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Wednesday, December 17th, 2008
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9:40 am
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I assume the Golden Globes and the Oscars and other various award shows are coming up.
I can't bear to watch. We all know who's going to win an Oscar. And I can't even say the name.
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(3 comments | comment on this)
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| Tuesday, December 9th, 2008
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3:17 pm - Need computer help
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Hi, does anyone know much about Microsoft windows?
My home internet was just fine last night, but this morning, it seems to have gone selective on me. It downloads most pages, but won't let me sign in for some things, or won't let me comment on a blog. Or it will download the header of a page, but no text. And it won't download some webpages...like my hotmail, at all. I uninstalled Defender antivirus, but that didn't work. I tried to update windows with Service Pack 2 -- no go. Tried to set automatic Windows update -- won't load the page. Tried to go to Mozilla to download Firefox -- won't let me go to the page. I'd like to download and update Internet Explorer, but I can't do that without a more recent windows than Service Pack 1.
Do I need to take my laptop to Geek Squad?
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(comment on this)
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| Thursday, October 30th, 2008
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3:33 pm
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That's what I get for being a political junkie. God I just want this election to be OVER!!!
Holy jeepers, Loreena McKennit released a new Christmas album on TUESDAY, and I haven't bought it yet! maybe it's because I don't usually get too excited about Christmas albums. But come on. It's Loreena. At least she chooses old traditional songs, and doesn't sing about those blasted chestnuts. Off to the record store...
I listened to a couple samples, and it sounds okay, if a little too much synthesizer. But please Loreena, put out another album of original stuff..
current mood:  excited
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(comment on this)
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| Wednesday, September 24th, 2008
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8:27 am
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| Friday, August 29th, 2008
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4:56 pm - O-BA-MA O-BA-MA
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Sarah Palin is a DANGEROUS choice for VP pick, especially if McCain wins. She is a PLACEHOLDER.
Here is the Rovian scenario:
1: Palin is a rabid fundie. She will pull in fundie votes. Not as many as Bush, but perhaps enough. They win. Sixth_queen seriously considers Canada.
2: High chance of McCain dying in office.
3: Palin, now President, appoints wacko fundie Supreme Court justices.
4: Meanwhile, Palin's handlers appoint a new vice president, a la Gerald Ford. Then they can pick anyone they please, probably business-fiendly Romney.
5: Romney runs the country from his VP chair a la Cheney. Palin becomes a figurehead, so her lack of experience is irrelevant.
6: In 2012, Palin is thrown out (easy -- manufacture some corruption, she's half there already), and she doesn't re-run. Romney, the incumbant, runs and wins.
This scenario alone is not enough to choose her, but it's enough to put her on the short list. Then, after Obama blew away 70% of the civilized world with his speech last night (the other 30% have no TV), the Repubs bascially had to pick a VP on the fly, and she was the next one on the list.
We CANNOT allow them to win.
current mood:  anxious
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(2 comments | comment on this)
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| Sunday, August 10th, 2008
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10:37 am
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I don't understand this Jensen Jared thing. I guess I missed a fanhood somewhere. Oh well.
Meh, work is not going well. After a disaster last fall with Boss S, I was switched to a new boss, L. And now I'm in conflict with L. And yeah, I guess I caused it. It was nothing major or specific this time -- L and I just have different ways of thinking about "career goals." I wouldn't even call it a "disagreement." I admit it, I went over L's head to try to get it worked out. It's a soft heirarchy, so it's not a big deal.
I'm not meshing well, so I'm going to ask to be moved back to Boss B, who originally hired me. B and I get along very well. But I'm reluctant to ask for yet another switch, because it makes me look like a wayward child who just can't get along. On the other hand, I only joined the L group on the request of the manager, so it's not like I'm being a total diva. The upper boss likes me and would probably let me switch.
Yeah, I know, I should be evaluated on the quality of work and not on who likes whom, but THEY are the ones who threw out the meritocracy, not me. When in Rome...
Speech therapy is going OK too.
The Olympic coverage is not so bad this year. They have severely cut down the up-close and personal stories. I guess they discovered that those stories are all the same. Andrea Kramer is not doing so badly with the sideline reporting either. She's trying to ask specific questions (how did you pull ahead in that 4th turn when Ryan was beating you by 1/2 length), rather than the intolerable "Tell me how you're feeling RIGHT NOW." However, I do wish they could stop bringing athletes into the studio for interviews. bad bad.
