makes me a very large loser.
15.What or who is the greatest love of your life? BOYFRIEND is my greatest love, romantically. It’s sappy, I know, but my favorite thing about him is that he challenges me in a lot of ways. I like a good challenge. Interestingly enough, my gut instinct answer to this question, however, was not a romantic one. I think it is naive to think that the only significant "great loves" in life are fulfilled by other people. That isn't always the case. I suppose my ‘what’ would be writing.
16.When and where were you happiest? I feel like it’s natural to pick a day with a big monumental event, or a day in our childhoods when we didn’t have any worries. It’s weird because the other day I was thinking that if someone asked me “what was the happiest day of your life,” they would be really disappointed in the answer. It was actually the day that I got my very last graded college paper back. It was actually sort of a sad moment, because I got an ‘A’ and got a lot of praise, but I was walking around campus to all of my favorite buildings and I was crying (wow how embarrassing) thinking about how much I love and would miss college. But at the same time I was incredibly comfortable and happy knowing that I knew who I was as a person. I’ve always been very proud of the fact that I’m comfortable with who I am and that I know very specifically what it is that makes me happy.
17.Which talent would you most like to have? I wish I had a more creative mind visually. I’m creative in very technical ways, but I have a hard time with original visual things.
18.If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? I might tone down my cynicism. Working in newspapers has made that grow, and I used to be a much more trusting individual.
19.What do you consider your greatest achievement? I suppose it’s worth mentioning that I managed to become a newspaper editor by the age of 23. I’m pretty proud of that. Mostly my greatest achievement is finding a way to make myself a writer. I think it takes a certain amount of bravery to follow your heart when you’re picking your career.
20.If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? I think it would be interesting to be a dolphin, and they’re intelligent beings that have sex for pleasure. Score.
21.Where would you most like to live? I don’t care much where I live. I care more about who is around me. I also actually enjoy the idea of moving a lot. I’ve always had a lot of conflicting wishes. I suppose if I could have my family and friends nearby, a few of the places I would enjoy living for a while are Paris, Portland, San Francisco, New York City, Chicago, Denver, and DC.
22.What is your most treasured possession? Hmmm, I don’t really have one, which is strange because I have a lot of collections and trinkets and memory boxes that mean a lot to me. But I could live without all of them. I suppose I would say Lacie, my portable hard drive, because it has all my manuscripts and music on it.
23.What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? Boredom
24.What is your favorite occupation? Writer
25.What is your most marked characteristic? My sense of humor is pretty recognizable.
26.What do you most value in your friends? Trust and reliability
27.Who are your favorite writers? Oh man… the golden question. Cormac McCarthy, Martin Amis, Ayn Rand, Dennis Potter, Paulo Coelho, Joyce Carol Oates, Dosteovsky, J.K. Rowling, Roald Dahl and Dr. Seuss are a few.
28.Who is your hero of fiction? I quite enjoy Equality 7-2521 from “Anthem.” I’ve read that book so many times, and that character does so much with so little time on the page. He epitomizes the human condition, which is exactly what fictional characters are supposed to do.
29.Which historical figure do you most identify with? I don’t identify with any that I can think of, just because we don’t hear about a historical figure’s past prior to achieving awesomeness. I think it’s safe to say that I have not achieved that level of prowess yet. But I do identify with Ayn Rand a lot in that she felt very “ahead” of cultural ideologies. She could feel them molding the world in a way that she didn’t approve of, and I can relate to that in a lot of ways. The only way she felt she could deal with it was to magnify her fears in the form of writing in order to force people to consider the consequences of their actions, or in many cases inaction. I can really identify with that feeling.
30.Who are your heroes in real life? I don't have heroes, but I have a new found respect for my parents, who I am only just now getting to know from an adult perspective.
31.What are your favorite names? I really like William for boys. I like Emma for girls. I generally also like most reasonable unusual names, but that does not include celebrity made-up names.
32.What is it that you most dislike? Um. Spiders. And pubic hair that is not attached to a person.
