Angel

Dream blogging again. The main thing I remember about last night's dreams though is that I was looking for Angel at Pitt-Bradford, and there were all these nerds standing around comparing notes on him. And I do mean nerds, not geeks. All of them were wearing thick black glasses and talking about Angel like he was a comic book hero. And a lot of the stuff they were saying was wrong. Like they kept saying he had an alter ego, like Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne. I also remember in this dream that I was singing "If You're Not In It for Love (I'm Outta Here)" by Shania Twain in an elevator, and dancing and watching myself on the security camera.

Having a great weekend so far. Yesterday, my parents and Keely and Jeff's parents came up to Olean to have the brunch buffet at the Old Library with us. It was yummy, I had a Belgian Waffle with thick hot fudge, strawberries amd whip cream. Even Keely ate a good bit, although she is very picky, and she asked every member of the waitstaff that went by us when her grilled cheese sandwich was coming. After we got home, we called Artie and Harriet and went to Mystic Water resort in Limestone to shag a few balls at the driving range and to play the mini golf course. The mini-golf course was very hard, a lot of angles and very fast. Artie won, but he only beat me by 4 strokes. Then we went to Togi's for dinner. We hung out at there house for a while and Harriet and I browsed fun things at one of my favorite websites. After that I came home and Jeff playing some Destroy All Humans while I got my Sims 2 fix for the day.


And onto my Sims 2 fix for today! Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Dream Blogging from the new bed

I had a long kind of strange dream early this morning. It started at some kind of fair, where people wore costumes. I saw 2 little girls dressed as bugs, one was a big blue beetle and the other was a blue and purple ant. From there, I was being rushed along a hallway, I got the sense that I was underground, in a subway system maybe. I was being pulled along by Jason Bateman, who I think was playing his Arrested Development character, Michael Bluth. We were going down some stairs when I noticed a funny door along the stair case. There was a tiny sign next to the store that said "Ye Old Records Shoppe, Golden Memories" When we forced the door open, the space dropped down beneath and we had to step on top of a refrigerator and a recline to get to the floor. There was an older man than, who at first looked like Jeffrey Tambor, also from Arrested Development. He looked more like Oscar than George Sr. though. There were all these strange old things, and a lot of things that looked like junk. There was a little wind-up diorama of a lumberyard or something, where you could see the little logs moving through and different little figures chopping them up, smoothing them out, and pushing them into a water way. At this point, Jeff (my husband) was there with me, and as we looked around, I realized that the store was full of things I had lost over the years. I found one old notebook with story ideas in it, mixed with doodles and school notes from college. But some of the things were changing, even as I looked at them. I picked up a picture of a little girl with glasses and flipped it over, and on the back it said "Jen, 1990" before the text faded and the picture disappeared" And I got worried. I said, "that wasn't mine, am I not supposed to be with Jeff? Did something go wrong?" And I was jumping and stomping around until there was thunder from the back of the room and monitor on an old computer on desk went black and then lightened again. The shop owner (still played by Jeffrey Tambor) said, "now don't get angry young lady, why don't you just sit down and rest a minute" And I fought him for a bit longer, but I did then sit down in an old plaid recliner in a dark, dusty corner. When I opened my eyes, Jeff was standing in front of the computer screen, which was now showing a dark sky filled with stars. I came to stand next to him, and the shop owner said to me "Now the only light you have in there to guide him is this," and he pointed to the diamond on my engagement ring. We seemed to be getting ready to skidoo, a la Blue's Clues, (Blue Skidoo, we can too!)
into the computer screen.

After that, we were underground in a coffin, and I think we were being played by Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock. They were both dry and corpselike, kind of like Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin's characters in Beetle Juice. We were trying to pile up other coffins to climb out. That was the end because my alarm went off.

That's all for now, I have to head to work. Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Reviews of my latest acquisitions

First - the new bed! The new bed is very comfortable, and I do feel like I am sleeping better already. I am having more dreams (none particularly interesting or meaningful) which indicates to me that I am getting more REM sleep. I wake up in the morning feeling refreshed and ready to go. I am very pleased.