I went to the Ohio State Fair. I love going each year. I saw all the cattle and chickens and ducks and pigs (yuck) and milked a cow. I saw the Natural Resources exhibit where they have state wildlife like otters and bald eagles, a mid 1800's cabin, and a stocked creek for the kids to fish. Something I really like is the spot where they exhibit RV's and campers. The Small House crowd should take cues from RV desingers. Not a single inch of wasted space. And I admit it, I got cotton candy at the fair; it's a weakness of mine.
At the Fair, I also found the Ohio Democrats booth. I wanted to get an Obama pin or sticker. I was surprised to find that they were plumb RUN OUT of bumper stickers, stickers, magnets, pins, and even literature. They had the dregs of pamphlets of local Dems only. They had ONE Obama display sign on the table which they let me take. Keep in mind, this was 4 pm on the first Saturday of the Fair. There were another 8 days of the fair to go, and they were out of goodies already? That's a nice omen.
The Obama campaign people are brilliant. They are running positive political advertising nationallly during the Olympics, while running negative specific ads LOCALLY. ( Read more... )
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| Sunday, June 8th, 2008
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10:31 am
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Fun facts about Barack Obama...:
When Barack Obama calls 1-900 numbers, he doesnt get charged. He holds up the phone and money falls out.
Barack Obama can get breakfast at McDonald's after 10:30.
When Barack Obama falls in water, Barack Obama doesn't get wet. Water gets Barack Obama.
Barack Obama doesn't actually write books, the words assemble themselves out of fear.
In honor of Barack Obama, all McDonald's in Texas have an even larger size than the super-size. When ordering, just ask to be Baracksized.
Barack Obama CAN believe it's not butter.
( Read more... )
current mood: content
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(8 comments | comment on this)
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| Tuesday, February 19th, 2008
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2:30 pm
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Is anybody else strangely NOT caring about the new Hobbit movie(s)? I think it's going to be two movies, but I don't even care enough to look it up. I don't even know if there will be any backstory, or if it's just straight Hobbit. I guess I'll just wait until it comes out.
It's weird that I have a decided lack of interest, considering that I'm in the middle of re-reading LotR for the first time in 5 years. (Just finished the Henneth Annun chapter.)
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| Thursday, January 31st, 2008
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8:06 am
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I find it amusing that the Oscar show might be suspended/changed because of the writers' strike in Hollywood. I don't get it. What do the writers write? The monologue and the junk jokes that the actors stiffly read off the teleprompter? That's the WORST part of the Oscar telecast! If that's what writers do, I say good riddence. All you need is some host with poise to ad-lib his way through the "here are the nominees" "here are the winners" blurbs, like any MC. Any sportscaster could do it, no problem.
(btw, I don't know if poor Heath would be featured on the list of passed-away people, since he didn't die in 2007. He would be on next year's telecast.)
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| Tuesday, January 22nd, 2008
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5:21 pm
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| Saturday, July 21st, 2007
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11:03 am
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When I told people in my research field where I was going for my new job, one of them said, "Oh, they're a tight-knit community. They're big on personality match." At the interview, the two managers that hired me looked at each other and said "she's one of us." And indeed, I think they were right. This place is full of good people. So far, I've met the Sweet Women: the HR lady and the admin assistants. But the real asset here (IMO anyway) is the men! This place is packed with great men, all of them with their own strengths and weaknesses: ( men men men )
About 2/3 the guys are married; the rest single. I have no dating chance with any of them. And I like it that way. I am done with failed dating. ANd also, I have to be somewhat careful. I've felt the niche-love before, and paid for it.
current mood:  loved
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| Wednesday, July 18th, 2007
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6:16 pm
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I think I'm starting to break the Internet addiction. I used to come here to library to post, but I find that I am losing interest in it.
The other movie webstie I'm posting on is going through a period where they talk about themselves. I was only hanging on until Pirates 3 anyway. And when Pirates 3 turned out to be underwhelming, I lost interest.
Politics is starting to turn into a test pattern: lots of up and down noise, but basically a flat line. I *am* happy that The People are getting interested in politics again. And I am quite happy to see the end of the Arrogant Discourse that popped my blood vessels in late 2004. But beyond that, it's getting predictable.
