TMI Tuesday #193 (rebroadcast)

1. How many speeding tickets have you had? Accidents? - Officially, a vast majority of my "speeding" tickets came during the time that Montana had no speed limit (when everyone else was driving 55), so if you were caught at 65 or faster, you were given a ticket for "wasting natural resources" ticket (gasoline is natural?). Anyway, it didn't go on your driving record, and the fine was $5. That's five dollars. Payable to the nice highway patrolman on the spot, if you like! Beyond that, I've gotten a ticket for going 25 through a school zone, and pulled over and given a warning numerous times. Actual total? Including the $5 ones? Two dozen wouldn't be out of the question. Accidents--only one that was my fault. I think only 3 or 4 that were the other driver's fault. None of them serious or car-totaling.
2. Boxers, briefs or commando? - Briefs. Tighty whities, and I make no apologies for that.
3. Have you ever had sex in your office or your place of employment? - Yes.
4. Do you or your so own a motorcycle? Do you ever ride one? Do you wear a helmet when you ride? - Don't own one, never ridden one, and probably wouldn't wear a helmet (still not required by state law here, I don't think) unless on the highway. Similar to my seat belt usage...
5. Ever been skinny dipping? - Oh, yes. Many times, though not anytime recently. Even ran into my sister once while skinny dipping in a river in Yellowstone Park. Walked around an outcropping of rocks and bam! there she was. Glad we were both fairly inebriated...
Bonus: Ever been arrested? Turned someone in/had someone arrested? - Yes, I have been arrested, thankyouverymuch. I don't think I've ever turned anyone in. I'm pretty much a "leave well enough alone" sort of guy. If their actions aren't hurting me or others, I let it go. If others are involved, I think I probably would, but I haven't met up with that experience yet.

Be sure to check out the other TMIers!!

Thunderbirds!

Sort of a lazy weekend. Still working on that music transcription that was supposed to be done last weekend. It's been sitting on the back burner for a bit, as the only thing left to do is the boring detail work of preparing each part for printing. Just making sure that notes and text and all the other stuff don't crash into each other, yet still make the part readable. Made a big dent in it all, so only a day or two left!

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I attended the wedding on Saturday of a former student of mine. A good, old-fashioned Catholic wedding. Gotta love 'em. The bride was quite lovely, and the groom looked nervous. It was a bit humorous at times as there were a few times where it sounded like we were getting divebombed (see below).

Fortunately, no lightning bolts crashed down on me for stepping in the doors. It did make me realize that it's been an inexcusably long time since I've been to Mass. Might have to do something about that...

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The other excitement of the weekend was the air show that was in town. Special guests were the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds. In years past when they come to town, I'd sit up on a hillside that looks over the entire valley and get an almost 360° view of them. Unfortunately, there are now townhouses built on that site. So I opted to just watch from my balcony.

Damn, I would love to have been a pilot! Though I'm sure that I'd be throwing up in the cockpit on a regular basis. They were a joy to observe. And loud?? OMG! The buzzed past the church a few times as they were warming up for their Saturday show. Seriously...dust was falling from the light fixtures! I got home in time to watch their Saturday show, and kicked myself for not taking pictures. So I took care of that Sunday. I took almost 60 pictures, but maybe got 15 where a fighter was actually in the shot. I had my digital zoom on full, and it was hard to catch them in the viewfinder. And if they were close (and many times, they were only a few hundred feet above the houses) they were damned fast! And I had no luck at all trying to follow. But here's some shots. Click 'em to big 'em! I highly recommend it!

Friday Fill-Ins: #130 and other stuff...

Gosh, what a weird week. First off, I've been a day short all week, thinking that Thursday was Friday. Then the two sad deaths that pretty much took up the day yesterday... Hope the weekend improves!

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Is there any sort of a button that can be pushed to zap Nancy Grace off the face of the earth? Not 4 hours dead, and she was already fixated on some sort of foul play. It's "reporters" like her who are going to make this a circus well into December. Is there anyone so irritating, self-righteous and a waste of airtime as her??

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And...here we go!

1. She had a great time, according to the numerous drunk texts I got from her.

2. My arm is by my side, always.

3. I know this: I will NOT be caught dead watching that new Brüno movie...ever.

4. The best moonshine comes straight from the still.

5. These words apply to me: lacking, wanting, needing, hoping, hurting, confused, insecure--surprised?

6. The birds were chirping and the sun was shining.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to beers with my girls, tomorrow my plans include attending the wedding of a good friend and former student (congrats, Megan!) and Sunday, I want to enjoy the first real nice weekend since about March!