33.What is your greatest regret? Not buying chocolate ice cream at the store a few days ago.
34.How would you like to die? Feeling fulfilled, and with dignity.
35.What is your motto? That mottos are limiting and gimmicky.
Oh man, have I got something epic for you. The very first official chain survey of any significance dates back to the 19th century. The Proust Questionnaire has its origins in a parlor game popularized (though not devised) by Marcel Proust, the French essayist and novelist, who believed that, in answering these questions, an individual reveals his or her true nature. It is, in essence, the most awesomest of awesome surveys ever devised. Vanity Fair uses this interview in almost every major interview they do, and James Lipton of Inside the Actors Studio rambles off a shortened version on his wonderful show. The basic Proust Questionnaire is below.
Disclaimer: I will attempt to answer these questions as honestly as possible without acting like a show pony. If and when a joke is inserted, it is only because it seemed appropriate at the time, not in order to amuse you. Let’s see my nature REVEALED! (magic!)
1.What is your idea of perfect happiness? A river cottage in upstate New York where I write my bestselling novels and play the part of sexy, gardening mom.
2.What is your greatest fear? Failure
3.What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? Deplore is a strong word. I don’t know that I deplore anything about myself. I’d be my own friend. But I guess in some ways, my tendency to analyze and analyze and refuse to classify things as black or white (which also happens to be one of my favorite things about myself) can be somewhat debilitating when I’m trying to make a quick decision.
4.What is the trait you most deplore in others? Apathy and ignorance together are the perfect storm for me. I will give you a 20-yard stare until you are no longer in my presence. I’ve heard my looks of disgust are also fairly obvious.
5.Which living person do you most admire? Good question. What’s unusual about me is that I spend very little time admiring actual people, unless it is for something simple like managing to be hot and intelligent at the same time. I prefer to admire works in and of themselves, rather than the people that put them together. I guess I admire really talented writers the most, but the fact is that no one was able to do anything without the help of someone or something else.
6.What is your greatest extravagance? I tend to let myself go when it comes to being introverted. I forget to remind myself to do things that I need to do, because I’ve grown up with this idealistic view of what it is to enjoy life. I end up spending a lot of my time and energy cooking or sitting alone with a coffee and thinking. If I were to cut that time in half and spend it working on my current stories in progress, I’d be done by now.
7.What is your current state of mind? Relaxed, but edgy. I’m very much aware that this the weekend is upon me and yet I have 5,000 things to do. I’m not very good with down time, and I seldom know how to handle it properly.
8.What do you consider the most overrated virtue? I'm not going to say, because I don't want to be burned at the stake. That's what my other blog is for.
9.On what occasion do you lie? When I haven’t sufficiently figured out how to handle the ramifications of telling the truth, which is a seldom case, but occurs from time to time. Usually I lie by keeping my mouth shut until I’m ready to debate.
10.What do you most dislike about your appearance? I wish I was taller with longer legs. I have a long torso that makes my legs look stumpy.
11.Which living person do you most despise? You know, I bet a lot of people would put down actors or rude people they know, but I have more of an issue with people that knowingly misuse their power. A lot of people out there aren’t intelligent enough to be fully aware of their power of influence, but those that are and misuse it (to me) are deplorable.
12.What is the quality you most like in a man? Variety. I feel like most positive traits that I would say (such as confidence, opinionated, being considerate, honest, romantic) have a breaking point. There’s always a tipping point where too much of a good thing turns into the reason I can’t stand you. I need a man that knows when enough is enough and can juggle several positive traits and interests.
13.What is the quality you most like in a woman? Camaraderie. People can say “everyone is an individual” as much as they want to, but there is a profound difference in the way women and men think. I really appreciate my female relationships, and I’m very much aware of the uniqueness of those feminine qualities.
14.Which words or phrases do you most overuse? I say “sir” when I’m mad at someone, and I really like British slang, which makes me a very large loser.
