Find your Grail!

Ok, usually I don't go for political stuff, but this is funny! "Prop 8 - The Musical" starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, and many more... by Jack Black Honestly, why would anyone care who wants to get married? Except perhaps the insurance companies, who will now have to cover an expanded family they have gotten out of covering until now.

Ok, whether on not you are a fan of either, or the TV show American Idol, this is pretty incredible. http://www.squirtsplace.com/wmv/ElvisCeline.wmv

Another gem from the e-mail bin: What bored engineers do when they retire.

I went to college back in the dark ages, (according to my kids) the late 70's early 80's. Since this year we dropped off a daughter at her college (more accurately helped her move in approx 5 tons of stuff into her mini apt), I was reminiscing about the days of yore. I realized what I remembered wasn't the classes, what I learned, what happened in politics that year. No, what I remembered best was the trouble I got into. :-D Our small college campus was set in a circle, around a central landscaped area with a flag pole in the center. There was a line around the central area of special exotic trees (Ginko's??) and a pond with a waterfall, all of which the College President was immensely proud. Did you know if you pour a whole box of tide into a pond with a waterfall, it will make enough bubbles to envelope the entire pond? One time we actually had drifts of foam across the campus. Did you know if you toilet paper all the trees around campus, the night before Parents Day,...

I grew up a military brat, so I am well aware that different areas of the country, and different cultures have their own rules of courtesy for parties and events in the home. I have had long discussions with friends on how the South and New England have their own versions of Emily Post manners. Now, let me relate to you some experiences I have had with a particular acquaintance, and see if there really are areas of the country where these would be considered good manners. When invited over for a dinner, where I made home made spaghetti sauce and my own fresh bread; this person showed up with a grocery store loaf and garlic butter, and proceeded to made garlic bread in my oven. No, didn't ask permission, and had been told not to bring anything as the dinner was planned. This is besides the fact the cheap garlic butter that was used made my whole house reek for days. Recently my college age son decided to have a Halloween party, which we told him we would help him with. This acquaint...

If you want to be a millionaire, I know of a specific item, which once designed and put into production, will end up in every office across the nation. I don't want any of the glory or cash for the invention, I just want you to create this for me, and millions of sufferers. Are you ready? Create an air filter you can put in a microwave, that will take out the nasty fish smell before it escapes and causes the whole office to hurl. Simple. Brilliant. You will make millions Oh, and also the nauseating smell of burnt popcorn (along with all those carcinogens we heard were in Microwave popcorn), also whatever was heated up that made everything smell like wet feet.(I don't want to know) Funky cheesy smells, onions, garlic, whatever. All the nasty smells people who share an office kitchen have to face to use the microwave. Don't tell me to clean it, that doesn't stop the SMELL! Once the microwave fan starts, any smelly thing percolating in there gets spread in a 50 mile radius...

This weekend I attended the Maryland Renaissance Festival in Crownsville. Good fun, I go every year. It was the last weekend, and the theme was 'Chivalry'. Everyone was dressed up in their Lords, Ladies, and knight costumes. The music was wonderful, food was good, lots of bowing, and 'My Lady' going around. It was the picture of medieval elegance..until you had to answer natures call. (key somber theme music)The Maryland Renn Fest has several areas of Port-o-potties set up. Open to all, and lots of them. Usually not any worse experience than your usual temp potty. But this weekend I was presented with not one, not two, but multiples (yes, I kept trying to find a clean one)of potties where some guy thought it hilariously funny to pee all over the entire potty. Yes, I know it was a guy, or group of guys, women can't aim up that high unless we have spider powers and can hang from the ceiling. Now I can understand a bit of drippage, it happens to all of us, but where is...