Be sure you check out the other FFIers! I'm off to listen to my "Thriller" CD...

Elvis and Michael

The death of Michael Jackson is as shocking to his generation as John Lennon's was to the prior generation, and Elvis Presley was before that. One could even stretch that shock back to the disappearance of Glenn Miller in the 40s. It's interesting to see the similarities between Elvis and Michael:

Elvis Presley - "King of Rock 'n' Roll"

Michael Jackson - "King of Pop"

EP - Died at the age of 42. Drugs were a contributing factor.

MJ - Died at the age of 50. Drugs were possibly a contributing factor.

EP - Died at home.

MJ - Collapsed at home.

EP - Father of Lisa Marie Presley.

MJ - Husband of Lisa Marie Presley.

EP - White man who sounded like a black man.

MJ - Black man who looked like a white man.

EP - People prefer the image of the younger Elvis.

MJ - People prefer the image of the younger Michael.

EP - Had moves never before seen on TV.

MJ - Had moves never before seen on TV.

EP - Was backed up by the "Jordanaires".

MJ - Was backed up by the "Jacksons".

EP - Served in the military.

MJ - Dressed like he was in the military.

EP - Met the Beatles.

MJ - Bought the rights to the Beatles' music.

EP - Lived at Graceland.

MJ - Lived at Neverland.

Hard to ignore the seedier parts of his life, but the world has lost a consummate performer.

Bad Day for 70s Icons

R.I.P. MJ
1958-2009

Well, the good news is that MTV will be playing Michael Jackson videos all day for a week.

Just like the 80s!

R.I.P.
2/2/47 - 6/25/09

First Days of Summer HNT

In an attempt to shake things up, and get the weather gods to remember that Montanans need at least a passing glimpse of the sun and blue skies, I did this. It appears to be working. We're supposed to be bright, sunny and in the 90s by Thursday! If this helped out anyone else's weather living someplace that's been getting nothing but rain, you're so very welcome!

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They walk on down the beach

Hand in hand

She carries the shell

Innocent as the dawn, hungry for the pulse of life

And the sea murmurs around them

Remember me.

--excerpt from THE SHELL by Roisin Moriarty

This week's Mystery Guest likes spending her time on the beach. Sometimes she'll find a shell. Sometimes just a crab. Sometimes something fallen from the heavens. Some of you will know her, many of you will not. Unfortunately, she's not going to be revealed.

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Be sure to check out the assortment of fellow HNTers over at "...the Other HNT". Leave some comment lovin', too! For whatever reason, things seem to be a bit more graphic this week than usual. Definitely NSFW!

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Rumor has it that the second reincarnation of the OsShirt can be found this week! Not quite as tacky as the original, but definitly tackier than the second. In case you can't find it, I'll be sure to link it on Thursday afternoon. Expect to start seeing it through out the summer!
If you didn't see it already, go check M's site to see the beginning of the new adventures of the OsShirt!

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OK, this is a last minute thing. I saw a commercial tonight for Foster Grant sunglasses, featuring Racquel Welch. Good lord, the woman is 68 years old! Guys--those of you around my age--wasn't she one of the most mysterious, sexy women of our fantasies? Watch this interview clip from one of the morning "news" shows. A year and a half from 70! That's amazing!

Billl-yuns and billl-yuns...

When I'm channel-surfing on TV, I'm finding myself drawn to the History Channel more and more. Perhaps because it's not necessarily all history, but it's part of that Discovery/TLC style of TV. Anyway, tonight there was a big discussion about Gamma Ray Bursts (GRB). Never heard of them? Not too many people have.

These things have the explosive power of "billions of trillions" of our sun. Whatever that means. And many of them occur 12 billion light years away. Though there's some that are significantly closer. Only 7 million light years away... And from observations, there's two types of GBRs--ones that last from 2 to 100 seconds, and those that are significantly shorter.

There's now telescopes and satellites that detect these things (only discovered in the 60s), because, of course, you can't see them without a telescope. It's estimated that there's a new GRB approximately every 100 seconds or so. But we're not sure because if it's not pointed directly at the earth (from 8 million light years away), we won't see it.