15.What or who is the greatest love of your life? BOYFRIEND is my greatest love, romantically. It’s sappy, I know, but my favorite thing about him is that he challenges me in a lot of ways. I like a good challenge. Interestingly enough, my gut instinct answer to this question, however, was not a romantic one. I think it is naive to think that the only significant "great loves" in life are fulfilled by other people. That isn't always the case. I suppose my ‘what’ would be writing.
16.When and where were you happiest? I feel like it’s natural to pick a day with a big monumental event, or a day in our childhoods when we didn’t have any worries. It’s weird because the other day I was thinking that if someone asked me “what was the happiest day of your life,” they would be really disappointed in the answer. It was actually the day that I got my very last graded college paper back. It was actually sort of a sad moment, because I got an ‘A’ and got a lot of praise, but I was walking around campus to all of my favorite buildings and I was crying (wow how embarrassing) thinking about how much I love and would miss college. But at the same time I was incredibly comfortable and happy knowing that I knew who I was as a person. I’ve always been very proud of the fact that I’m comfortable with who I am and that I know very specifically what it is that makes me happy.
17.Which talent would you most like to have? I wish I had a more creative mind visually. I’m creative in very technical ways, but I have a hard time with original visual things.
18.If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? I might tone down my cynicism. Working in newspapers has made that grow, and I used to be a much more trusting individual.
19.What do you consider your greatest achievement? I suppose it’s worth mentioning that I managed to become a newspaper editor by the age of 23. I’m pretty proud of that. Mostly my greatest achievement is finding a way to make myself a writer. I think it takes a certain amount of bravery to follow your heart when you’re picking your career.
20.If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? I think it would be interesting to be a dolphin, and they’re intelligent beings that have sex for pleasure. Score.
21.Where would you most like to live? I don’t care much where I live. I care more about who is around me. I also actually enjoy the idea of moving a lot. I’ve always had a lot of conflicting wishes. I suppose if I could have my family and friends nearby, a few of the places I would enjoy living for a while are Paris, Portland, San Francisco, New York City, Chicago, Denver, and DC.
22.What is your most treasured possession? Hmmm, I don’t really have one, which is strange because I have a lot of collections and trinkets and memory boxes that mean a lot to me. But I could live without all of them. I suppose I would say Lacie, my portable hard drive, because it has all my manuscripts and music on it.
23.What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? Boredom
24.What is your favorite occupation? Writer
25.What is your most marked characteristic? My sense of humor is pretty recognizable.
26.What do you most value in your friends? Trust and reliability
27.Who are your favorite writers? Oh man… the golden question. Cormac McCarthy, Martin Amis, Ayn Rand, Dennis Potter, Paulo Coelho, Joyce Carol Oates, Dosteovsky, J.K. Rowling, Roald Dahl and Dr. Seuss are a few.
28.Who is your hero of fiction? I quite enjoy Equality 7-2521 from “Anthem.” I’ve read that book so many times, and that character does so much with so little time on the page. He epitomizes the human condition, which is exactly what fictional characters are supposed to do.
29.Which historical figure do you most identify with? I don’t identify with any that I can think of, just because we don’t hear about a historical figure’s past prior to achieving awesomeness. I think it’s safe to say that I have not achieved that level of prowess yet. But I do identify with Ayn Rand a lot in that she felt very “ahead” of cultural ideologies. She could feel them molding the world in a way that she didn’t approve of, and I can relate to that in a lot of ways. The only way she felt she could deal with it was to magnify her fears in the form of writing in order to force people to consider the consequences of their actions, or in many cases inaction. I can really identify with that feeling.
30.Who are your heroes in real life? I don't have heroes, but I have a new found respect for my parents, who I am only just now getting to know from an adult perspective.
31.What are your favorite names? I really like William for boys. I like Emma for girls. I generally also like most reasonable unusual names, but that does not include celebrity made-up names.
32.What is it that you most dislike? Um. Spiders. And pubic hair that is not attached to a person.
33.What is your greatest regret? Not buying chocolate ice cream at the store a few days ago.