Just answer one question for me, why are we bailing out these corporations, to the tune of billions of dollars? Since when did fiscal irresponsibility and fraud become a reason to take money from hard working honest taxpayers and give it to corporations who pay top executives millions in golden parachutes and send officers on spa vacations? Did you think we wouldn't find out about the WaMu exec, who worked for 17 days, and left with 20 mil? This article by Johnathon Turley notes a who's who list of execs who walked out lining their pockets with gold. What about AIG, who received 86 billion in bailout funds, but a week later sends execs on a $440k trip to a posh CA resort. Article According to AIG the trip was for salesmen who 'Earned the reward'. Did they not get paychecks? If they were selling so well, why did the company have to scrounge money from the US taxpayer? Lets see, I feel I deserve a trip to the Bahamas, I've earned it. So why don't I take that tri...

For those of you of the horsey set, you know Monday Morning Syndrome as that when a draft horse has the weekend off, goes back to work Monday morning and has muscle spasms. This is caused by going from a high level of activity and calorie intake to a low level of activity without change in the feed. The horse then ties up and can have actual muscle damage. For those not into horses, now you learned something new! Humans don't seem to have this issue, I would say we have the opposite. We live nice, sedentary lives with office jobs, then on the weekends we turn into Rambo, Lance Armstrong, Robert Dover, and the staff from 'This Old House' all rolled into one. This past weekend, my husband and I decided to 'get things done'. This included serious yard work (moving bushes, pruning, digging a flower bed, putting down gravel on a path) a lot of house work (cleaning, organizing, bringing things down from the attic, putting things up in the attic, rearranging furniture and ...

As is usual in the blogisphere, I found Blogtations by clicking on interesting links from other blogs. It's an excellent way to find hidden jewels. (kind of like a video game, yeah..)When I come across diamonds, I have to sit and read the whole thing. That certainly happened with Blogtations . Currently on Blogtations , you are supposed to pick your favorite quote, and post it on your blog. No problem, as a newbie to the blog world, I'm thrilled anyone helps me come up with a topic! But, it's a hard choice! There are so many really good ones! Do I go for humor? or for poignant? the slice of life? I decided to post the one I most wanted on a t-shirt, which as we all know is the true measure of a writer, that something you said ended up on a t-shirt being sold on Cafe Press. Let me warn you that today I am sporting PMS colored glasses. ~Can't Remember Diddly! Link to quote. Yeah, I need that on a shirt, preferably hot pink. So, Blogtations , happy 500th, and for my 3 lo...

I'm new at this Blog thing, and still feeling my way. I'm not sur

Aye Matey's, it be that little known but much loved celebration of those who look on the world with avarice in their eyes. (or eye, as the case may be) Here's a bit 'o Pirate cheer for ye! This be the Pyrates Royale, from the Merry-land Renaissance Festival, and most jolie troop of scalawags. "It's all part of being a Pirate! (a pirate, a pirate!)You can't be a Pirate, with all of your parts."

This past weekend we flew to Sacramento Airport in CA for a family wedding. When we stopped in the restroom I found this on the wall. If you can't read it, the sign says "Property of Airport, do not remove." As you can see, it's attached to a tile wall, with nothing around it but more tile, and a sink, so what exactly are we not supposed to be removing? The sink? the tile? Perhaps the 6'x12' mirror behind the sink? There are no holes above the sign, (I looked, in case something WAS there, but had been callously removed despite the very clear sign) Zip, Zilch, Nada. Unless there was something invisible, (perhaps some new stealth towel dispensor technology being tested) I have to assume tile theft has gone to new and desperate highs in Sacramento.

What does 'Alternate' mean to you? I contemplated this on my way to work today. It must mean many different things to different people. I did some research. According to the Online Dictionary it means: al·ter·nate /v. 1. to interchange repeatedly and regularly with one another in time or place; rotate (usually fol. by with): Day alternates with night. 2. to change back and forth between conditions, states, actions, etc.: He alternates between hope and despair. 3. to take turns: My sister and I alternated in doing the dishes. 4. Electricity. to reverse direction or sign periodically. 5. Linguistics. to occur as a variant in alternation with another form. I tend to go for #3, esp when on 70E heading for the ramp onto the beltway. See there are two lanes, which MUST become one. This happens all over the US, and usually very smoothly. Here is the USA, we understand the taking turns concept. There is even a sign at this interchange to remind drivers "Alternate Right of Way....