And why should we be worried about these things? Because if one actually hits the earth (it's theorized that it could have happened about 450 million years ago), the ozone layer will instantly lose over 40% of its layer, the upper air gasses will turn to nitrogen dioxide or something like that, plunging us into another Ice Age. And all electrical components will be fried, so civilization will be thrown back to the Dark Ages. And that's if it's a GBR from far away. If the nearest star to earth (other than the sun) were to shoot a GBR our way (from only 4.3 light years away), the earth would basically melt, leaving only a rocky core. This is how we lost the dinosaurs, people!

The best part about all this is that there's absolutely nothing that can be done. If it happens, it happens. Without warning, and without defense. And while it could happen in our lifetime, it also might wait for another 450 million years. So what's the point about worrying about it?

It's nights like this where I'm glad that God also allowed us to invent beer.

Music and TMI Tuesday #192

Well, I got one deadline taken care of, but missed the second one. But that's not terribly crucial. I spent just about every minute of the weekend in front of the computer (offline!!!), trying to get this project done. Saturday, in particular. I ended up going to bed late with red, swollen eyes. And that was WITH the glasses! Sunday was a bit easier, but I forced myself to take half-hour breaks. We didn't do the family thing for Father's Day, as the sisters' families were out of town, but I went down and hung out for a bit. Probably the best Father's Day gift was the one that he's given us--he seems to be getting stronger each day. Still not going to run any races, but he doesn't look like death warmed over anymore. The weather was fairly icky all weekend, except for a pretty nice, but short, lightning storm and a 5-minute all-you-can-eat rain dumping. Those were a nice change. Otherwise, it was cold, gray and windy. Happy summer! Now that I've rambled...here's TMI!

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1. Would you stay in a loveless relationship for the amazing sex? - Having not been in any kind of relationship, I can't really know. But probably not.
2. If you could only have one, which would you choose: love that lasts forever or great, body numbing sex? - Everlasting love. (cue some cheesy 70's love ballad...)
3. Looking back at your past loves, which one should you have married/taken back and who should you have tossed earlier than you did? - No question...the girl I dated during grad school is the one I should have married. Should have probably fought harder for her. Or my high school band director's daughter. Toss-up there. There's probably a couple of others I should have pursued, but didn't. I've only really tossed one girl. And I tried tossing her earlier, but she kept coming back. Not that she was a terrible girlfriend--I just had this vision that I was going off to college and she'd be left behind, and I had wild oats to sow! Didn't quite work out that way, but that was my justification...
4. if you had one last fuck in you where, how and who would you “give it” to? - The banks of Lake Coeur d'Alene in Idaho, in a tent, with one of you bloggers (but I'll never tell!).
5. Which is more important sex, money, love and happiness? (and no, you can’t pick’em all) - Well, I've done quite well without sex, money or love, so I'd say happiness gets my vote here.

Be sure to check out the other TMIers!

Friday Fill-Ins: #129 and other stuff...

Weekend plans were shot to hell after a staff meeting on Thursday afternoon. I was informed that I had to have this honkin' big music transcription done this weekend. I was planning on about 4 days after that. So I'll be spending a great deal of time on that, rather than heading up to see Rachel for the weekend. She wasn't a happy camper about it either. She moved away from here over a year ago, and we've seen each other a total of maybe 30 minutes in that time. Not acceptable, Batman!

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Speaking of music, the summer concert is coming up unexpectedly fast. The good news--after producing the past eleven of these, things are somewhat automatic. No sense in re-inventing the wheel! The bad news--my lips haven't touched my trombone since the end of March. The good news--my parts for the summer concert are easy (sight-readable easy), so I'll only need a couple of days of practice to get my chops back into shape. The bad news--well...I'll have to come up with something. Nothing's coming to mind.

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This week's questions are from Tamy at 3sidesofcrazy; thanks, Tamy!

And...here we go!

1. All children alarm their parents, if only because you are forever expecting them not to do the same things you did at their age.

2. Show me a good loser and I will show you a person who needs to learn to win more often.

3. Eating Milky Ways and drinking beer, under the right circumstances, is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs at one time.

4. Too bad that all the people who know how to run the country are busy running their own lives and living in relative obscurity.

5. I have yet to hear a man ask for advice on how to combine lace and camouflage.

6. It is impossible to think of any good meal, no matter how plain or elegant, without onion or barbecue sauce in it.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to getting my transcription finished, tomorrow my plans include copying music and Sunday, I want to live like I was dying!

Be sure you check out the other FFIers!