Getting away from the Washington area really helped quell my ranting about the state of residential housing too. I used to think I hated apartments, but it turns out, I only hated my high rise. Now that my new apartment looks out toward a meadow with ducks and geese and bunnies and a coyote (yes I saw one), I feel much less trapped. I still eventually want a real house, but I'm not biting at the bit for it.
So I don't have much to say, and I like that. I needed a period where I stopped thinking about Big Things and started to think about Littler things, like what I'm going to do at work, or whether they had carrots at the farmers market, or what I'm going to wear tomorrow.
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| Tuesday, July 10th, 2007
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6:04 pm
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Some time ago I read Barbara Ehrenreich’s book Nickel and Dimed where she takes a job at Wal-Mart to see what it’s like. Well, the book was rather poorly written, but I did take home one fact: Wal-mart rotates the positioning of its stock so that people who shop there every day don’t see the same merchandise. Wal-mart wants customers to think it's new stuff, even if it's not really new. When I first read that, I had no trouble believing that Wal-Mart rotated its stock; I did have trouble believing that there were people who went to Wal-mart every day. Now that I live close to a Wal-Mart, I understand. Going to Wal-Mart is sort of like entertainment, like.. "It’s hot outside, not much to do…Heyyy…let’s go to Wal-Mart and ogle the ooh-shinies. I needed a pack of screws/bottle of bubble bath/watering can/six-person camping tent anywa…ooh look! Plastic hangers for 99 cents! And tater tots are on sale…"
I almost stopped by Wally’s on the way home a few times myself. I have to keep in mind that Wal-mart is flippin EVIL… EEEVIL! Or so I’m told. But, after searching Target, Meijer (another type of Wal-Mart), and the entire mall, it was Wal-Mart that had the pajammies I liked best. I have also, on a “whim,” begun to buy far too many bags of the Wal-Mart toasted coconut marshmallows – the kind that are as hard and crunchy as the earth’s crust on the outside, and as soft and gooey as a romance novel on the inside. Embarrassing! Here I am with a brand-new rowing machine with which I intend to Get Ripped. And now I've developed a healthy respect for marshmallows. Gah. Well, I have used the rowing machine a few times, and it's been too hot to exercise... I’m trying to Rip, really. I'll keep plugging away at it. Rome wasn’t built in a day.
I love living on the ground floor apartment. I made the mistake of feeding the family of mallard ducks some old bread one day, and now they remember where I live. Every couple days they invade my back patio, quacking away. Devious little buggers: I think they have a whole directory of compadres to call on for their six meals a day. One day I saw the mallards happily quacking on the sidewalk. Odd location for a celebration, I thought. It's not even in the shade. It took a moment for me to spot the young guy tossing Cheeze-its off his balcony. Well, I'll have you know that *I* only feed them healthy stuff -- leftover pita bread and rice. Organic, no less. :-P
Today I read on CNN.com that Ford is 5 years away from putting a plug-in hybrid in their showrooms. Well good. I want one, but not for a while. I figure my current car will last me 10 years or so. And by then, Ford and probably GM will offer plug-ins too. And hopefully I’ll have an individual driveway next to an individual house where I can plug it in. But, of course, what earth-friendly plug-in hybrid will Ford be offering? A Ford Escape. A !*&#@% SUV. Oh PLEEEZE, Ford! Is your marketing department that drunk? Tree-huggers will know right away that Ford is "greenwashing" -- that is, they are pretending to be env. friendly when they are really just trying to make profit from both the treehuggers AND the SUV fans. But the two demographics are so far apart that in trying to please both, Ford will likely please neither. Didn’t they learn this lesson from their regular hybrids? If Ford really wants plug-ins to catch on (and I'm not sure they do), they should aim for ultra-high mileage. Make a plug-in Escort first, then worry about SUV’s. sigh. Ford will jump out first, make some money from the novelty. Then Toyota and Honda will make their own plug-ins, only they will be smaller, cheaper, more reliable, more efficient, and more appealing to the target market. And they will overtake Ford and GM, just as they did in the past.