34.How would you like to die? Feeling fulfilled, and with dignity.
35.What is your motto? That mottos are limiting and gimmicky.
New beginnings
Welcome to the technological fast train.
So at the end of February, all of the reporters within Heritage Newspapers and Journal Register Company got their very own Flip camera. It is an HD video camera roughly the size of an iPod that can be carried around easily.
So for the past few weeks, myself and other writers/editors/advertisers in Washtenaw County have been getting technologically prepped, posting videos, creating Facebook and Twitter pages, etc. I even set up a little profile at formspring.me/janawritesalot in case anyone felt like asking me a direct (possibly anonymous) question. You should know, however, that it is *incredibly* glitchy. Sometimes responses don't show up for days, sometimes they disappear. But on the whole, it's pretty amusing. Anyway, I would encourage you to become a fan of the Manchester Enterprise page on Facebook and to follow us on Twitter @ManchEnterprise. It can't hurt.
On a note unrelated to my work, I had a very busy couple of weeks on my personal blog... where I live blogged the Oscars, posted a few cute animal videos, and broke down an analysis of the recently-released Eclipse trailer (Twilight saga). Most people who know me are aware of my fandom. I have a poster of Edward Cullen and Bella Swan hanging over my desk at work. HOWEVER, I am not insane about it. Sure, I'll see the movies more than once in theaters (ok, maybe more like four or five), but I'm not going to scream and do back flips or anything. But people are aware of my excitement over these things, so a lot of people were asking my opinion on the third book, third movie, the trailer, etc. I finally responded. Here's an excerpt from the post:
And thus, the territorial peeing contest over Bella Swan (Eclipse) begins:
Edward: I love you, Bella. *broods*
Bella: I love you but I hate age.
Edward: Ewww... you as a vamp saddens me.
Bella: If you really loved me, you'd change me tomorrow.
Edward: No I wouldn't.
Bella: Or would you?
Edward: Nope.
Bella: *squinty eyes*
Edward: No.
Bella: .....
Edward: .....
Bella: Am I a vamp yet?
Also, I did see Alice in Wonderland recently. Some might recall that I was uber excited about this one since it was sort of my perfect artistic storm, because A) Alice in Wonderland was my favorite book/story growing up, B) I am in love with Tim Burton and everything he touches, and C) I wish Johnny Depp was my best friend. Our sprite of a movie reviewer (yeah, the 13-year-old Roger Ebert Mini Me) wasn't impressed. I'll buy that, mostly because he doesn't share my obsessions and I can see how the actual plot development would be considered dull by normal people. However, Avatar suffered from those same script weaknesses and still managed to be nominated for best picture at the oscars and won the golden globe. If that was all based on visuals, then I think we might as well afford Alice and Wonderland the same courtesy. Ryan also hated both Twilight movies. He's a boy, so I guess that's alright. But if he disses one more of my movies, I'm going to bring out the rebuttal big guns.
Hmmm... lots going on this week. Manchester basketball teams were heavy into post-season stuff, the wrestlers went to the individual state finals, the crazy cash night went down (it was so CRAZY!), and people continued to show up angry at Sharon Township board meetings. All in all, not a bad week. Except for the dairy farm barn fire that took place in Freedom Township... that was not so good. It also awakened Smoky the Bear from his grave because the kids that started it forgot their lessons about matches. Yeah, they were playing with matches... in/near a straw- and hay-filled barn... not smart.
On the horizon is the Meet the Candidates forum in the Ackerson building board room. I'm moderating and will be assembling questions in the next few weeks. I would encourage that you leave a comment on this post if there is a specific topic/question you'd like me to ask. Or, as an alternative, you can tell me in person on Sunday. I'll be at Linda's Diner Sunday at noon until about 1:30 p.m. Ask me if you dare.
Fin.
P.S.
I'm way overdue on linkspam. It isn't that I haven't been reading news, and it isn't that I don't have links to share... I just haven't organized them in a way that makes sense for this blog. I'm trying to spare you all the girly news.