Early Morning HNT

I was all set to do a post about how I always get up to catch the sunrise on the first day of summer, and take a picture of it for the blog, but I'll be damned if I can find those posts from years past... Maybe it was some other early morning thing, but I know for a fact they've been taken!! Really!

In any case, the summer solstice occurs this Sunday. The longest day of the year for most of the Northern Hemisphere (I found it interesting that it's not necessarily the longest in certain places...odd). It's also Father's Day! I'm taking the picture now, because the difference in the length of day between this morning and Sunday is something like 18 seconds. Close enough for me! Besides, I'll most likely be fast asleep while visiting Rachel for the weekend. But Lord knows, she's a party animal, so we may just stay up all night to watch the sunrise!

Anyway, I figure if Dana can do this, then so can I. No make-up, bed head, swollen eyes. This is me at 5:35 AM MDT. Top o' the mornin' to ya!

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This week's saucy Mystery Guest can't start her morning without that first cup of coffee. That early morning ritual before she has to face the world. She's a true geek. She's a bitch. She's a lover. And all the rest of the lyrics of that song!

"Life is short. Stay awake for it."

Wishing You Were Here . . .
by Karen Suriano
Last night was wonderful making love to you
My fingers instinctively knew just what to do
If I could play piano like my hands played you
I’d be a hit anywhere, in any venue
Absolutely fabulous making love to you
Maybe next time you could be there too
But alone with the sunrise, I'll fire up the brew
God knows I need my coffee more than I need you

This week's coffee-loving Mystery Guest is the rarely-shy Saucy Wildcat! Be sure to get another view of her coffee on her site!

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"...the Other HNT" is going through some changes. I caved in and moved it over to "new" Blogger. So it's still being tweaked a bit. One new addition is a widget in the sidebar. It will constantly play through a slideshow of the most recent OHNTs. Best part--you can steal it for your own sidebar, if you desire! Just click the tab at the bottom of the widget and follow the instructions! Not for everyone, but many of you might be interested! Check it out, as well as your fellow HNTers! Definitely NSFW this week.

Random Thoughts

"Lonesome Dove" was on AMC this weekend. What a great mini-series that was. And I despise mini-series! Hard to believe that came out 20 years ago!

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Someone downstairs was making blueberry muffins or pancakes yesterday morning. Bastards.

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Had my share of fresh asparagus at Dad's bday thing Sunday night. I LOVES me the asparagus, but please, whose idea was the smell thing...?

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I've written in the past how I have no screen door to my balcony, but I leave it open during the day just to get some ventilation through the house. Came home today and found bird poop on my computer. Wasn't for another hour before I heard the chirping. One of the babies had flown into my bedroom and was chirping with momma bird (or whomever) that is residing in the nest this year. It apparently could fly in short bursts, but got confused in the hallways and rooms. I was able to corner it and scoop it up and just tossed it back out on the balcony. A much better result than the past couple of springs...

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I have a staff meeting tomorrow after work, and then meeting up with the girls for beers. But never fear, I'll be back in time for HNT!

More pictures, and TMI Tuesday #191 (weddings edition)

OK, since the TMI answers this week are a bit boring on my part, I'll regale you with more pictures from the family archives. I can really tell you're excited! (click em to big em!)

First off, my mother's parents. These are their HS graduation photos, which would be around 1929. One can begin to see where my incredibly good looks come from!


Next, obviously, would be my mom. Yeah. She was a hottie!


Finally, the kids. For comparison purposes, I'm including the Mother's Day picture from a couple of weeks ago.

L to R: S3, Me, S2, S1 | L to R: S1, Me, S3, S2

Yes, there will be even more of this sort of thing coming as I continue scanning!

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Have you ever...

1. been married? - Nope.
2. been divorced? been remarried? - Nope and nope.
3. had sex at a wedding reception? - Not at the reception, but later that night! With the maid of honor!!
4. had sex with someone you first met at a wedding or wedding reception? - Nope.
5. given a a toast to the bride and groom? - I don't recall. I gave away S1 at her second wedding, but I'm not sure if I gave a toast or not. I think I probably did. And I did at my parent's 50th anniversary reception, too!