Yesterday, I found out the politics of my new boss. After the 2004 election, he and his wife briefly considered moving to Canada but decided not to. WELL. I guess that says it all. I told him I had a narrow conservative streak in me. He got all suspicious and asked me in what areas was I conservative. I had to answer that I was not a fan of illegal immigrants who don’t bother to learn the most rudimentary of English but boy howdy, they know how to apply for welfare and demand that their (many) children get extra help in school. And I brought up how I don’t like that Americans have begun to depend on other countries for strategic items like frozen peas from China and liquefied natural gas from god-knows-what war-torn country, and at this rate the only product the US will have left to export will be democracy, and how's THAT working out? My boss seemed to be satisfied with that. Then he told me I could buy local food, and hadn’t he heard there was farmer’s market some…where...maybe I could try that?
Yeah, I think we’ll get along.
current mood:  busy
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| Wednesday, June 27th, 2007
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5:42 pm
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In case anybody is still interested (and in case I missed reading it somewhere), the AFI has re-released its 100 Greatest Films of All Time. Citizen Kane is still #1, but Fellowship of the Ring has settled comfortably at #50. Woo-Hoo!
Nothing much new to report at the job, and that's a good thing. One fun fact at work: our screen savers kicks in after 10 minutes and locks the computer, and we have to put in our password to unlock it. And we have to change our password every 3 months, and it has to have a capital letter and a number in it, and it has to be different from the previous 24 passwords, so I can't rotate between 2 or 3. How am I gonna come up with all these passwords...hmmm. Oh, I know! [brilliance] I'll just put in the names of all my ex-boyfriends, and the year we dated. That should take me through all 24. Go me! [/brilliance]
I did meet a co-worker who is also going to start looking for housing next summer, as I am. Would you believe it -- he didn't know what an "interest-only" loan was. And he shares my same uneasiness with the "condo" lifestyle.
current mood:  snarky
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| Tuesday, June 19th, 2007
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6:28 pm
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I'm going shopping nearly every day. It seems that I always need something or other, from more trouser socks to crystal salt or a second veggie peeler. And yes, that includes the EVIL Wal-Mart. But you know what? I've been to Macy's, I've been to Nicer Target, and I've seen a few mom-an-pop stores. And either I don't like what they have, or they don't have it in stock, or something. But Wal-mart is always there. I'm NOT going to Wal-Mart because of price. So I use Wal-Mart as a second or third option. Sue me.
I'm getting used to the car culture. Yes, you need a car to survive out here. And yes, I know about peak oil. But, you know what? If peak oil REALLY hits, and we have to scramble for gas, I want to be out in Car Country. The alarmists say it will be easier to go to work, or go to the grocery in cities. Might be so. But Peak Oil means MUCH more than figuring out how to go to work, or how to get to Wal-mart. If there's no gas, there won't BE any "going to work" in the traditional sense. And sure, you can walk to a city grocery, but the food doesn't walk to the city grocery. If peak oil really hits, the cities will suffer far more than the country will. They say Ohio is a poor state. I don't agree. We have good soil, cleared land, adequate rainfall, and Amish! I don't call that poor.
Saturday, I finally made it to a farmer's market. I was very surprised at the town. I'ts inside the highway loop, but it felt so small-town and homey with a historic district. I happened to hit the same day as their local outdoor art fair, so it was crowded. And I am SUCH a farmer's market snob. I didn't get a good handle on the size of the market because there was so much other stuff going on, but it's definitely not Dupont Circle. Dupont is one of the Top 10 markets in the nation; during peak harvest I get ALL my food there and never go a store at all. This littler one is not so comprehensive. But I did get some lettuce and peas and tomatoes and maple sugar. They ran out of strawberries. I'll try again next week. But it looks like I'll be going to Whole Foods a lot too.
The job is going well. I just calculated that the cost of shelter/utilities/transport here is almost exactly the same $$ per month as it was in Maryland -- and that includes all the insureances and car payments.
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| Saturday, June 9th, 2007
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11:53 am
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Regardng PotC 3: It sounds like there will be an extended DVD, or at least a DVD with a cut-scene reel. I got a little background of a couple left-out scenes, and it will totally change my opinion of at least one of the plotlines.