Second - The Sims 2. It's dangerous, going back to an old addiction. I knew I was never really over it, it's just the new PC wouldn't run my old game very well. It was always just a matter of time before I broke down and bought the newest one. So far I have built houses for almost everyone I know in Bradford. What is strange to me is that Sims actually age and die now, so eventually I'll have generations of Sims in my little pretend Bradford. You can also build your own community lots right into your neighborhood, and I've built a little park, the Corner Bar, and Bradford Plaza. I like the Aspiration Aspect, it gives your Sims more to accomplish than just getting to the top of a career field. There are better cheats in this one too. There is the standard $1000 cheat, which is Kaching. There is also one to get $50,000 at once, which is motherlode. There have been a couple glitches that were annoying. When you are doing character creation, switching between different mouths and noses and eyes can leave your Sim ending up looking like a mask in a Halloween store rather than a person. I had a woman whose eyes dropped down almost level wtih her nose and her cheeks looked weird too. There was also a glitch when Jeff and I were raising Adam. When he transitioned from toddler to kid he was in the high chair and he got stuck. The only way to fix it was to move us out of that house and move into a new house. Which was a pain, because I had to rebuy all of our stuff. I decided to move us to a new house rather than moving back into the house I made that is laid out like our current apartment.

My next Sims 2 project is to make a sorority house for the sisters of Zeta Alpha Chi. Hilary helped me make up Sims for her and a few of her sisters when she was here last night.

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

I did a bad thing....

I bought Sims 2. So now you all know why I won't be posting for awhile. The character creation is so much more in depth than the original, but you can also use standard pre-made Sims if you just want to start playing the game. I haven't experimented with building much yet, but from what I've seen the tools are more flexible, so again, you have many more options than in the original.

Happy Beltane to all! No plans here, hoping the new bed will be here tomorrow.

My addiction calls... if you don't here from me for a couple weeks.... don't be alamred....

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Weekend Update

That skit on Saturday Night Live has not been as good since Norm McDonald got fired, but I digress.

This has been a busy weekend for us so far. Yesterday, we drove down to Camp Mountain Run and went to the wedding of two of Jeff's good friends from camp. It was drizzly and a little cold out, but the ceremony at the chapel by the lake was still lovely. The reception was very nice too. There was a beautiful cake with raspberry filling, and little appetizers to eat. I also thought it was incredibly sweet that the bride, Jenn, presented her grandmother with her own personal cake before the actual cake was cut, since yesterday was her grandma's special day, first, as it was her birthday.

Today we are going to graduation at UPB. Adam, Harriet, Artie, Hilary and Vita are all gradutating this year. Adam and Hilary will be leaving after today, but Vita is hanging out til June to take 1 last class, and Artie got a job here, so he and Harriet are now renting a house.

Currently, we are watching Ninja Warrior on G4 and it is awesome. I hope everyone can get outside today at some point,it looks like it's going to be a beautiful day!

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

We bought a new bed today!

Jeff and I went to Mattress City Sleep Shop in Foster Brook and purchased a Tempurpedic DeluxeBed. I am so excited! I tried all of my normal sleeping positions, and they were all very comfy. (Couldn't try any other positions, as there were other people in the store). It will probably be delivered next Wednesday (not 2 days from now but 9) I can't wait to see what kind of interesting dreams I have when I get a more restful sleep every night!

Adam and Vita are coming over to do some evil deeds with me in Jeff's D&D game. It is a very interesting game, the group dynamic in an evil party is very different than the dynamic in a good/neutral party.

Gotta go, Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Adorable

I read a forward once that said if you are feeling a little down, do a Google image search for baby penguins. And you know what, it works pretty well.

Sending out adorable penguin wishes to everyone who needs them, especially my Mini-Me, who has mono, Grey and his lady, my great-aunt Sarah, and Princess Molly.

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

The Full Update

For those currently out of phone reach.

I started drinking a lot more water than usual 2 Mondays ago now. I was also sweating heavily and going to the bathroom about as often as someone who was downing 100+ ounces of water during an 8 hour work day would. I was concerned that I might have diabetes, as those are all symptoms of that and I have the family history for it. So my doctor's office arranged for me to get blood drawn last Friday. I did that, and then went into work. I started feeling worse at work, week, and I was still downing liquids at an alarming rate. As it was Good Friday, my doctor's office was closed, so I couldn't get any test results til Monday. I didn't want to wait that long, so I left work and went to the ER. They drew more blood, and took X-rays. But my sugar level was normal, so was my thyroid, and everything else they checked. The CRNP I saw in the ER suggested that it could be viral, and to follow up with my regular doctor if I wasn't feeling better. She also scheduled a CT scan, just to cover all the bases. So I had the CT scan, and discovered my fun new allergy to iodine/contrast. I got a stuffy nose and some congestion for a day or so, but that's pretty much gone away. I'm still thirsty all the time, and my throat hurts. I called my doctor's office yesterday, and they agree with the CRNP, they think it's a virus. If I am not feeling different by Monday, I am supposed to call them back.

So that's the update, for my worried packsister, who is over the sea. Keep a good thought for me, hopefully I'll be better soon.

Merry Part and Blessed Be

Love love love

"It's like a loving octopus of loving tentacles suction." - Jeff, regarding me, when he got home from work. I was happy to see him!