Also, this happened. CLOMP! CLOMP! CLOMP!
So at the end of February, all of the reporters within Heritage Newspapers and Journal Register Company got their very own Flip camera. It is an HD video camera roughly the size of an iPod that can be carried around easily.
So for the past few weeks, myself and other writers/editors/advertisers in Washtenaw County have been getting technologically prepped, posting videos, creating Facebook and Twitter pages, etc. I even set up a little profile at formspring.me/janawritesalot in case anyone felt like asking me a direct (possibly anonymous) question. You should know, however, that it is *incredibly* glitchy. Sometimes responses don't show up for days, sometimes they disappear. But on the whole, it's pretty amusing. Anyway, I would encourage you to become a fan of the Manchester Enterprise page on Facebook and to follow us on Twitter @ManchEnterprise. It can't hurt.
On a note unrelated to my work, I had a very busy couple of weeks on my personal blog... where I live blogged the Oscars, posted a few cute animal videos, and broke down an analysis of the recently-released Eclipse trailer (Twilight saga). Most people who know me are aware of my fandom. I have a poster of Edward Cullen and Bella Swan hanging over my desk at work. HOWEVER, I am not insane about it. Sure, I'll see the movies more than once in theaters (ok, maybe more like four or five), but I'm not going to scream and do back flips or anything. But people are aware of my excitement over these things, so a lot of people were asking my opinion on the third book, third movie, the trailer, etc. I finally responded. Here's an excerpt from the post:
And thus, the territorial peeing contest over Bella Swan (Eclipse) begins:
Edward: I love you, Bella. *broods*
Bella: I love you but I hate age.
Edward: Ewww... you as a vamp saddens me.
Bella: If you really loved me, you'd change me tomorrow.
Edward: No I wouldn't.
Bella: Or would you?
Edward: Nope.
Bella: *squinty eyes*
Edward: No.
Bella: .....
Edward: .....
Bella: Am I a vamp yet?
Also, I did see Alice in Wonderland recently. Some might recall that I was uber excited about this one since it was sort of my perfect artistic storm, because A) Alice in Wonderland was my favorite book/story growing up, B) I am in love with Tim Burton and everything he touches, and C) I wish Johnny Depp was my best friend. Our sprite of a movie reviewer (yeah, the 13-year-old Roger Ebert Mini Me) wasn't impressed. I'll buy that, mostly because he doesn't share my obsessions and I can see how the actual plot development would be considered dull by normal people. However, Avatar suffered from those same script weaknesses and still managed to be nominated for best picture at the oscars and won the golden globe. If that was all based on visuals, then I think we might as well afford Alice and Wonderland the same courtesy. Ryan also hated both Twilight movies. He's a boy, so I guess that's alright. But if he disses one more of my movies, I'm going to bring out the rebuttal big guns.
Hmmm... lots going on this week. Manchester basketball teams were heavy into post-season stuff, the wrestlers went to the individual state finals, the crazy cash night went down (it was so CRAZY!), and people continued to show up angry at Sharon Township board meetings. All in all, not a bad week. Except for the dairy farm barn fire that took place in Freedom Township... that was not so good. It also awakened Smoky the Bear from his grave because the kids that started it forgot their lessons about matches. Yeah, they were playing with matches... in/near a straw- and hay-filled barn... not smart.
On the horizon is the Meet the Candidates forum in the Ackerson building board room. I'm moderating and will be assembling questions in the next few weeks. I would encourage that you leave a comment on this post if there is a specific topic/question you'd like me to ask. Or, as an alternative, you can tell me in person on Sunday. I'll be at Linda's Diner Sunday at noon until about 1:30 p.m. Ask me if you dare.
Fin.
P.S.
I'm way overdue on linkspam. It isn't that I haven't been reading news, and it isn't that I don't have links to share... I just haven't organized them in a way that makes sense for this blog. I'm trying to spare you all the girly news.
Also, this happened. CLOMP! CLOMP! CLOMP!
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