Bonus (as in optional): What is the funniest thing you've seen or done at a wedding? - Nothing at a wedding, really, but I've played at more receptions than I can possibly remember. The two most memorable ones--a reception on a ranch about 20 miles into the mountains. Probably a 2 to 1 ratio of girls to guys. None of the guys bothered to dance, so we had 20-30 babes (and they were ALL babes) dancing in front of the band the entire time. That was definitely memorable! The oddest would have been the one held at a world-class fishing resort (this is Montana, after all). About 4 of the girls (2 of them in their bridesmaid dresses), started doing "The Worm". I don't know why, other than their extreme intoxication level. Of course, this is a picture of them!
Bonus II (as in optional): What is the best toast for the wedding couples? - One that comes from the heart of the person making the toast. I don't think there's a "set" toast, otherwise everyone would be using it!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Dad turns 76 today. We got together and threw some very thick steaks on the grill yesterday to celebrate. And we drank beer. And Mom pulled out more old pictures for me to scan, which the grandchildren loved going through. My nieces officially declared that their great-grandfather was H-O-T. He'll grace a post sometime in the future...

Didn't take any decent pictures of anyone. Especially Dad. So instead, I thought I'd try to find a picture of him at the same age as I am right now. And this is it. My graduation day for my Master's degree. Ignore the 28 y.o. dork on the left (where's the camera??). Dad is about a week shy of 52 here, which is as close as I could get.

Happy Birthday, Dad! Hope you're around for quite a few more!

Friday Fill-Ins: #128 and other stuff...

Dad's back in Billings right now. Apparently they didn't zap his pacemaker the last time he was down there (which makes me wonder why he was down there the last time--I really need to talk to my parents more...). Anyway, it's fairly routine, and should be back late Friday afternoon. His 76th birthday is Monday, so we'll do the family birthday/BBQ (sorry, M!) thing on Sunday afternoon. He seems to be doing much better, now that he's ambulatory!

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Was disturbed by something on Thursday. A case of blind sheep, really. Now, I'll be the first to admit that HNT is similar in that regard. You guys will generally do whatever theme I might call up. But that's just for fun. What bothered me yesterday were the actions of a particular blogger that I would consider inappropriate, somewhat self-serving, and quite possibly unwelcomed. And the number of people that followed suit was just as disturbing. I know I'm not the only one that feels the same way, but I wonder if we're in the minority. The actions taken certainly weren't malicious or anything like that, but I question the intent. Confused? I do what I can!

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Spring is making another attempt at making itself known around here. After the snow on Monday, it's been getting warmer each day, and the sun is coming out more. Hope it's a continuing trend!

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Still plugging away on this music transcription I'm working on. I've finally gotten all the actual notes entered, and am now concentrating on including dynamics, articulations, and all the little detail stuff, as well as proofreading it all. Long and a bit tedious, but I'm almost done!

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And...here we go!

1. I grew up thinking, then decided it really wasn't worth it.

2. By "here", I'm assuming the FFI site to pick up this week's sentences, so Rumblings and Bumblings was the last website I was at before coming here.

3. Why don't you and I call it a day and start the weekend?

4. The sound of water in motion not only makes me want to pee, but it helps me relax.

5. Thanks for the mammaries.

6. Snottiness is very off-putting.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to hopefully finishing this transcription, tomorrow my plans include spending money I don't have and Sunday, I want to drink beers with my dad to help celebrate his birthday!

A Good Day for HNT

It's been sort of a weird day today. Didn't get any decent sleep all night. I got to bed sometime past 1 AM. Then the phone kept beeping at me. Either mid-night phone calls or Facebook alerts (wonder what I did--I never get FB alerts on my phone...). The last one came right around 5:30 AM(thanks, Biscuit!), and by that time, the sun was almost coming up, so I figured I'd just stay up.

What a great morning! Spent about three hours working on this music transcription for the symphony, fixed a little breakfast (I never eat breakfast), and got to work a little bit early! I might have to start getting up early on a regular basis!

Work was fairly busy, but I also got in some good chat time, and that's always fun! Also got a beer drinking date firmed up for next week!

Came home to work on HNT/OHNT, and got an unexpected phone call from someone I hadn't talked to in a long time. She was on the road and wanted some company, and I was more than happy to provide it! Reminded me how nice it is to hear a voice, rather than just read words...

What does any of this have to do with my HNT? Absolutely nothing. This is just a bit of Photoshop experimenting. Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do!

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"I been all around this great big world
And I seen all kinds of girls
Yeah, but I couldn't wait to get back in the States
Back to the cutest girls in the world.

I wish they all could be California
I wish they all could be California
I wish they all could be California girls..."