In honor of the current Olympics, here are some moments of fun from the past courtesy of Paul Hunt. Balance beam Floor routine Uneven Bars I think this is hilarious, and shows incredible talent.

Neither did I! Found this info here Here is part of the article: Women Knights in the Middle Ages Were there women knights in the Middle Ages? Initially I thought not, but further research yielded surprising answers. There were two ways anyone could be a knight: by holding land under a knight's fee, or by being made a knight or inducted into an order of knighthood. There are examples of both cases for women. Female Orders of Knighthood The Order of the Hatchet There is a case of a clearly military order of knighthood for women. It is the order of the Hatchet (orden de la Hacha) in Catalonia. It was founded in 1149 by Raymond Berenger, count of Barcelona, to honor the women who fought for the defense of the town of Tortosa against a Moor attack. The dames admitted to the order received many privileges, including exemption from all taxes, and took precedence over men in public assemblies. I presume the order died out with the original members. Here is a description taken from Ashmol...

I got this from an e-mail passed around the world, I have no idea who the author is, so I can't credit them. I thought this was great though. A Dog's Purpose (from a 6-year-old) Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron,his wife, Lisa, and their little boy, Shane, were all very attached to Belker,and they were hoping for a miracle. I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home. As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience. The next day, I felt the familiar catching my throat as Belker's Family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was ...

Ok, you have all seen this commercial: So what do you see when you watch it? The man and his son are making root beer floats, and uh-oh, the glass falls over and spills. They discuss how many paper towel sheets it will take to clean it up, but the mom confidently tells them it only takes one Bounty sheet to do it. Then SHE cleans it up! Yep, same thing that happens every day in homes across America, males make a mess, stand around and look at it until the female comes over and cleans it up. This is a travesty! This is perpetuating the belief that males do not have to clean up after themselves! That some female will come along and clean it up for them. I would say we need to fight against this brainwashing but, we all watch the commercial, we all see what happens, and we all think, Hmm..Bounty is better at cleaning up spills. Instead we should screaming into the heavens "NO! If you make a mess, YOU CLEAN IT UP!" (also we should be boycotting Bounty) Just so you know, both my...

Ok, my mom just sent me a link to Celtic Thunder's website , and a you tube video. They are incredibly talented, but this one song is guaranteed to bring tears to your eyes. Unfortunately there is a line of text across the video, but the music is unimpaired.

Have you heard of this? I have seen it on several sources, and thought there were maybe exaggerating, but it's true. Trash, esp styrofoam (which is forever!) and plastic washes off our shores, or floats down our rivers, and into the ocean. Because of the currents in the Pacific, it ends up in the Pacific Gyre, and area in the center roughly the size of the US. It's like a toilet that never flushes, just rotates around in there. So what happens when the Pacific is full, where do we flush it to then? Also I have seen photos of beaches where the sand is mixed with small, multicolored particles of plastic. Here is a website about a ship that is doing research on the Gyre, and get this, the ship is called Junk, because it is made of trash. Junk Blog The blog also had a nice list of site with more information. Suddenly I am going to get pretty insistent about recycling.

Ok, we've all seen it. The person in your office who just doesn't seem to 'get it.' They wear their tube top and low cut jeans with frayed holes to work. Flashing their 'muffin top' and piercings for all the world to see. Or the guy wearing cargo shorts hanging down his butt showing off his dingy boxers, and his faded Coors/Nascar t-shirt. They are why dress codes get written, and why Casual dress isn't allowed any more. With a nod to a past employer who once read a list like this in a town hall meeting (to riotous applause from the employees, and stern lectures from the suits later); and also a nod to Jeff Foxworthy, and 'You might be a Redneck..' You might not be wearing Business casual… 1. If you would normally wear it to a gym, it’s not business casual. 2. If it shows parts of your underwear, it’s not business casual. 3. If it has a beer logo on it, it’s not business casual. 4. It you accessorize it with chains and studs, it’s not business casual...