First full day of work today in almost a week. I am feeling somewhat better, although still somewhat puzzled as to what was making me so thirsty. I had my first CT Scan yesterday, and I discovered that I am allergic to the iodine they shoot you up with to create contrast in the scan. So they gave me Benadryl and I slept for about 2 1/2 hours yesterday afternoon.

I am currently playing WoW, waiting for Ben to join me in the Hinterlands. Have a good evening!

A Poem (with my name in it)

Brother Paul! look!
—but he rushes to a different
window.
The moon!

I heard shrieks and thought:
What's that?

That's just Suzanne
talking to the moon!
Pounding on the window
with both fists:

Paul! Paul!

—and talking to the moon.
Shrieking
and pounding the glass
with both fists!

Brother Paul! the moon!

by William Carlos Williams

Baby-sitting

Tonight Jeff and I watched our nephew Aidan (Jess and Frosh's baby) for a couple hours while they ran some errands in Bradford. I changed him, and walked with him, and we gave him a bottle. Babies yell a lot, is something I have realized. It must be hard to be that little, and not be able to communicate what's wrong with you very well. You're wet, you cry, you're hungry, you cry, you are lonely, you cry, you are tired, you cry. He is absolutely adorable though. He can smile a little now, and he makes cute little giggly and cooey noises when he is happy.

I am tired now, and since thankfully I am not a 3 month old, I can put myself to bed. With a nice cup of tea.

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Shallow and Deep Thoughts

Shallow Thoughts - I saw two incredibly ugly cars today. One was a hot pink Taurus and one was this ugly shiny yellow-green Saturn. I think the color might be called chartreuse. They were eyesores and I hope they get charged higher insurance rates because they are so ugly that they are distracting to other drivers.

Deep Thoughts - I took a walk today when I got home from work. I walked over to Campus Drive and up to the gym, then back along the trail by the creek. On the trail there are stone benches that have been dedicated as memorials to those who have passed by their family and friends. It made me think about my Grandma Dot. I think a bench along a walking trail would be a fitting memorial for her because some of my favorite memories of her are taking walks with her and her sister, my Great Aunt Evie, on summer evenings. We'd walk about a mile, from her store in West Hickory out of town to the foot of Tank Hill and back. It was always interesting to hear her and Aunt Evie talk about the old school that used to be in West Hickory, the old houses we would pass, and the people who used to live in the area. And then I remembered that for some reason, in the spring I always end up thinking about death, and endings. This morning, I noticed that on my calendar that today is the anniversary of Scott Cunningham's passing. For those of you who don't know, Scott Cunningham is a rather prolific Wiccan author. His book, Wicca, A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner, was one of the first to say, "Not everyone can find a coven or a teacher, and this beautiful, Earth-based religion should be shared with anyone who wants to learn about it." So I lit a candle for him this morning while I drank my tea. It has always seemed strange to me that I think about death during the springtime, because spring is about new beginnings, and things starting over again. Life is blooming all around me. I saw buds and seed pods forming on the trees and bushes along the road and the trail today. Maybe it's the weather in part, because 50 degrees and a cold wind feels the same in October or March here in Bradford. Or maybe it's because before you can have a new beginning, there is always an ending. To plant new crops, you have to turn the old growth in the fields over into the soil. Death fertilizes life, and the Wheel Turns.

Merry Part and Blessed Be

Cavemen prefer full figured ladies!

I knew there was a reason I loved those Geico commercials with the cavemen! Check out this article from the Discovery Channel!

On the hunt

I printed up my first resume in about 2 years today. I will send it out with tomorrow's mail. The job is with Northwest Consumer Discount company, which is apparently a subsidiary of Northwest Savings Bank. The job would be at their Bradford branch. It'd be nice to work right in town, plus I bet they have banker's hours, so I'd have off every holiday and weekends too. So keep your fingers crossed for me! I am going to look for some other places to send resumes to.

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

What happens down in Mexico...

Apparently happens in my dreams. I had a dream shortly before waking up this morning that I was in this little Mexican neighborhood. I was following two men, and we went into this little house. The men ordered two beers and I ordered a tequila. The drink the women in the house prepared for me was strange. It was savory and cold, a brown and frothy. It had tequila in it, and garlic, and lime squeezed into it. Once I started drinking it, I head back out into the crush of people and found one of the men I had been travelling with. He was leaning over a beautiful young woman who looked like Natalie Portman. Maybe it was Natalie Portman. She rejected his advances, but seemed very interested in me. We were planning to go back to my seedy Mexican hotel room when I woke up.