OK--not very good with the clues. I know she used to live in NYC. And she doesn't live in the US at the moment. But she could certainly pass as a California Girl! Don't get hyper--I'll be revealing her Thursday afternoon. But be sure to stop by if you think you know who it is before then!
Some of you figured this one out right away! The MG this week is HyperSexualGirl! Be sure to stop by and check out some other shots from this shoot!

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A little bit of something for everyone over at "...the Other HNT"! Be sure to stop by and check out your fellow HNTers! NSFW, as always!

More Cuteness and TMI Tuesday #190

Now that I've got my scanner up and running, you're going to be subject to my insufferably cute pictures from the past. Not too many, but a few. Because I can!

Fifty years later, and I still have the same haircut!

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Have you ever...

1. had sex with someone ten years older or younger than you? - Older, no. Younger, yes.
2. drawn from a nude model or been a nude model? - I have no artistic ability, so no opportunity to draw a nude model. And no, I've never been a nude model. That I'm aware of...
3. had sex at a company Christmas party? - Never been to any sort of company Christmas party where I'd want to have sex with someone (or they were far too young). Back in grad school, however...
4. had a blind date? - Just once. And it was enough to make me not want to ever do it again. Nothing particularly bad. Just not "me".
5. slept with a teacher? - Yes. But then again, I used to be a teacher. As a student, with one of my own teachers? No.
Bonus (as in optional): had sex with someone within an hour of meeting them? Never had that level of game.

Be sure to check out the other TMIers!

For the non-believers...

(click it to big it)

This was taken this morning at 10:14 MDT.
You can see the snow falling on the right.
Missed the really big flakes from earlier though.
Those of you enjoying your humid 90° weather...
C'mon up!

Commercials, Rookies and Graduation

Spent the entire weekend inside with a mix of a mildly upset tummy, crummy weather and the music transcription I've been working on. And some extra sleep. All in all, not such a bad weekend.

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I never intended this blog to turn into an "I-hate-this/that-commercial" blog, but I've found another odd one that I don't like. The current Toyota Prius commercials have the weird landscapes that are actually people dressed as grasses or flowers or water or trees, etc. Add the weird a cappella vocal arrangement, and it's become my most recent hated commercial. Don't worry, the one for Wendy's Coffee Toffee thing will regain it's #1 spot!

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Speaking of commercials, is there something similar to imdb.com for commercial actors and voice-overs?

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I'm not one that normally watches "Ice Road Truckers", but season 3 has started, and they've got rookie drivers. Lisa is my favorite. Are you kidding me?? A 28-y.o. hot chick who can drive a semi? Wish I knew someone like that! I might have to start watching on a regular basis!

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Dana wrote a post last Wednesday about graduation parties/gifts/hoopla, and questioned their necessity at various stages of life. Personally, I agreed with most of what she said. Then it got me to thinking. I actually "graduated" from kindergarten (46 years ago...). Which then got me to thinking--could I find my "diploma"? The answer is below (too big to scan completely)! Along with a really cute kid!

Friday Fill-Ins: #127 and other stuff...

Other stuff first...No gizzards tonight, but lots of beer. And a bigger group of people. Good times all around.

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On a more somber note... The big news in town today is the shooting spree on Wednesday night. A 17 y.o. kid was arrested for killing a 16 y.o., and seriously injuring two other kids. All because of the flirting with a 15 y.o. girl. The shooter actually lured the 3 others away from a crowded part of town to a hillside, where the three victims thought they were getting into a fist fight. The shooter simply said, "I'm not going to fight fair," and shot the dead kid point blank. He then chased after the other two, shooting one twice, and the other one SIX times. The regular chorus of "I can't believe he'd do that" has chimed in, and there's no indication that it's gang related (there's arguments as to whether there's really any gang activity in this town). Anyway, everyone has an opinion...

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And...here we go!

1. Tonight, I might not really have been in condition to drive home.

2. My favorite thing for dinner lately has been chocolate milk!

3. Snort! snort! snort! bark! bark! bark!

4. A nice long walk off a short plank will generally get you wet.

5. We can't always expect some good news.

6. When all is said and done, turn around, drop your drawers, and moon the crowd.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to relaxing, tomorrow my plans include scanning some old photos onto my computer and Sunday, I want to fly in a helicopter, but don't anticipate that's going to happen!