I found this on YouTube (of course!) For those not quite in the loop, this was an IT conference where the main discussion was the fact we are running out of IP addresses around the world on the internet. To fix this involves changing IP addresses from IPv4 to IPv6 which will multiply the number of available addresses. This fix, however, means all routers would have to be replaced by IPv6 compatible ones (hence the comment about Cisco stock!) It's totally geeky, with all kinds of inside jokes, and notice every person in the audience has a laptop, but I think it's absolutely hilarious.

On one of my e-mail lists, a lady posted about how her sons came to her farm, and did a days worth of work for her. She gratefully told them she owed them a big dinner, anything they want. They replied "All we want is your sausage gravy and biscuits." Obviously, that was a piece of their childhood that meant 'home' to them. We all have our 'comfort food.' The food we ate as a child, that no one could make like that one special person, mom, dad, relative or friend. Or food that brings up special memories. The food that means home, safety, and childhood joy. I have several, roast beef with brown gravy and Yorkshire pudding, Byrds Custard with canned mandrian oranges (the cheapest, and best dessert ever). Country fried steak with thickening gravy and mashed potatoes. Southern buttermilk biscuits (with country ham, or sausage gravy, yumm!). Of course Oreo cookies have to be on the list too. Notice none of these are probably good for me, but if I need to sit down ...

A week ago, on the Junk Drawer Blog , (one of the better written and funnier blogs out there) we were discussing nose issues. (It's a long story, just go read the blog ) In the discussion I mentioned my horse breaking my nose, and some interesting fun I had at work because of it. I was challenged to provide the whole story of said incident. Some years ago (aprox 14) I was horseback riding with a good friend (who shall remain nameless because strangely enough she is a main part of most of the stories I have of getting injured on horse back..hmmm) Anyway, this friend was riding Horse du Jour from my herd, a spritely 15 h grey Arabian gelding. I was riding my green broke 16 h black TWH mare Shadow who was about twice the geldings weight, and not very graceful. Said friend led the way, tripping along on the gelding, across a murky stream, hopped over a log on the other side and continued on the trail. My mare got halfway across the stream, and promptly sunk past her knees in muck. (we ...

Two years ago this past December, we bought a house with a lovely garden. included in this garden was a small pond, with either small Koi or huge goldfish (can't tell the difference myself), and a few lily plants. We waited for spring with great anticipation to see what would bloom. We also decided to hold our wedding reception in the back yard. Imagine our surprise to find an invasion on the night of our wedding reception. It seems al the neighborhood toads decided to join in the nuptuals by using our pond to conduct their courtship. At first it was simply humourous, but the toads throw a noisy party. They soon were so loud they were drowning out our DJ! It made for a memorable wedding reception, with only a few jokes. Later that year, the pond was first filled with black tadpoles, then little toadlings, but they all moved out eventually. The lone leopard frog and the goldfish in the pond avoided the toadlings like the plague, and seemed to sigh in relief when they finally left. T...

What can you expect from a person who takes inspiration from a Monty Python Broadway musical? It's rather indicative of my mind set...a little off center, definitely warped sense of humor, curious about things no sane person cares about. For example, did you know the moon weighs 73,600,000,000,000,000,000,000 kg? My first thought is, ok, who weighed it? Since I'm guessing no one snuck a scale up on one of the moon landings, it's a estimate based on scientific formula. (a guesstimate, by any other name). Now, is that earth weight, or moon weight, because gravity is different on the moon, so things are lighter. (I see a future in spa ownership on the moon, where everyone's weigh-in would be a happy time!) So which is it? And did anyone ask the moon if she wanted her weight published for the universe to know? (I read it in a Snapple cap, and confirmed it on Wikipedia) Is this the same scientific formula they once used to prove the earth was flat? How well did that work, eh...