And after I woke up and got around, the first thing I saw on TV was a Tempur-pedic commercial. Jeff and I are seriously discussing getting one once our tax refund comes in. And I just had the thought while writing this that if I have a more comfortable mattress, maybe I wouldn't wake up just when my dreams were getting interesting!

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Man V. Wild

Just surfing around the Discovery Channel website and found some video clips of our new favorite show, Man V. Wild. I think you ladies will see why I like the show so much. I was going to link a video clip, but it isn't working, so I just linked the main page for the show on the Discovery Channel website.

Enjoy! Merry Part and Blessed Be!

New Foamy!

I know I already posted, but I wanted to share this, since it made me laugh my ass off. Seriously, I just lost 5 pounds of ass due to this video. *Sigh* not really, but it is very funny.

Enjoy! And don't smoke!

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Update!

Sorry I haven't posted in over a week folks. I can't blog from work anymore, and we've been so busy at work that I don't even want to type when I get home. I have started a new WoW character, a blood elf hunter on the server Quel'Thelos. We ran out of room on Eldre'Thalas. Blood elves are hot.

A lot of stuff has been happening with other friends, but I figure, if you know them, you've already read their blogs. I do want to pass along some good news. Lisa, a friend of mine from West Forest, just had all of her scans come back telling her she is now completely cancer-free. So congratulations to her and her fiance, who has stood by her and supported her through her treatments over the past year.

I visited Michelle and her family yesterday. They've moved to the Kiwanis Court apartments on Bushnell St in Bradford, but I didn't know which apartment. But it was nice yesterday afternoon when I got home from work, so I went for a walk. I thought I could find her car, and then maybe there would be a mailbox, or a bell marker to tell me where to find her. But it turns out I didn't need to look for that, because as I was walking into the parking lot, Michelle's husband and her little girl, Sophie, were heading out to the store. So I got pointed in the right direction and I got to surprise Michelle. Hopefully we can see more of each other now that she lives within walking distance.

We also started a new D&D campaign. Jeff has had campaign written for an evil party for some time now, so last weekend Adam, Vita and I made up characters. They are both playing necromancers. Adam's character is an androgynous human, kind of like a Final Fantasy character. Vita is playing an orc necromancer. I am playing a half-ogre fighter named Kitta. We are currently staying in the Capital of the Empire, the city of Ankrada. One can find anything in Ankrada, for a price. Ankrada is also home to a great Arena, where my character has enjoyed viewing the gory, bloody violence. Our characters in Jeff's regular Thursday night game also discovered the wonders of the Arena. They signed up for some battles and won some gold, which is always nice. My bard, Tana, did not join in, as bards are not strong combatants.

I think that is enough of a post for now. Tomorrow I am going to Port Allegany to visit Jess, Aaron, and my adorable nephew, Aidan. Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Flying in an airplane

I had strange dreams again last night. In one, Jeff and I were going on a trip with my parents. My parents were flying in a little two man plane, and I had to follow them in my plane. I also had another dream with a plane where I was visiting Grey and Jessika, and one of the rats playing in the grass, then he knocked on a window to be let back inside. We went outside to let him in, and a silver plane flew over head with a red dragon painted on it, with Al's initials as the signature. I think she might have waved from the plane. I got the definite impression she was saying "hello!"

We watched the Riches on Monday and it was great. I highly recommend it. I don't want to say too much about the plot or I'll be giving things away. Eddie Izzard is wonderful, so is Minnie Driver, and I like the young actors playing their 3 children. Watch, on Monday at 10 on FX if you can. Also, you can catch the pilot again at 10 tomorrow.

Getting ready to eat dinner so I will end this here.

Merry Part and Blessed Be!

Just watched a man eat a Guinea Pig

We're watching Bizarre Foods on the Travel Channel. It's a very interesting show. Andrew, the host, is visiting Ecuador, where apparently guinea pigs are a delicacy. At the place he visited, he actually got to pick out which of the furry little buggers he wanted to eat, just like you'd pick out your lobster at a nice seafood place. He said it was delicious, but I don't think I could bring myself to eat something that looks like a giant roasted rat, plus is still looking at me. But I must remember that while guinea pig looks disgusting to me, there are Hindus and Buddhists who would look on all the cow I eat with the same level of distate. To each his own. And what I really like about this show is the host adopts an attitude of "When in Rome, do as the Romans do" He tries all the local food, from the local gourmet, to the local street food. He's now going through the jungle with some locals and preparing to lunch on some coconut grubs.

I'm off Monday and Tuesday this week because I have to work Saturday and Sunday both next weekend since the girl who works opposite me is going out of town. So next week I only get Monday off, which Jeff has to work. I am not too happy about this.

Anway, The Riches is starting on FX in about 60 seconds, so later!

Merry Part and Blessed Be!