Bitchy HNT

I had an idea for this week's HNT, but the pictures I took didn't do a thing for me, so I bagged that idea and went to a standby. But I'd like to bitch first. Nothing bloggie-related, don't worry!

Two new sets of neighbors in the area. Someone moved into the apartment across the street. They spent about 45 minutes early last night revving up a motorcycle in the bed of a pickup truck. This afternoon, the kid roared up on it, being sure to rev it up high before turning it off. He's going to be upset when he sees the large scratch across his gas tank. The other set of neighbors moved into the adjoining apartment building. Not quite sure how they can afford an apartment, other than they probably sell drugs. I don't think either of them can be older than 21, based on dress, look, friends and girls. They seem to be very proud of their car. It's a piece of crap, actually, but must have a couple thousand dollars worth of sound equipment. Including a very powerful subwoofer. This was a fairly quiet neighborhood, but now we get the incessant thump-thump which, swear to God, causes ripples in glass of water 150 yards away, and two rooms into my apartment! Perhaps the motorcycle guys will find the screwdriver used to scratch their gas tank on top of the P.O.S. car! :-)

One block away from me, there is a major water line/road reconstruction project going on. that in itself isn't so bad, but the streets that are closed to traffic force me to take a roundabout way to get home, easily adding a half mile to my route. Doesn't seem like much, but it's the little things...

The price of stamps went up again. Not sure when that happened. Thanks to online banking, the last stamps I bought were the 37¢ ones. Obviously, I need to write more letters...

I really hate the commercials for Wendy's Coffee Toffee Thingy Drink. Do we really need to see it 4 times/hour? Almost makes me wish for the Burger King Kingon ads...

After a gloriously beautiful weekend, we've gone back to cooler temps and gray, cloudy skies. Fortunately, it hasn't rained, but still...

Due to the crack in my computer monitor, and the resulting "bleed" (I should really take a picture), I can't even see the menu bar at the top (which is crucial on Macs). I've done some searching for a way to move it to the bottom, even if it means getting into that weird coding stuff that, if you screw up, kills your computer. Unfortunately, there doesn't appear to be a fix. Time to start saving up money for a new one, I guess...

OK, I think that's enough for the bitching. Here's my HNT!

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This week's Mystery Guest is a bit of an enigma. There is so much that we know about her, as she's quite prolific in her writing, yet there is so much more that we don't! She's very good at keeping the stories and the fantasies and the fiction in rotation, so that you never quite know which you're reading! I can say that she loves seduction (especially if she's doing the seducing)! Subtlety does not become her. She'll be revealed late Thursday afternoon, but if you know her, be sure to stop by and say hi to her!
I knew I 'd get some of you! Our MG this week is Kimberly from "The Errant Wife"! If you haven't been by there yet (or even if you have), stop by and say hi!

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Be sure to check out your fellow HNTers at "...the Other HNT"! There's a little something for everyone! Mostly NSFW, of course.

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Beers and gizzards Thursday afternoon with my high school friends! There may or may not be some drunk texts forthcoming!

TMI Tuesday #189 - Dating Edition

1. What was the last movie you saw on a date? - Well, loosely using the term "date", it would probably have been either Brokeback Mountain with Rachel, or the last of the Star Wars movies with Kamey. Whichever was released later. I'm not much of a movie-goer.
2. What was the last meal you had on a date? - Again, loosely using the term "date", I suppose it was the lunch I had with Vixen a couple of weeks ago, before missing my flight...
3. When was the last time you made out in the car on a date? More? - I have absolutely no idea. Probably at least two cars ago...
4. Using a dating websites do you think you are more likely to find a "hook up" or a relationship? - One can always find sex on a dating website. I think expecting to find a relationship through dating website is as unrealistic as finding one during your first trip to a biker bar in Sturgis during Harley Week.
5. Do you have any special "first" date rituals? Flowers, certain restaurant, etc. - Shower. Brush my teeth. Floss. Shave. Use deodorant. Wear relatively clean clothes.

BONUS QUESTION: Do you believe in sex on the first date? Can a relationship bloom if you have sex on the first date? - I would have to say no to both. I can honestly say that I've never done it on a first date. I'm from that ancient era where that just didn't happen. Where sex was primarily only with someone you had at least a minimal emotional connection with. Which isn't to say that I didn't pick someone up from the bar--can't really count that as a date. But I can only think of twice when that happened. Based on those experiences, a relationship might appear to bloom, but dies pretty quickly.

Be sure to check out the other TMIers!