Meanwhile, I'm getting used to the new job. ( whining about the past )
Well I'm here now and doing pretty good. Next week I get serious with doing lit research. The only news I've read has been the CNN headlines. It's quite a change from endless hours reading DailyKos and the Housing bubble Blog. ha, sounds like Bush is liked less every day. But I ahve real co-workers now! And I got moved from a cubicle to an office, with a window. And now I am being asked to "innovate." Well, that's fitting. Most of my science has been cockamamie anyway, might as well stick me there.
current mood: cheerful
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(6 comments | comment on this)
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| Wednesday, June 6th, 2007
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6:04 pm
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as I said, I'll be spending a lot less time on LJ. I still don't want to hook up internet at home. At work, I'm still afraid to go to anything but CNN and the weather, and soon I'll be to busy to care. So, I'm limited to the public library with its 60 minute limit. I can go back to writing long posts in Word and then putting them up, but I haven't gotten my act together yet. I'm still outfitting my apartment and configuruing my system of living to the car culture. Like, today my evening will be taken up by screwing together bookcases. And I have to go to EEEVIL Wal-Mart for car stuff, like a water squeegie for wet windows, and a license place frame ( I am NOT using the dealership frame). Yeah, Wal-Mart is evil, but Targhay didn't have what I wanted.
Yeah, I finally went to see PotC 3. It was okay/meh. At the end, everybody is almost exactly the same place they were at the beginning, except Elizabeth and Will, and they are both worse off. The only plot worth following was the whole Flying Dutchman mythology. And the ending...well, all I'll say is I'm very glad that they kept Will to be honorable. He's the only character worth thinking about, actually.
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| Tuesday, May 29th, 2007
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11:20 am - I'm just as boring here a I was in Washington
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Ironies du jour:
1. Just outside the front door of Dick's Sporting Goods, there was a hot dog cart doing brisk business.
2. Apple tree saplings are usually $20-$25 from a reputable nursury. But at a Super Wal-mart in eastern Ohio, the garden center featured apple tree saplings for ten dollars. "Always low prices! Always!" screamed the sign. Okay, seriously? Even the folks at Tightwad Central wouldn't stoop to save ten bucks on an apple tree. That's like buying a Yugo for your grandchildren to enjoy.
I haven't read a lot of my flist yet because I have yet to see PotC 3. I don't quite know the theatres around here. But I got a good recommendation of where to go -- from the lady at my new bank, of all places. Stopped by the new office to drop off the rest of the paperwork. Shopped at Whole Foods and forgot to buy butter. Shopped at the Eeevil Wal-mart (for Rubbermaid containers, not apple trees). Said "quack" to Duck Family as they waddled past my bedroom window on their afternoon constitutional. And in a feat of yet more patheticness, I broke in my virgin cookware by burning an egg.
Today is Car Day. I have all my ammo assembled for the Great Battle at the dealership, but I'm still nervous as a sunofabitch. I think I'll break in the new vee-hickle (that's how they pronounce it on the news) by driving to see Pirates 3.
current mood: anxious
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| Saturday, May 26th, 2007
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1:51 pm
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Hi all.
Oh hell yes, the move is completely done, and I'm in Ohio for good. Moved my stuff, shopped until I dropped, *hummina*hummina* dollars on new apartment stuff, survived a drug test (o joy), returned to DC for some work with my new employer, flew back, and am now cleaning up rest of the paperwork. Only one more big thing to do before starting work -- buying a car.
I'll likely be online a lot less now. I don't want internet at home because I'm an addict, and I'm NOT doing goofball at work. (yay, public library!)
Gotta to, my online time is limited.
current mood: accomplished
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| Wednesday, May 9th, 2007
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8:10 am
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Okay, I have officially decided that PBS Flab TV is crack. Everyone else gets all hyped up over American Idol and Deal or no Deal and House (which I admit is pretty good), but...but Micheal Wood was looking for the Queen of Sheba! There are a million good books I could be reading...but...but there's a series on the history of The Mormons! They finally found the bodies in Herculaneum! Now I know hwy the Bancroft family is starting to waver concerning their sale of the Wall Street Journal to Rupert Murdoch! An unusual temperature gradient in the ocean on the southern tip of Africa forces all the sardines into a narrow strip of water, so sharks gather to 'em up! Is it just me, or is Masterpiece Theatre making John Jardyce from Bleak House out to be subtley gay? Leigh Keno said that $2 garage-sale chair was actually an original Federal piece appraised at $1500! Margaret Warner is in Paris for the French Electiona! How can I NOT find out about all this?! ugh I can physcially feel my butt growing along with my brain.
( And two quickie negative comments )
current mood:  bloated
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